Short & Caught: The ASX stocks investors are shorting amid the coronavirus and oil bloodbath
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Short & Caught is Stockhead’s fortnightly recap of which ASX small cap stocks are heavily shorted. Stocks that are shorted have investors betting that they fall.
Shorting works by selling stocks you do not actually own in the hope of buying them back at a lower price.
Because shorting is restricted under Australian law, any substantial shorting of stocks is worth knowing about even if you own these stocks and only trade long.
Stockhead’s two preferred metrics are raw short interest as well as percentage changes in them within the last month.
Code | Name | Price (I) | Short Interest (Shares) | Short Interest 1 Month % Change | Market Cap |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
GXY | GALAXY RESOURCES LTD | 0.76 | 81.90M | 6.96 | 370.58M |
SYR | SYRAH RESOURCES LTD | 0.32 | 68.68M | -4.84 | 155.13M |
SXY | SENEX ENERGY LTD | 0.20 | 65.47M | 1.07 | 400.59M |
MYR | MYER HOLDINGS LTD | 0.26 | 62.54M | 3.95 | 271.02M |
NCZ | NEW CENTURY RESOURCES LTD | 0.10 | 58.71M | 18.15 | 73.35M |
CVN | CARNARVON PETROLEUM LTD | 0.18 | 56.82M | 4.32 | 383.27M |
INR | IONEER LTD | 0.14 | 55.19M | 3.39 | 277.18M |
CLQ | CLEAN TEQ HOLDINGS LTD | 0.17 | 39.93M | -0.19 | 138.10M |
MLX | METALS X LTD | 0.067 | 34.87M | 15.03 | 68.95M |
SWM | SEVEN WEST MEDIA LTD | 0.12 | 34.56M | -13.31 | 238.40M |
JMS | JUPITER MINES LTD | 0.23 | 31.48M | -0.63 | 489.75M |
FAR | FAR LTD | 0.019 | 30.99M | 20.09 | 269.43M |
SDA | SPEEDCAST INTERNATIONAL LTD | 0.79 | 30.94M | -0.95 | 189.40M |
PDN | PALADIN ENERGY LTD | 0.075 | 30.06M | 66.82 | 160.20M |
BUB | BUBS AUSTRALIA LTD | 0.58 | 30.05M | 35.58 | 366.99M |
MRM | MMA OFFSHORE LTD | 0.098 | 28.07M | -0.64 | 129.60M |
BGL | BELLEVUE GOLD LTD | 0.47 | 25.26M | 34.34 | 313.45M |
BUD | BUDDY TECHNOLOGIES LTD | 0.019 | 20.26M | 19.35 | 59.56M |
GRR | GRANGE RESOURCES LTD | 0.20 | 19.81M | 8.64 | 254.61M |
EWC | ENERGY WORLD CORP LTD | 0.067 | 18.56M | 1.12 | 134.67M |
ALG | ARDENT LEISURE GROUP LTD | 0.57 | 17.88M | 4.05 | 371.77M |
LNG | LIQUEFIED NATURAL GAS LTD | 0.12 | 14.96M | -8.89 | 72.08M |
KAR | KAROON ENERGY LTD | 0.42 | 14.89M | 570.27 | 456.21M |
OEL | OTTO ENERGY LTD | 0.014 | 14.76M | 65.54 | 56.59M |
SLC | SUPERLOOP LTD | 0.68 | 14.39M | 14.62 | 281.72M |
IPD | IMPEDIMED LTD | 0.068 | 14.33M | 46.78 | 48.04M |
SPL | STARPHARMA HOLDINGS LTD | 0.95 | 14.05M | -1.09 | 379.99M |
HT1 | HT&E LTD | 1.35 | 13.26M | 0.49 | 389.52M |
BOT | BOTANIX PHARMACEUTICALS LTD | 0.075 | 11.77M | 0.68 | 83.65M |
AMA | AMA GROUP LTD | 0.42 | 11.40M | -12.26 | 376.73M |
DCN | DACIAN GOLD LTD | 1.4 | 11.38M | 6.58 | 319.80M |
PET | PHOSLOCK ENVIRONMENTAL TECHN | 0.52 | 11.20M | 12.28 | 350.29M |
LVT | LIVETILES LTD | 0.19 | 11.00M | 27 | 220.63M |
ECX | ECLIPX GROUP LTD | 1.42 | 9.74M | -5.63 | 455.48M |
CGB | CANN GLOBAL LTD | 0.009 | 8.50M | 36.06 | 32.61M |
FBR | FBR LTD | 0.029 | 7.46M | 0.34 | 61.73M |
AMI | AURELIA METALS LTD | 0.30 | 7.12M | 207.18 | 323.37M |
STX | STRIKE ENERGY LTD | 0.11 | 6.99M | 355.2 | 255.94M |
CLH | COLLECTION HOUSE LTD | 1.09 | 6.97M | -14.16 | 154.01M |
KGN | KOGAN.COM LTD | 3.84 | 6.38M | 9.32 | 428.62M |
EHE | ESTIA HEALTH LTD | 1.52 | 5.65M | -2.3 | 456.91M |
BWX | BWX LTD | 3.24 | 5.25M | -27.97 | 444.81M |
EMR | EMERALD RESOURCES NL | 0.038 | 5.01M | -49.76 | 148.27M |
While lithium miner Galaxy Resources (ASX:GXY) remains anchored at the top of the most shorted ASX stocks, one commodity with a few new entrants on this list was petroleum.
