With the holiday shopping season looking strong and tax reform seeming all but certain earlier this month, how were short sellers positioning themselves for the end of the year? Judging by the most shorted stocks traded on the Nasdaq between the November 30 and December 15 settlement dates they most stood pat, as short interest swings were mixed and minor overall.

Bucking that trend however was Cisco, which saw its second consecutive double-digit percentage increase in the number of its shares short earlier this month.

Note that still just three Nasdaq stocks had more than 100 million shares short as of the most recent settlement date.

Sirius XM

The more than 228.92 million Sirius XM Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: SIRI) shares short after the two weeks to December represented a gain of just 126,000 or so from the previous settlement date. The latest reading totaled 16.1% of the available float. Note though that the average daily volume surged in the period to the highest level since June, so the days to cover dropped from near 16 to more than nine.

Sirius XM channels recently became available on Apple TV. The stock ended the short interest period almost 2% lower than where it began it, despite being up nearly 5% at one point. The Nasdaq also rose less than 2% between the settlement dates. Sirius shares closed most recently at $5.39 apiece. That is less than the 52-week high of $5.89 seen near the end of July. The 52-week low of $4.40 was reached almost a year ago.

AMD

By the middle of December, Advanced Micro Devices Inc. (NASDAQ: AMD) had about 176.54 million shares short. That was down marginally from the total on the previous settlement date, which was the greatest level of short interest in the past year. The latest reading represented 19.6% of the company’s float. The average daily volume increased during the two-week period, and as of the latest posting it would take about four days to cover all short positions.

Analysts expect stellar growth from AMD in 2018. Its December 15 share price was more than 5% lower than on the previous settlement date, though the shares have recovered somewhat since then. The stock closed trading on Wednesday at $10.53 a share, which is more than 21% lower than six months ago. Shares have changed hands at between $9.42 and $15.65 apiece in the past year.

Intel

More than 152.46 million Intel Corp. (NASDAQ: INTC) shares were sold short as of the most recent settlement date. The figure grew by less than 5 million to the greatest level of short interest in at least the past year. That represented 3.3% of the company’s float. As of the middle of this month, it still would take more than five days for investors to cover all short positions.

Intel is a top pick for 2018 at JPMorgan. The stock ended the short interest period about where it began it, though it was down almost 4% at one point in the period. Intel closed most recently at $46.11 a share, which is down from a recent 52-week high of $47.64. The 52-week low is $33.23. The share price now is around 37% higher than six months ago.

Synergy Pharmaceuticals

Short interest at Synergy Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: SGYP) totaled over 74.64 million shares on December 15, after a decline of about 2% from on the prior settlement date. That represented a whopping 30.3% of the total float though, and it followed a 5% pullback in the previous period. The days to cover rose from more than 10 to over 11 during the latest period as the average daily volume shrank again.

This biopharmaceutical company is focused on treatments for constipation and irritable bowel syndrome. Short sellers watched the stock fall more than 12% but then rise and recover nearly all that ground by the conclusion of those two weeks. The most recent closing share price was $2.27, which is more than 48% lower than it was six months ago. The shares have changed hands between $1.68 and $7.15 apiece in the past year.

Comcast

Comcast Corp.’s (NASDAQ: CMCSA) short interest retreated less than 2% from in the previous period to more than 61.22 million shares on the most recent settlement date. That followed a 7% decline in the prior period, and it represented just 1.3% of the total float. The days to cover slipped to less than two for the first time since last September. Note that the year-to-date peak in short interest was more than 78 million shares back in May.

Comcast is seen as benefiting from changes to net neutrality. The stock ended Wednesday’s trading at $40.41 a share, in a 52-week trading range of $34.12 to $42.18. By the end of the short-interest period, the share price was about 7% higher, despite being up around 10% earlier in the month. The share price currently is nearly 3% higher than it was six months ago.

Cisco

Cisco Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: CSCO) saw the number of its shares short jump 15% to a year-to-date high. In fact, the almost 59.95 million shares reported as of mid-month was the highest level of short interest in at least a year. The most recent reading totaled 1.2% of the company’s available float. As the average daily trading volume shrank during the period, the days to cover figure grew to more than two.

This tech giant is poised to be one of the 2018 Dogs of the Dow. In the first two weeks of December, shares of Cisco increased more than 2%, and they continued that steady climb afterward to the most recent closing stock price of $38.56. That is up more than 21% in the past six months. In the past year, the shares have traded between $28.80 and $38.99 apiece.

Get Our Free Investment Newsletter

I have read, and agree to the Terms of Use

And Others

Rounding out the top 10 were, Micron Technology Inc. (NASDAQ: MU), Mattel Inc. (NASDAQ: MAT), Opko Health Inc. (NASDAQ: OPK) and TherapeuticsMD Inc. (NASDAQ: TXMD). Among these, only Micron saw a gain in the number of shares short. Mattel was the biggest mover, with a double-digit decline in its short interest by the settlement date.

Note that Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) saw an even bigger surge in its short interest — more than 32% — but it just missed returning to the list of the top 10 most shorted Nasdaq stocks.

And JD.com Inc. (NASDAQ: JD) and Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ: MSFT) also continued to linger just outside the spotlight of the top 10 in the initial weeks of this month.

Thank you for reading! Have some feedback for us?
Contact the 24/7 Wall St. editorial team.