Note that the top six most shorted NYSE stocks all had more than 110,000 shares short at the end of the most recent two-week settlement period.
There was about a 2% rise in the number of Vale S.A. (NYSE: VALE) shares short, the third consecutive period of growing short interest. The end of the month reading was around 215.85 million shares, but that was down from a year-to-date peak of nearly 250,000 back in April. At the current average daily volume, it would take around seven days to cover all short positions. A second-quarter earnings beat failed to impress. Vale shares ended the two-week short-interest period more than 7% lower, while the S&P 500 was essentially flat in that time. Vale closed most recently at $5.32, in a 52-week trading range of $4.91 to $14.12.
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After rising since the end of May, short interest in Chesapeake Energy Corp. (NYSE: CHK) added another 3.7% to around 201.34 million shares late last month. That was 30.7% of the company’s float, and the days to cover slipped to about eight. The stock caught an upgrade after the period ended, even though the share price dropped about 23% between the settlement dates. It has recovered a little since and closed at $8.21 on Tuesday. The 52-week high of $27.24 was reached almost a year ago, and the $6.85 low was seen last week.
Petróleo Brasileiro S.A. (NYSE: PBR), better known as Petrobras, saw the number of its shares short advance about 1% in the two weeks to more than 139.56 million. The days to cover was about four. The year-to-date peak short interest of around 146,000 shares was reached in April. Petrobras got some relief in court earlier in the month. Shares pulled back more than 21% in the period, despite struggling to recover a bit late in the month. The stock ended most recently at $6.25, down more than 14% year to date. In the past year, shares have traded between $4.90 and $20.94.
The number of AT&T Inc. (NYSE: T) shares short plunged in the final weeks of the month from more than 301.81 million to around 130.96 million. That was about 2.1% of the float, as well as the lowest level of short interest in more than a year. It would take about three days to cover all short positions, down from more than 10 days at the previous settlement date. AT&T also posted an earnings beat during the period, but shares were marginally lower by the end of the month. The stock closed most recently at $34.65, which was up a little more than 3% from the beginning of the year. The 52-week trading range is $32.07 to $36.45.
Sprint Corp.’s (NYSE: S) short interest grew more than 16% to more than 127.39 million shares in the latter two weeks of the month. That was 16.0% of the float and the largest number of shares short in the past year. The days to cover ticked up to about five. Ahead of the second-quarter earnings report, short sellers watched the share price retreat more than 16% in the two-week period. Shares closed at $3.85 Tuesday, in a 52-week range of $3.10 to $7.15. The stock is down more than 7% year to date.
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The number of Transocean Ltd. (NYSE: RIG) shares short swelled to around 117.72 million from more than 107.44 million in the period, or to 32.4% of the total float. That was the fifth period in a row of rising short interest. The days to cover was about eight. We noted Transocean’s low price-to-book value in late July. Shares ended the two weeks more than 12% lower. They have pulled back almost 8% more since, closing at $14.49 on Tuesday. Shares have traded between $12.08 and $39.69 in the past 52 weeks.
Rounding out the top 10 were Peabody Energy Corp. (NYSE: BTU), Ford Motor Co. (NYSE: F), J.C. Penney Co. Inc. (NYSE: JCP) and General Electric Co. (NYSE: GE). Of these, only J.C. Penney had a decline in short interest in the final weeks of the month. The number of shares short in Avon Products Inc. (NYSE: AVP) shrank too, allowing it to drop from the top 10.
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