The 10 Most Shorted ASX Stocks · Week 20, 2025
12 May 2025 — 16 May 2025
Shorting was broadly flat overall (period average change: -0.07%), but one trade screamed: ASX (ASX) jumped from 1.47% to 2.87% short (+1.40%) in a week. Lithium names kept wearing it — Liontown (LTR) lifted to 12.65% (+1.25%) and MinRes (MIN) to 14.06% (+0.77%). Uranium is still the most crowded corner (BOE 22.37%, PDN 15.53%), but the flow was cover in BOE (-1.36%) and DYL (-0.64%).
By Shorted AI Research · Published · Sourced from official ASIC short position reports (T+4 delay). Methodology · Not financial advice.
The week’s cleanest signal wasn’t another miner at the top of the list. It was ASX Limited (ASX). Short interest nearly doubled from 1.47% to 2.87% (+1.40%). You don’t put size on against the exchange unless you’re leaning into a drop in market activity — or you think the next operational/regulatory headache is being mispriced.
Boss Energy (BOE) stays the ASX’s most shorted stock at 22.37%, but the story this week was the trim: 23.72% → 22.37% (-1.36%). That’s not a change of religion — it’s risk control in a crowded trade. Paladin (PDN) is still heavily shorted at 15.53% and barely moved (-0.13%). The split view remains: uranium leverage versus execution and valuation. Mineral Resources (MIN) pushed higher again to 14.06% (+0.77%). Shorts like MIN because it’s a two-speed risk: mining services plus direct commodity exposure. When the tape gets messy, that operating leverage cuts fast. IDP Education (IEL) sits at 13.35% (+0.34%). The short case is the same one the market keeps paying for: student flows and policy risk, with currency moves adding torque. Liontown (LTR) climbed to 12.65% (+1.25%). That’s the week’s loudest ‘lithium still hurts’ print. Pilbara Minerals (PLS) edged up to 11.90% (+0.29%) — not a spike, but it keeps the sector pressure on. Deep Yellow (DYL) fell to 11.71% (-0.64%), PolyNovo (PNV) rose to 10.96% (+0.48%), Cettire (CTT) lifted to 10.78% (+0.26%), and Karoon (KAR) eased to 10.01% (-0.27%).
Key financial metrics from recent company reports for the most shorted stocks.
Stocks with the largest increase in short interest this week.
Stocks with the largest decrease in short interest this week.
Biggest riser: ASX (ASX) 1.47% → 2.87% (+1.40%). For a large, liquid market infrastructure name, that’s a real reposition. If cash equity turnover and listings cool, ASX’s operating leverage works the wrong way. Traders also watch ASX’s own activity data via its Australian Cash Market Report series (for example: https://www.asx.com.au/content/dam/asx/markets/trade-our-cash-market/acmr/2025/december/acmr-weekly-20251226.pdf). Liontown (LTR) 11.40% → 12.65% (+1.25%) was the clearest sector bet of the week. Shorts didn’t just stay in lithium — they added. Botanix Pharma (BOT) 2.47% → 3.68% (+1.22%) reads like classic small-cap biotech positioning: the market wants proof, not promises. Corporate Travel (CTD) 8.15% → 9.07% (+0.92%) is a timely macro tell. Corporate travel is cyclical; if budgets tighten, volumes and take rates get hit. CTD’s reporting shows ongoing work on partnerships and tech (see its 2024 Annual Report: https://investor.travelctm.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/2024-Annual-Report-web.pdf), but shorts are clearly leaning into the cycle. Reliance Worldwide (RWC) 2.12% → 3.01% (+0.90%) fits the rates-and-housing sensitivity bucket. On the cover side, the strangest print was Australian Comm. Loan 2.50% Ln 21-05-30 (XCLWAY) collapsing from 43.54% to 0.16% (-43.38%). That’s a mechanical reset, not a fundamental epiphany. Mayne Pharma (MYX) 3.00% → 1.44% (-1.56%) and Syrah (SYR) 6.36% → 4.97% (-1.38%) both saw meaningful covering. Domain (DHG) also eased 2.00% → 1.28% (-0.72%).
Two clusters still run the table. Uranium remains the most crowded: BOE (22.37%), PDN (15.53%) and DYL (11.71%) keep three names in the top 10. But this week’s flow was cover in BOE (-1.36%) and DYL (-0.64%). That’s what crowded trades do when the risk of a sharp reversal rises. Lithium pressure, by contrast, stayed on. MIN (+0.77%), LTR (+1.25%) and PLS (+0.29%) all saw shorts build. When multiple lithium-linked names move together, it’s one thesis expressed three ways: the price deck is still doing the damage and the market isn’t paying for “next quarter” optimism. Outside resources, the ASX move matters because it drags the story back to activity levels. Add CTD and RWC rising, and you can see the tilt: shorts are paying up for exposure to slowing volumes and discretionary sensitivity.
Watch ASX (ASX) next week against its own market activity prints: if turnover softens while short interest stays elevated above 2.87%, that’s the trade getting reinforced. If activity holds up, the unwind can be quick.
ASX is a large, liquid, defensive-style stock, so a one-week move from 1.47% to 2.87% (+1.40%) is unusual. It typically reflects a macro bet on weaker trading/listing activity or heightened concern about operational and regulatory risk.
Yes. BOE is still the most shorted stock at 22.37%, with PDN at 15.53% and DYL at 11.71%, even though BOE (-1.36%) and DYL (-0.64%) saw covering this week.
Lithium shorts are still building: LTR rose +1.25% to 12.65%, MIN rose +0.77% to 14.06%, and PLS rose +0.29% to 11.90%.
No. BOE is still 22.37% short. The move looks like profit-taking and position management in a crowded trade rather than a wholesale change in view.
That scale of move usually reflects instrument or reporting mechanics rather than a fundamental shift, particularly because XCLWAY is a bond line item rather than an operating company equity.
Track the live rankings on the most shorted ASX stocks page, watch short squeeze candidates, or see market-wide totals in the ASX short selling statistics.
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.
