Late summer and early fall can make some investors nervous, and it can make for some interesting moves by short sellers. But judging by the moves in the six most shorted stocks traded on the New York Stock Exchange between July 31 and August 15, the short sellers seem to be cautious, even though the major indexes remain near all-time highs and the bull run is well more than eight years old now.
Among the two most shorted NYSE stocks, short interest hardly changed at all. The only notable increase in the number of shares short was seen in a struggling retailer and failed merger partner that charged into the top six late last month.
Note that the top six stocks on the list all had more than 120 million shares short at the end of the most recent settlement period. In fact, all the top 10 had short interest of more than 100 million shares.
Chesapeake Energy
While the number of Chesapeake Energy Corp.’s (NYSE: CHK) shares short has risen in nearly every period so far this year, and it remains the most shorted NYSE stock, its short interest decreased most recently by less than a million shares to about 198,70 million. That was 22.2% of the company’s float. At the latest posted daily average trading volume, it would take about five days to cover all the short positions.
Chesapeake posted mixed quarterly results early in the period. Its share price ended the two weeks more than 19% lower, and it has slipped a little more since then. The S&P 500 saw only a fractional decline between the settlement dates. The stock closed most recently at $3.86 a share, after hitting a 52-week low of $3.76 this week, and now is about 45% lower year to date. Shares have changed hands as high as $8.20 in the past 52 weeks.
AT&T
The more than 170.41 million AT&T Inc. (NYSE: T) shares short on the most recent settlement date was barely any higher than at the end of July, once again affirming its place in the number two spot on the list. Also it still represented 2.8% of the float and was almost the highest level of short interest in at least a year. As of the middle of this month, it would take about nine days to cover all short positions.
It turns out that unlimited data plans like the one at AT&T have contributed to network congestion. In the first two weeks of August, short sellers watched the share price retreat by around 2%, and some more afterward. The stock closed most recently at $37.68 a share, which was more than 11% lower than at the beginning of the year. The 52-week trading range for these shares is $35.81 to $43.03.
Weatherford International
Weatherford International PLC (NYSE: WFT) remains in the third spot on the list, though the number of shares short dropped about 6% in the first two weeks of August to the fewest seen since back in April. The more than 135.27 million shares reported most recently represented 13.9% of the total float. The days to cover reading ended the period at around nine.
Weatherford recently named a new chief operating officer. The company’s shares were more than 12% lower at the end of the two-week period, though they have been relatively flat in the past week. The share price was last seen at $3.90. That was up from the multiyear low of $3.39 in early July, but handily less than the 52-week high of $7.09 from back in March.
Alibaba
Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. (NYSE: BABA) saw the number of its shares short dwindle more than 1% from the end of July, on top of a 4% decline in the previous period. And note that the more than 132.97 million shares reported totaled 5.2% of the Chinese e-commerce giant’s float. The daily average volume increased during the period, so the days to cover decreased from around 12 to about nine.
Alibaba posted strong quarterly results after the latest short interest period concluded. The share price rose almost 2% in the first half of August, despite being down about 2% at one point in the interval. It closed most recently at $175.00. That is more than 99% higher year to date. The 52-week low of $86.01 was seen last December, and the 52-week high of $177.00 this past week.
Rite Aid
The number of Rite Aid Corp. (NYSE: RAD) shares short increased sharply again in the first two weeks of this month, though it did not rise any higher on the list. Almost 125.70 million shares were short, after a rise of almost 9% by the latest settlement date. That represented 12.0% of the retailer’s total float. But the average daily trading volume fell to a 52-week low in the period, pushing up the days to cover to more than seven.
The stock has suffered since the merger deal with Walgreens turned sour. Though its shares ended the two-week period around 3% higher, they are currently down more than 72% since the beginning of the year. The stock closed most recently at $2.26 a share, which is just above the 52-week low of $2.21. Rite Aid shares hit a 52-week high of $8.77 early in the year.
Ford
After four periods in a row of short sellers shying away Ford Motor Co. (NYSE: F). The latest period saw an increase in short interest of almost 7%, bringing the reported number of shares short to more than 122.13 million. That represents 3.1% of the total float, and it was the 10th time this year that short interest was more than 100 million shares. It would take four days to cover all short positions, as of the latest settlement date.
Ford was one of the great American companies that have lost control of their narrative. Its share price ended the latest settlement period down around 3%. The stock has retreated more since then, and shares closed most recently at $10.71. That is more than 14% lower than six months ago. The shares have changed hands between $10.47 and $13.27 apiece in the past year.
And the Rest
Rounding out the top 10 were J.C. Penney Co. Inc. (NYSE: JCP), CenturyLink Inc. (NYSE: CTL), General Electric Co. (NYSE: GE) and Sprint Corp. (NYSE: S). Here again, the short interest moves were mixed and relatively modest. J.C. Penney led the upswings with a percentage gain almost as great as that of Ford.
Also of note, Bank of America Corp. (NYSE: BAC) lingers just beyond the list of the top 10 most shorted NYSE stocks, while a notable reduction in the number of Pandora Media Inc. (NYSE: P) shares short helped it drop even further outside the top 10.
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