Oil prices were falling even before Monday’s bloodbath, and leading the charge was Senex Energy (ASX:SXY) with 65 million shorted shares against it.
Short interest against Karoon Energy (ASX:KAR) rose 570 per cent and against Otto Energy (ASX:OEL) 66 per cent both reaching nearly 15 million.
Other beaten up sectors made the list as well, infant formula stock Bubs Australia (ASX:BUB) and uranium play Paladin Energy (ASX:PDN) both reached over 30 million in short interest.
Code | Name | Price (I) | Short Interest (Shares) | Short Interest 1 Month % Change | Market Cap |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
TTM | TITAN MINERALS LTD | 0.08 | 1.23M | 123258800 | 70.15M |
ATL | APOLLO TOURISM & LEISURE LTD | 0.25 | 121.96k | 12196000 | 52.12M |
ACF | ACROW FORMWORK AND CONSTRUCT | 0.27 | 173.08k | 2472500 | 58.70M |
CZI | CASSINI RESOURCES LTD | 0.078 | 108.91k | 494945.44 | 36.36M |
AQX | ALICE QUEEN LTD | 0.02 | 2.00M | 36773.16 | 22.36M |
RXP | RXP SERVICES LTD | 0.35 | 50.00k | 20646.89 | 63.63M |
CDV | CARDINAL RESOURCES LTD | 0.34 | 303.17k | 15890.19 | 172.91M |
LYL | LYCOPODIUM LTD | 5.03 | 94.16k | 10361.67 | 222.10M |
ELX | ELLEX MEDICAL LASERS LTD | 0.61 | 49.59k | 4672.38 | 94.78M |
TPW | TEMPLE & WEBSTER GROUP LTD | 2.48 | 667.61k | 3804.15 | 356.15M |
ATS | AUSTRALIS OIL & GAS LTD | 0.034 | 264.64k | 3666.52 | 57.19M |
TER | TERRACOM LTD | 0.18 | 1.35M | 3574.05 | 114.79M |
88E | 88 ENERGY LTD | 0.018 | 445.29k | 2207.42 | 156.41M |
HCT | HOLISTA COLLTECH LTD | 0.13 | 201.26k | 1912.57 | 44.39M |
ZNO | ZOONO GROUP LTD | 1.64 | 273.39k | 1549.42 | 373.99M |
FLN | FREELANCER LTD | 0.36 | 18.28k | 1042.56 | 165.49M |
MYE | MASTERMYNE GROUP LTD | 0.75 | 29.65k | 930.84 | 81.31M |
HZN | HORIZON OIL LTD | 0.058 | 2.92M | 891.09 | 92.44M |
DCC | DIGITALX LTD | 0.02 | 203.40k | 849.4 | 13.93M |
REX | REGIONAL EXPRESS HOLDINGS LT | 0.91 | 69.53k | 799.5 | 112.91M |
BBN | BABY BUNTING GROUP LTD | 2.67 | 960.06k | 725.75 | 381.42M |
GGG | GREENLAND MINERALS LTD | 0.086 | 970.00k | 651.8 | 114.33M |
PAN | PANORAMIC RESOURCES LTD | 0.18 | 2.63M | 647.51 | 152.63M |
MOZ | MOSAIC BRANDS LTD | 1.02 | 233.52k | 627.05 | 106.49M |
WKT | WALKABOUT RESOURCES LTD | 0.16 | 10.29k | 598.1 | 66.34M |
KAR | KAROON ENERGY LTD | 0.42 | 14.89M | 570.27 | 456.21M |
AU8 | AUMAKE INTERNATIONAL LTD | 0.052 | 35.50k | 516.55 | 20.94M |
LPD | LEPIDICO LTD | 0.01 | 679.15k | 426.73 | 50.97M |
BFG | BELL FINANCIAL GROUP LTD | 0.91 | 20.81k | 420.17 | 365.65M |
NXS | NEXT SCIENCE LTD | 1.74 | 153.24k | 385.29 | 394.69M |
STX | STRIKE ENERGY LTD | 0.11 | 6.99M | 355.2 | 255.94M |
IMM | IMMUTEP LTD | 0.34 | 99.32k | 323.62 | 144.90M |
ISD | ISENTIA GROUP LTD | 0.17 | 10.72k | 281.09 | 43.00M |
DNK | DANAKALI LTD | 0.46 | 270.95k | 225.89 | 151.39M |
AMI | AURELIA METALS LTD | 0.30 | 7.12M | 207.18 | 323.37M |
Among stocks between 1 and 5 million shorted shares, this trend continued. The most unlikely targets new to the list are two stocks in the hand sanitiser business, Zoono (ASX:ZNO) and Holista Colltech (ASX:HCT).
Both have risen a staggering amount in recent weeks, but shorters have begun to target them, albeit modestly for now with just over 200,000 shorted shares each.
One of the most decimated industries on a global basis is the travel and tourism sector. Apollo Tourism and Leisure (ASX:ATL) and Regional Express (ASX:REX) both became new targets as well.
Retailers were also added to the list, including Temple & Webster (ASX:TPW), Mosaic Brands (ASX:MOZ) and Baby Bunting (ASX:BBN).