March came in like a lamb, as far as the markets were concerned. With the major markets retreating from all-time highs, it began to look like the Trump rally was spent. Judging by the most shorted stocks traded on the Nasdaq, short sellers overall seemed fairly enthusiastic about that. Moves in those shorted stocks were mostly positive between the February 28 and March 15 settlement dates.

That was most notable with Frontier Communications, which saw a double-digit percentage gain in the number of its shares sold short. Bucking the trend were Sirius XM and Opko Health, though the declines in their short interest were very modest.

Note that only three Nasdaq stocks had more than 100 million shares short as of the middle of this month. However, two of them remain very far ahead of the pack.

Sirius XM

The more than 277.25 million Sirius XM Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: SIRI) shares short by mid-March was barely lower than on the previous settlement date. That was still the second greatest number of shares short so far this year, as well as 18.0% of the float. At the most recent average daily volume, it would take less than 11 days to cover all short positions.

Note that Warren Buffett indirectly owns Sirius shares. The stock ended the two-week period more than 4% higher, though it was up almost 7% at one point. The Nasdaq rose less than 2% between the settlement dates. The stock is currently trading more than 14% higher year to date. It closed Friday at $5.10 a share, in a 52-week trading range of $3.74 to $5.53.

Frontier Communications

After rising more modestly in the previous two periods, the number of shares short in Frontier Communications Corp. (NASDAQ: FTR) jumped about 15% more to almost 273.44 million as of the most recent settlement date. That was 23.6% of the telecom’s float, as well as the 14th consecutive period with more than 200 million shares short. The daily average volume rose sharply and the days to cover dropped from more than six to around five.

Frontier lost perhaps its biggest bull during the period. The share price was down more than 17% by the middle of the month. The stock has continued to fall since then and hit a 52-week low of $1.92 on Friday. Shares closed most recently at $2.09. The 52-week high of $5.77 was seen almost a year ago.

AMD

By the middle of March, Advanced Micro Devices Inc. (NASDAQ: AMD) had around 114.91 million shares short. That was a gain of nearly 10% from the total on the previous settlement date, and it was 13.9% of the company’s float. Note that short interest has grown in six of the past seven periods. It still would take less than two days to cover all short positions.

AMD landed a new street-high price target during the period, but the March 15 share price was more than 3% lower than on the previous settlement date, though it was down nearly 10% at one point in the period. The stock closed at $13.70 on Friday, still almost 21% higher year to date. Shares have changed hands between $2.60 and $15.55 in the past year.

Intel

More than 91.82 million Intel Corp. (NASDAQ: INTC) shares were sold short as of the most recent settlement date. Short interest rose more than 2% during the period to total 1.9% of the company’s float. Note that was the greatest number of shares short in nearly a year. As of mid-March, it would take more than three days to cover all short positions.

This month, Intel announced an acquisition that will expand its footprint, but its share price ended the short interest period about 3% lower. It has been essentially flat since and is now down about 3% since the beginning of the year. The most recent close of $35.16 a share compares to a 52-week trading range of $29.50 and $38.45.

Opko Health

Opko Health Inc.’s (NASDAQ: OPK) short interest of more than 73.40 million shares, as of the most recent settlement date, was down a little more than 1% from the previous period. And it was still 21.9% of the total float, as well as the second lowest number of shares short year to date. The daily average volume jumped to a year-to-date high, so the days to cover dropped from about 23 to less than 11.

For well more than a year, the CEO frequently has bought batches of Opko shares. The stock closed most recently at $7.85, in a 52-week trading range of $7.13 to $12.15. The share price ended the two-week short-interest period more than 3% lower, though it was down more than 11% at one point. The stock it is now more than 15% lower since the beginning of the year.

Novavax

Short interest at Novavax Inc. (NASDAQ: NVAX) was about 66.20 million shares on March 15, which was around the same as on the prior settlement date. That was the greatest number of shares short since October, though, as well as 24.7% of the biotech’s float. The days to cover rose from more than seven to more than 13 during the period as the daily average volume plunged.

Novavax posted a smaller than expected net loss at the end of February. Short sellers watched the stock sink around 8% during the settlement period. The stock pulled back more afterward and closed at $1.26 on Friday, which is about where it was at the beginning of the year. Both the 52-week low of $1.16 and the 52-week high of $8.49 were seen last September.

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And Others

Rounding out the top 10 were Comcast Corp. (NASDAQ: CMCSA), Yahoo! Inc. (NASDAQ: YHOO), BlackBerry Ltd. (NASDAQ: BBRY) and Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL). All four saw some gain in the numbers of their shares short, led by BlackBerry’s double-digit percentage rise.

Note that MannKind Corp. (NASDAQ: MNKD) dropped well out of the top 10 most shorted Nasdaq stocks due to a recent reverse stock split.

Also, short sellers moved on Groupon Inc. (NASDAQ: GRPN) in a big way, but not enough to lift it into the top 10.

And the most shorted NYSE stocks included Weatherford International, AT&T and Bank of America.

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