Short Monitor – Declining number of shorts

In January, Safestore Holdings, AB Dynamics, Boku and Equitrans Midstream Corp were all shorted for the first time (FCA data cover disclosures since 2012).

Premier Oil is still the most shorted stock in the UK with 18% of its issued share capital (ISC) shorted. That said, the size of the total shorts in the stock has decreased over the past few months, falling by 1.5% from December and 2% from November – which was the highest level when total shorts peaked at 20.5%.

Cineworld had 10% of its ISC shorted in January, making it the most shorted stock that month. Cineworld was also included in the December short monitor following industry concerns over online streaming services and the group’s $2.1bn acquisition of Cineplex. Since the start of 2020, Cineworld’s share price has fallen by 19% from 220p to 177p as at close on 3 January.

The retail REIT Hammerson is a new addition to our top total UK shorts list. In 2019, management sought to refine its strategy and pay down debt by selling a significant number of non core assets. The company is currently marketing its 39% stake in the outlet mall developer and operator, Value Retail, for £1.9bn, making it one of the largest sales in European real estate currently. Hammerson’s share price is down 25% ytd.

The total number of shorts has been decreasing leading up to and following the Conservative party’s election victory in December. There were 904 total shorts at the beginning of December but by 31 January this had fallen by 26% to 667.