Investing
The 5 Most Shorted Dow Stocks
June 25, 2020 6:15 am
Last Updated: June 25, 2020 6:15 am
Microsoft
> Shares short: more than 42.93 million
> Change from prior period: 5.2%
> Percentage of float: 0.6
Microsoft remained at the number three spot on the list in the first half of June despite ending four sizable retreats in a row. Short interest did not reclaim the 52-week low of around 37 million shares that occurred back in February. It would take these investors more than a day to cover their short bets, as of the middle of this month.
Recently, Microsoft has been seen as a top pick in the environmental, social, and governance (ESG) theme. The shares ended that two weeks trading more than 3% higher, though they had been up more than 7% at one point in the period. The Nasdaq saw a gain of more than 4% during the short interest period.
Microsoft stock was last seen trading at $197.84 a share, after hitting a multiyear high of $203.95 on Tuesday. The 52-week low of $130.78 was seen last summer. The latest share price is more than 24% higher than the low during the pandemic sell-off, while the Nasdaq is up almost 26% in that time.
And the Rest
Rounding out the top five most shorted Dow stocks on the most recent settlement date were Intel Corp. (NASDAQ: INTC) and Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL). Both the semiconductor leader and the iPhone maker saw the numbers of their shares short increase marginally earlier this month. Intel stock ended the period more than 2% lower, as analysts had turned rather cautious on it. Apple stock was up over 7% by mid-month, and its market cap hit $1.5 trillion during that time.
On the following list of short interest changes in the Dow stocks as of June 15, note the surges in JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE: JPM) (which announced traders returning to offices), Travelers Companies Inc. (NYSE: TRV) (pledged $1 million to Minnesota communities) and Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc. (NASDAQ: WBA) (stopped locking up Black beauty products).
| Dow Stock | Short (millions) | Change | % Float |
|---|---|---|---|
| Exxon | 59.08 | −2.52% | 1.40% |
| Pfizer | 53.75 | 3.29% | 0.97% |
| Microsoft | 42.93 | 5.15% | 0.57% |
| Intel | 38.86 | 0.57% | 0.92% |
| Apple | 34.83 | 1.85% | 0.80% |
| Cisco | 34.39 | −0.03% | 0.82% |
| Visa | 32.89 | 0.91% | 1.95% |
| Verizon | 31.63 | 9.98% | 0.76% |
| Disney | 28.63 | 0.99% | 1.59% |
| Coca-Cola | 24.07 | −9.21% | 0.56 |
| JPMorgan | 23.50 | 14.05% | 0.78% |
| IBM | 21.74 | 4.49% | 2.45% |
| Walgreens | 18.29 | 18.19% | 2.51% |
| Dow | 16.86 | −4.64% | 2.28% |
| Procter & Gamble | 16.62 | 7.19% | 0.67% |
| Chevron | 16.41 | −7.39% | 0.88% |
| Raytheon Technologies | 16.25 | −10.72% | 1.88% |
| Merck | 14.56 | −7.88% | 0.58% |
| Walmart | 14.04 | 3.96% | 1.01% |
| Johnson & Johnson | 13.76 | 5.71% | 0.52% |
| Boeing | 12.05 | −19.63% | 2.16% |
| American Express | 10.99 | −1.64% | 1.37% |
| Nike | 10.21 | −14.18% | 0.85% |
| Caterpillar | 8.87 | 7.50% | 1.64% |
| Home Depot | 8.85 | −22.13% | 0.82% |
| McDonald’s | 6.39 | −15.28% | 0.86% |
| UnitedHealth | 6.13 | −21.07% | 0.65% |
| 3M | 6.09 | −15.70% | 1.06% |
| Travelers | 5.20 | 30.98% | 2.06% |
| Goldman Sachs | 4.97 | −24.30% | 1.51% |
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