WhiteFiber Short Interest Soars to 38.0%
Welcome to this week's installment of "The Short Interest Report" - The Fly's weekly recap of short interest trends among some of the most widely followed high-short-float stocks. Using the data from our partner, which utilizes the latest information from stock lenders to estimate short interest changes for thousands of publicly traded companies, this report will screen for some of biggest changes in short interest as a percentage of free float and days-to-cover ratios while also considering the short interest data on some of the more volatile and heavier-traded names of the week. Based on the availability of data from Ortex, the report tracks the trading period that covers prior Friday through Thursday of this week, excluding holidays. As a basis of comparison for stocks discussed below, the S&P 500 index was down 0.8%, the Nasdaq Composite was down 1.3%, the Russell 2000 index was down 0.7%, the Russell 2000 Growth ETFwas down 1.1% and the Russell 2000 Value ETFwas down 0.1% in the five-day trading session range through May 21.SHORT INTEREST GAINERSOrtex-reported reported short interest on WhiteFibertroughed around 15% on April 9 - shortly after the stock price hit its lowest level for the year on March 27 following the company's much lower than expected Q4 earnings. Dip-buying in April and then more explosive gains in the stock price in May have driven shares up nearly three times from those March lows, though with the sharp bounce, bearish positions have also resurfaced in droves. This week, short interest as a percentage of free float on WhiteFiber spiked from 24.7% to 38.0% - the largest on record. Days to cover fell from 2.6 to 2.5 amid a bump in trading volume. In the five-day period covered shares were down just 1.5%, however the stock is now up 90% year to date.Ortex-reported short interest on T1 Energyhas been climbing steadily since mid-January, though this week, the rise in bearish positioning has become more pronounced. Short interest as a percentage of free float on T1 rose five percentage points to 31% even as days-to-cover on the name collapsed from 3.0 to 2.4 amid a sharp increase in trading volume. The debate on the company's fundamentals escalated as short seller Fuzzy Panda, calling the company a failed battery SPAC, is alleging that investors have "mistakenly begun confusing T1 as an AI infrastructure play." Afterward, the stock was defended at Roth Capital, where analysts referred to the recent 50% correction in shares through the first week of April as a buying opportunity. The stock was up 52% in the five-day period covered, though Friday's trading saw a 10% downward move on profit taking heading into the weekend.Ortex-reported short interest on PureCycle Technologieshas surged since the company reported its Q1 results on May 6 along with the share price as bears see the spike of over 70% in the stock price as an opportunity rather than a warning. Short interest as a percentage of free float on PureCycle was at 36% pre-earnings but hit a record high of 48% late last week before settling at 46%. The stock has come in about 9% in the five-day period covered, though year-to-date, PureCycle shares are now up 32%.SHORT INTEREST DECLINERSOrtex-reported short interest on Courseraascended from mid-single digits at the start of 2026 to its all-time high of 22.7% on May 12, though in spite of the stock price struggling to find a springboard from its post-earnings 2026 lows on April 24, the bears are bailing. This week, short positioning as a percentage of free float on the name collapsed from 21.2% to 9.6% - the lowest since mid-January. Days to cover also fell from 5.6 to 4.4 as trading activity remained elevated with relatively higher volumes over the course of May. Coursera was up 3% in the five-day period covered through Thursday, but the stock is down 27% year-to-date and down by over 60% from its July 2025 highs.
