The 6 Most Shorted NYSE Stocks

By Trey Thoelcke Updated Mar 13, 8:14PM EDT · Published Dec 12, 6:40AM EST

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The 6 Most Shorted NYSE Stocks — © Thinkstock

[cnxvideo id=”510061″ placement=”ros”]Late last month, the Trump victory had sunk in and the subsequent market rally was picking up steam as Thanksgiving and the holiday shopping season rolled around again. Judging by the most shorted stocks traded on the New York Stock Exchange, short sellers took a cautious approach, as moves in those stocks were downward but mild between the November 15 and November 30 settlement dates.

Sprint held on to its title as the most shorted NYSE stock during the period. The stand out, though, was a double-digit percentage decline in the number of Chesapeake Energy shares short.

The top six stocks on the list all still had more than 100 million shares short at the end of the most recent settlement period.

Sprint

After retreating more than 9% in the previous period, short interest in Sprint Corp. (NYSE: S) declined another 3% or so between the most recent settlement dates. The more than 147.09 million shares short reported totaled 23.2% of the float. At the most current daily average, it would take about 10 days to cover all short positions.

During the period, there was speculation about the odds of a Sprint and T-Mobile merger under a Trump administration. Sprint’s share price ended the short interest period more than 1% higher than where it began it, though it was down about 5% at one point. The shares are still up more than 128% in the past six months and closed most recently at $8.48. The stock hit a 52-week high of $8.98 last week, well up from the 52-week low of $2.18 early in the year.

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Bank of America

A more than 4% pull back in Bank of America Corp.’s (NYSE: BAC) number of shares short ended four periods in a row of rising short interest. The more than 142.46 million shares short at the end of the latest period represented 1.4% of the money center bank’s float. The average daily trading volume has risen for three periods in a row, and the days to cover now is less than one.

This bank was among companies that got a big boost from the Donald Trump election victory. Its share price ended the two weeks almost 5% higher, though it was down about 2% at one point. The stock has changed hands between $10.99 and $23.24 a share in the past year, and it closed at $23.09 on Friday.

Chesapeake Energy

On top of a 7% decline in the previous period, Chesapeake Energy Corp. (NYSE: CHK) saw its short interest tumble more than 10% to more than 115.24 million shares by the end of November. That was 15.1% of the float. Note that short interest was more than 200 million shares early in the year. As of the most recent settlement date, it still would take more than two days to cover all short positions.

The announced OPEC production cut was seen as good news for Chesapeake. The share price ended the short interest period more than 15% higher than on the previous settlement date, though it was down more than 2% at one point. The stock closed most recently at $7.72, up handily from the multiyear low of $1.50 early this year. The 52-week high is $8.15 was seen back in September.

Ford

The short interest in Ford Motor Co. (NYSE: F) pulled back almost 7% in the latter two weeks of the month, bringing the reported number of shares short to more than 112.64 million. That represented 2.9% of the total float, down from a high of about 4.4% in mid-March. It would take more than four days to cover all short positions.

Ford had strong sales results during the period, but after the share price sank more than 2% it ended the two weeks down only fractionally. The S&P 500 rose less than 1% in that time. Ford shares have changed hands between $11.02 and $14.38 apiece in the past year. They were trading at $13.17 on Friday’s close, which is in the same ballpark as six months ago.

Alibaba

Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. (NYSE: BABA) saw its short interest dwindle nearly 1% to more than 111.15 million shares by the end of the month. That was the lowest number of shares short since September, as well as 4.5% of the float. As of the most recent settlement date, it would take about 10 days to cover all short positions.

During the period, Alibaba opened four new data centers and acquired a grocery chain. Short sellers watched the share price rise more than 4% but give up about 1% of that gain between the settlement dates. The stock closed most recently at $93.28, which is almost 23% higher than six months ago. The 52-week range is $59.25 to $109.87.

Weatherford International

The number of Weatherford International PLC (NYSE: WFT) shares short surged in the previous period, but the final two weeks of the month reclaimed some of that gain. Short interest shrank by almost 4 million shares to about 102.73 million, which was 11.6 percent of the total float. At the most recent average daily volume, it would take about three days to cover all short positions.

This oilfield service company had a management shakeup in November. Short sellers watched the share price increase about 16% during the two-week period and more since. Shares closed most recently at $5.46. That still is down about 17% in the past six months, though. The share price has ranged from $3.73 to $9.47 in the past 52 weeks.

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And the Rest

Rounding out the top 10 were Vale S.A. (NYSE: VALE), Transocean Ltd. (NYSE: RIG), General Electric Co. (NYSE: GE) and AT&T Inc. (NYSE: T). Transocean bucked the trend with a modest bump in its short interest during the two weeks.

Note that Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (NYSE: FCX) dropped out of the top 10 most shorted NYSE stocks late last month, with its second period in a row of double-digit percentage declines. And lingering along with Freeport-McMoRan just outside the top 10 were Seadrill Ltd. (NYSE: SDRL) and Abbott Laboratories (NYSE: ABT).

Also check out the most shorted Nasdaq stocks in the final weeks of November.

About the Author Trey Thoelcke →

Trey has been an editor and author at 24/7 Wall St. for more than a decade, where he has published thousands of articles analyzing corporate earnings, dividend stocks, short interest, insider buying, private equity, and market trends. His comprehensive coverage spans the full spectrum of financial markets, from blue-chip stalwarts to emerging growth companies.

Beyond 24/7 Wall St., Trey has created and edited financial content for Benzinga and AOL's BloggingStocks, contributing additional hundreds of articles to the investment community. He previously oversaw the 24/7 Climate Insights site, managing editorial operations and content strategy, and currently oversees and creates content for My Investing News.

Trey's editorial expertise extends across multiple publishing environments. He served as production editor at Dearborn Financial Publishing and development editor at Kaplan, where he helped shape financial education materials. Earlier in his career, he worked as a writer-producer at SVE. His freelance editing portfolio includes work for prestigious clients such as Sage Publications, Rand McNally, the Institute for Supply Management, the American Library Association, Eggplant Literary Productions, and Spiegel.

Outside of financial journalism, Trey writes fiction and has been an active member of the writing community for years, overseeing a long-running critique group and moderating workshop sessions at regional conventions. He lives with his family in an old house in the Midwest.