The 10 most shorted ASX stocks plus the biggest risers and fallers – Week 39

Welcome back to the Short Seller Series – A recap of the most heavily shorted stocks on the ASX and those experiencing significant changes to short interest over the past week.

Short selling data is four days behind today's date because reporting is not mandatory until three business days after the trade. The tables below will compare:

• Week-on-week changes between 17 and 24 September 2024

• Month-on-month changes between 27 August and 24 September 2024

Most Shorted

Interesting takeaways:

• Pilbara Minerals and IDP Education continue to hold the top two positions as the most shorted stocks on the market, a status they've maintained since early February.

• Pilbara Minerals' short interest has recently dipped to its lowest level since February 12. It's worth noting that the current short selling data lags by four days, meaning it doesn't fully capture the impact of recent Chinese stimulus headlines, which have driven PLS shares up by approximately 10% over the last five trading sessions.

• Cettire experienced a staggering 78% one-day rally on Tuesday, September 24. This surge triggered significant short covering, reducing short interest from 11.25% to 9.0% (equivalent to about 8 million shares covered). The stock's meteoric rise followed auditor Grant Thornton's approval of its FY24 financial statements, resolving a previous dispute over revenue reporting methods.

Rising Shorts

Interesting takeaways:

• Short sellers are setting their sights on some of this year's top-performing stocks, including Droneshield, Spartan Resources, and Clarity Pharmaceuticals. The latter two have seen remarkable gains, surging over 1,000% since mid-2023.

• Uranium stocks remain a target for short sellers, with Paladin Energy and Boss Energy experiencing record levels of short interest, while Deep Yellow has reached its highest short interest since mid-March.

Most Covered

Interesting takeaways:

• China's stimulus measures may have prompted some short covering across battered lithium stocks such as Core Lithium, Sayona, and Liontown. Despite being down 70-80% over the past year, these stocks reacted positively to the China news, potentially causing short sellers to cover or take profits on some positions. Nevertheless, short interest in Liontown and Sayona remains elevated.