Short Sellers Run For Cover From Major Oil Stocks

By Chris Lange Updated Mar 13, 6:21PM EDT · Published Jun 12, 11:07AM EDT

Short Sellers Run For Cover From Major Oil Stocks — © Thinkstock

Crude oil has been trading near $66 a barrel early on Tuesday. This is the lowest that crude oil has been at since mid-April. This comes after oil reached above $70 in late May for the first time in years. If anything, this drop might offer some stabilization, but how quickly oil will recover and then some is yet to be seen. The current crude price still pales in comparison to what it was in 2014.

The May 31 short interest data have been compared with the previous figures, and short interest in most of these selected big oil stocks were decreased.

Chevron Corp. (NYSE: CVX) saw its short interest decrease to 19.62 million shares from the previous reading of 22.63 million. The shares were last seen trading at $128.04 in a 52-week range of $102.55 to $133.88.

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Short interest in Exxon Mobil Corp. (NYSE: XOM) decreased to 34.16 million shares from the previous level of 36.74 million. The stock traded at $83.39 within a 52-week range of $72.16 to $89.30.

BP PLC (NYSE: BP) short interest rose slightly to 5.21 million shares from the previous reading of 5.10 million. Shares traded at $46.64 in a 52-week range of $33.90 to $47.83.

The number of ConocoPhillips (NYSE: COP) shares short dropped to 18.27 million from the previous level of 21.33 million. Shares were trading at $70.01 within a 52-week range of $42.27 to $71.71.

Short interest at Petroleo Brasileiro S.A. (NYSE: PBR), or Petrobras, increased to 47.03 million shares from the previous 43.13 million. The stock traded at $9.89 a share in a 52-week range of $7.61 to $17.20. Unfortunately, Petrobras may be trading on an entirely different set of fundamentals and sentiment due to its ongoing woes in Brazil.

Occidental Petroleum Corp.’s (NYSE: OXY) short interest decreased to 8.98 million shares from the previous reading of 12.50 million. Shares recently traded at $85.66 in a 52-week range of $57.84 to $87.67.

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About the Author Chris Lange →

Chris Lange is a writer for 24/7 Wall St., based in Houston. He has covered financial markets over the past decade with an emphasis on healthcare, tech, and IPOs. During this time, he has published thousands of articles with insightful analysis across these complex fields. Currently, Lange's focus is on military and geopolitical topics.

Lange's work has been quoted or mentioned in Forbes, The New York Times, Business Insider, USA Today, MSN, Yahoo, The Verge, Vice, The Intelligencer, Quartz, Nasdaq, The Motley Fool, Fox Business, International Business Times, The Street, Seeking Alpha, Barron’s, Benzinga, and many other major publications.

A graduate of Southwestern University in Georgetown, Texas, Lange majored in business with a particular focus on investments. He has previous experience in the banking industry and startups.