September 2025
September’s cleanest tell was the uranium unwind: Paladin (PDN) was smashed down the short ladder, 17.82% → 12.13% (-5.69%), while Boss (BOE) stayed No.1 at 18.31% but was trimmed (-2.56%). At the same time, shorts reloaded in Pilbara (PLS) to 17.82% (+1.92%) and piled into consumer-facing growth with Domino’s (DMP) up to 11.94% (+2.58%) and Guzman y Gomez (GYG) up to 11.80% (+2.70%).
One trade cracked in September: uranium. PDN didn’t drift lower — shorts bolted, 17.82% → 12.13% (-5.69%). BOE is still the most shorted stock on the ASX at 18.31%, but even there the position was cut (-2.56%). That’s what it looks like when the easy money gets taken and the sector stops trading as one blunt basket.
BOE (18.31%, -2.56%) keeps the crown. The register is still packed with sceptics, which reads as a straight bet against execution risk around the Honeymoon ramp-up and the path to steady production. The trim says some funds have stopped pressing. PLS (17.82%, +1.92%) is the opposite: shorts added and it’s now breathing down BOE’s neck. This is the market staying stubborn on the lithium price deck — if realised pricing and demand signals don’t improve, even the category leader gets faded. IEL (12.79%, -2.36%) saw shorts step back. That’s positioning easing rather than a love-in: student mobility and testing volumes can stabilise, but the stock still carries regulatory and currency risk. PDN (12.13%, -5.69%) was the month’s defining move. With the short now well off the 17%+ zone, the trade is less one-way. Any supportive uranium tape or operational progress at Langer Heinrich matters more when the short crowd has already lightened up. DMP (11.94%, +2.58%) and GYG (11.80%, +2.70%) are where shorts piled in. Same setup: consumer-facing growth, margin pressure risk (wages and inputs), and valuation discipline when the household budget is tight. ILU (11.32%, +2.54%) attracted fresh shorts too — a cyclical demand call on mineral sands rather than a single-company drama. PWH (10.41%, +0.19%) and MIN (10.38%, -1.03%) stayed in the double-digit club. MIN’s slight cover doesn’t change the message: the market is still happy to lean against diversified miners with lithium exposure. FLT (10.00%, +1.87%) pushed back to 10.00%. Travel demand can look bulletproof right up until the consumer blinks; shorts are positioned for that blink.
Stocks with the largest increase in short interest this month.
Stocks with the largest decrease in short interest this month.
The biggest riser was NST: 0.31% → 4.00% (+3.69%). From that low base, it reads more like a tactical hedge or a specific operational worry than a broad call against gold. CUV jumped 6.09% → 9.23% (+3.15%). That’s a clear change in tone for a biotech: the market is leaning harder against pipeline optionality and the durability of the core earnings stream. DGT rose 4.69% → 7.83% (+3.14%). REIT shorts are often a rates trade in disguise — higher funding costs and valuation pressure get priced fast. CYL moved 0.34% → 3.09% (+2.75%), another resources name seeing fresh attention. On the cover side, PDN (-5.69%) led, but it wasn’t alone. CTT fell 9.55% → 4.33% (-5.22%), BGL fell 7.50% → 3.38% (-4.12%), MVF fell 8.03% → 3.94% (-4.09%), and HCW fell 4.02% → 1.01% (-3.01%). That’s profit-taking and risk control: when a trade has worked, the short book gets tidied up.
Resources split cleanly this month. Uranium shorts were reduced (PDN down hard; BOE trimmed), while lithium stayed a target (PLS up; MIN still 10.38% short). That’s a market less confident fading uranium supply/demand, but still comfortable betting lithium earnings expectations are too high. The other theme is the consumer squeeze showing up in positioning. DMP, GYG and FLT all saw higher shorts — three different ways to express the same view that discretionary spending and margins are where the pain shows first when rates stay restrictive. Rates sensitivity also popped in property: DGT was hit (+3.14%) while HCW was covered (-3.01%). Shorts weren’t “selling REITs”; they were picking targets.
Watch PLS next month: at 17.82% short, the register is set up for a violent move on any update that shifts confidence in realised pricing and demand. If PLS moves, the whole lithium short book moves with it.
Boss Energy (BOE) is the most shorted at 18.31% as at 2025-09-30.
Paladin Energy (PDN) fell from 17.82% to 12.13%, a -5.69% month-on-month move.
Northern Star (NST) rose from 0.31% to 4.00%, a +3.69% month-on-month move.
Both are consumer-facing growth names and both saw sharp increases in short interest (GYG +2.70% to 11.80%; DMP +2.58% to 11.94%), consistent with the market leaning against discretionary demand and margin risk under higher-for-longer rates.
Yes. Pilbara Minerals (PLS) increased to 17.82% short after a +1.92% month-on-month rise, and Mineral Resources (MIN) remains heavily shorted at 10.38%.
Data sourced from ASIC short position reports (T+4 delayed). This report is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial advice. Short selling data may not reflect real-time market conditions.