Investing

The 6 Most Shorted Nasdaq Stocks

Trey Thoelcke

Published: December 12, 2018 7:20 am

Last Updated: March 13, 2020 7:55 pm

By the time Thanksgiving rolled around, investors and traders likely would have been grateful for a break from the six weeks or so of volatility and sell-offs. By then, the major U.S. indexes were in the red for the year, and some sectors and many individual stocks remained in bearish territory. By the end of last month, many were likely ready to put the year in the rearview mirror and figure out how to position themselves for the coming year.

Judging by the most shorted stocks traded on the Nasdaq between the November 15 and November 30 settlement dates, those sellers were looking for direction, as moves were mixed and mostly mild. Qualcomm stood out, though, with a double-digit percentage decline in its short interest.

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

Sirius XM

The almost 214.84 million Sirius XM Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: SIRI) shares held short after the final two weeks of last month were about 6% greater than on the previous settlement date, or 16.9% of the available float. The average daily volume increased marginally from in the prior period, but the days to cover remained at more than seven. Note that short interest was less than 200 million shares in seven of the past 10 periods.

Weakness in the second half seemed to signal a possible end to a decade of yearly growth. The stock ended the final two weeks of last month trading about 1% lower, though it had been down more than 7% earlier in the period. The Nasdaq rose by more than 3% between the settlement dates. Sirius stock closed at $6.26 on Tuesday, which is less than 2% lower than 90 days ago. The 52-week low of $5.17 was reached early this year, while the $7.70 multiyear high was seen back in June.

AMD

By the end of November, Advanced Micro Devices Inc. (NASDAQ: AMD) had almost 118.18 million shares short. That was more than 2 million fewer than the total on the previous settlement date, and the second lowest level of short interest in the past year. The latest reading still represented 12.4% of the company’s float. And though the average daily volume retreated for the fifth straight time, the number of days it would take to cover all short positions remained a little more than one.

During the period, Jefferies saw AMD as a contrarian call. Short sellers watched the share price increase about 6% during in those two weeks, and even more to begin December. But the stock closed trading most recently at $19.98 a share, which is just 2% or so higher than three months ago. It also compares to September’s 52-week high of $34.14. Shares have changed hands at as low as $9.04 apiece in the past year.

Caesars Entertainment

The short interest in Caesars Entertainment Corp. (NASDAQ: CZR) ended three consecutive periods of decline. The number of shares short grew by almost 6 million most recently. The approximately 104.50 million shares posted for the latest settlement date represented 19.1% of the total float, and note that there have been more than 100 million shares short in six of the past seven periods. The days-to-cover figure jumped from over four to about eight as the average daily volume continued to shrink in those two weeks.

Caesars seemed to be catching the eye of some hedge funds in the third quarter. But its share price ended the initial two weeks of the month nearly 2% lower, despite being up almost 13% at one point. The stock ended Tuesday’s session at $7.17 per share, which is down around 9% over the past 90 days. Its 52-week trading range is $7.07 to $14.50, and that low was seen on Tuesday.

Qualcomm

More than 74.52 million Qualcomm Inc. (NASDAQ: QCOM) shares were sold short as of the most recent settlement date. That represented 6.2% of the chipmaker’s float and was a retreat of around 11% from in the prior period. It was also much greater than the less than 30 million shares seen back in August. As of the end of last month, it would take fewer than four days for investors to cover all their short positions at the posted average daily volume.

Qualcomm started off the short interest period with an analyst upgrade. While the November 30 closing share price was about 1% higher than on the previous settlement date, it had been down more than 7% at one point. Shares have risen more than 2% in the past week, and the stock was last seen trading at $57.35 a share, down from the 52-week high of $76.50. The 52-week low is $48.56 per share. And the share price is around 21% lower than it was 90 days ago.

TherapeuticsMD

Almost 72.91 million TherapeuticsMD Inc. (NASDAQ: TXMD) shares were sold short as of the most recent settlement date. That represented 37.4% of the women’s health care company’s float, and it was over 5% more than in the prior period, as well as the highest level of short interest in at least a year. As of the latest settlement date, it would take more than 30 days for investors to cover all their short positions, after the average daily volume drooped.

Last month, TherapeuticsMD posted a smaller-than-expected net loss for its most recent quarter. Short sellers watched the share price pull back more than 10% but then recover most of that decline by the end of the month. The stock closed most recently at $4.23 a share, which is more than 31% lower than 90 days ago. Shares have traded hands at between $4.22 (seen on Tuesday) and $7.66 apiece in the past 52 weeks.

Comcast

Comcast Corp.’s (NASDAQ: CMCSA) short interest decreased by more than 3% in the latest period to the second highest level since August. The more than 69.65 million shares on the most recent settlement date represented 1.5% of the total float. The year-to-date high was more than 86 million shares short back in January. The latest days to cover figure remained more than three, even though the average daily volume shrank marginally.

Disney ended its relationship with Comcast’s Freewheel during the short interest period. Comcast’s share price ended the latest two-week period about 1% higher, after being down more than 4% earlier in the period. The stock closed most recently at $36.84 per share, which is up less than 2% from 90 days ago. Shares have changed hands at between $30.43 and $44.00 apiece in the past year.

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And Others

Rounding out the top 10 were Opko Health Inc. (NASDAQ: OPK), Intel Corp. (NASDAQ: INTC), Starbucks Corp. (NASDAQ: SBUX) and Zynga Inc. (NASDAQ: ZNGA). Intel was the only notable short interest gainer among these, and Starbucks led the decliners.

Lingering outside the spotlight of the top 10 most shorted Nasdaq stocks were Mattel Inc. (NASDAQ: MAT) and Novavax Inc. (NASDAQ: NVAX). Note that Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ: MSFT) saw a surge in the number of its shares short, but not enough to lift it into the top 10. Also note that short sellers continue to surrender on Helios and Matheson Analytics Inc. (NASDAQ: HMNY), the parent of MoviePass, and it has now fallen far out of the top 10.