Investing

The 5 Most Shorted NYSE Stocks

Trey Thoelcke

Published: January 11, 2019 6:10 am

Last Updated: March 13, 2020 6:41 pm

December turned out to be one of the most brutal for stock investors in many years. That should have been good news for short sellers, depending on how they had themselves positioned headed into the end of the year. Judging by the most shorted stocks traded on the New York Stock Exchange between the December 14 and December 31 settlement dates, those sellers were loading up on a few of their favorites.

Those stocks at the top of the list, Chesapeake Energy and General Electric, saw sizable increases in the numbers of their share short during the two-week period. On the other hand, Bank of America and J.C. Penney had modest declines in their short interest in that time.

Note that the five most shorted NYSE stocks had more than 120 million shares short at the end of the most recent settlement period. In fact, all of the top 10 had short interest of more than 100 million shares.

Chesapeake Energy

The number of Chesapeake Energy Corp.’s (NYSE: CHK) shares short jumped about 22% in the most recent period, affirming this oil and gas company’s spot at the top of the list. The reported short interest of more than 198.66 million shares represented 22.2% of the total float. The year-to-date peak back in March was over 210 million shares short. At the posted daily average trading volume on the latest settlement date, it would take about four days to cover all the short positions.

The volatility and market downturn had Chesapeake hitting new 52-week lows as the year wound down. Its share price dropped almost 25% but then recovered somewhat to end those two weeks a little more than 9% lower. The S&P 500 retreated more than 4% in that time. The stock now trades more than 21% higher than a week ago, and it ended Thursday at $2.73 a share. That still is almost 41% lower over the past 90 days. Shares have changed hands as high as $5.60 and as low as $1.71 in the past year.

General Electric

General Electric Co. (NYSE: GE) jumped into second place with around a 9% pop in the number of its short shares in the latter two weeks of last month. Note that it was the highest level of short interest since last March. The more than 152.09 million shares reported most recently represented 1.8% of the conglomerate’s total float. The daily average trading volume grew somewhat during the period, but the days to cover remained at less than one.

Restructuring moves at GE had some wondering if the parts were worth more than the whole. The shares ended the two weeks about 7% higher, despite being up about 12% earlier in the period. In the final two weeks of last month, the Dow Jones industrial average pulled back about 4%. GE’s share price was last seen at $8.94, up from a multiyear low of $6.66 last month. The 52-week high, seen early last year, was $19.39 a share. The stock has lost nearly a third of its value in the past 90 days.

Bank of America

Bank of America Corp.’s (NYSE: BAC) short interest in the latest two-week period slipped from more than 147.88 million or so shares to almost 144.28 million, allowing the stock to drop down one spot on the list. The most recent reading represented just 1.5% of the financial giant’s total float. At the posted daily average volume as of the end of December, it would take about a day to cover all short positions.

This stock likewise sank to new 52-week lows during the brutal month of December. While its share price ended the latest settlement period with a gain of around 3%, it had been down almost 7% at one point. The stock closed most recently at $25.73 a share, which is down about 12% in the past 90 days. The shares have changed hands between $22.66 and $33.05 apiece in the past 52 weeks, with that low seen on Christmas Eve.

Snap

Holding on to its place the list in the latest period was Snap Inc. (NYSE: SNAP), even though the number of its shares short grow more than 6% in the latter two weeks of December, essentially reclaiming a similar decline in the prior period. The over 136.34 million shares reported most recently represented 23.7% of the social media and camera company’s total float. At the daily average trading volume at the end of the year, it would take about seven days for investors to cover all short positions.

The company lost its second hardware chief in a year back in December. The shares ended the latest settlement period almost 6% lower, though they had been down about 17% before Christmas. The shares were last seen changing hands at $6.22. That compares to the 52-week low of $4.82 reached during the short interest period. The 52-week high, seen almost a year ago, was $21.22 a share. The stock now is down more than 5% in the past 90 days.

J.C. Penney

The number of J.C. Penney Co. Inc. (NYSE: JCP) shares short decreased more than 2% from the previous settlement date to more than 122.21 million at the end of December. That was a whopping 40.6% of the department store operator’s float, and it would take about 11 days for sellers to cover their short positions at the latest daily average trading volume. Note that this stock had topped the most shorted NYSE stocks list back in November.

This struggling retailer’s shares became a penny stock during the holiday shopping period. Short sellers watched the share price pop about 9% early on but then end the period down nearly 11%. However, the stock has jumped 20% or so this past week and closed most recently at $1.28 a share. That is still about 28% lower than three months ago. The 52-week low, seen in during the period, was $0.92, while the 52-week high of $4.75 was reached early last year.

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And the Rest

Rounding out the top 10 were Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. (NYSE: BABA), Weatherford International PLC (NYSE: WFT), Rite Aid Corp. (NYSE: RAD), Ford Motor Co. (NYSE: F) and Infosys Ltd. (NYSE: INFY). The first three in this group saw at least some shrinkage of short interest, while the number of shares short grew for the latter two during the two-week period.

Sprint Corp. (NYSE: S) had a double-digit percentage gain in its short interest and it once again found itself just outside the spotlight of the top 10 most shorted NYSE stocks. Not far behind it were CenturyLink Inc. (NYSE: CTL) and Southwestern Energy Co. (NYSE: SWN).