The 10 Most Shorted ASX Stocks · Week 33, 2024
12 Aug 2024 — 16 Aug 2024
Latin Resources (LRS) was the week’s cleanest signal: short interest jumped from 2.52% to 5.59% (+3.07%). Pilbara Minerals (PLS) is still the ASX’s most shorted stock at 21.42%, but shorts trimmed again (-0.94%) in a market where the average weekly move was basically flat (+0.03%).
By Shorted AI Research · Published · Sourced from official ASIC short position reports (T+4 delay). Methodology · Not financial advice.
Pilbara (PLS) still wears the crown at 21.42% short. But the real tell this week was elsewhere: shorts piled into Latin Resources (LRS), up +3.07% in five trading days. That’s rotation — not retreat.
PLS remains the market’s biggest short at 21.42%, yet the -0.94% WoW cut matters because it’s the same trade getting less crowded, not more. When the headline short starts getting clipped while the sector stays unloved, it usually means the easy part of the move has been banked and the book is being rebalanced into fresher targets. IDP Education (IEL) tightened its grip on #2 at 13.21% (+0.39%). That’s not a one-off spike; it’s steady accumulation. The positioning reads like a bet that expectations around international student demand and policy settings still have air in them, with currency sensitivity adding another lever. Battery materials still dominate the top end. Syrah (SYR) lifted to 12.08% (+0.24%), Liontown (LTR) sits at 11.96% (+0.07%), and Lynas (LYC) is basically unchanged at 11.25% (-0.02%). Chalice (CHN) eased to 10.78% (-0.64%), while Strike (STX) rose to 10.73% (+0.26%). Cettire (CTT) also pushed higher to 10.32% (+0.32%), keeping consumer-margin scepticism alive.
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.
LRS was the outlier: 2.52% → 5.59% (+3.07%). That’s a crowd forming fast. The message is blunt — if shorts are taking some risk off the biggest lithium name (PLS) while leaning harder into a smaller developer, they’re targeting the higher-beta, higher-funding-risk end of the complex. Australian Clinical Labs (ACL) also drew fresh fire: 3.04% → 4.79% (+1.75%). Pathology looks defensive until pricing, costs, and policy get involved; shorts are leaning into that operating leverage. Nufarm (NUF) climbed 5.51% → 6.57% (+1.06%), a classic set-up for shorts in ag/chem where input costs and demand can swing earnings quickly. Aurizon (AZJ) rose 3.32% → 4.02% (+0.70%), a reminder that coal-linked freight and policy risk still attract positioning. On the unwind side, Genesis Minerals (GMD) dropped 8.76% → 7.12% (-1.64%) and Flight Centre (FLT) fell 8.86% → 7.24% (-1.63%). That’s shorts taking money off the table in two places that can punish crowded positioning: gold producers when the macro tape supports the metal, and travel cyclicals when the consumer slowdown trade doesn’t pay on schedule. EML Payments (EML) also saw a sharp cut (4.50% → 2.93%, -1.57%), and Orora (ORA) de-crowded (2.90% → 1.63%, -1.27%).
Materials still run the short book. PLS, SYR, LTR, LYC, CHN and SYA are all in the top 10, and the biggest weekly riser (LRS) is also a Materials name. Same macro bet, different wrappers: battery-material pricing pressure plus execution and funding risk. The nuance this week is where the pressure went. Shorts didn’t add to the biggest, most obvious lithium short (PLS -0.94%); they went hunting in the next rung down (LRS +3.07%, SGQ 0.14% → 0.95% +0.81%). That’s how a theme trade matures — less piling into the headline, more pressing the periphery. Outside resources, the tape is split: CTT rising (+0.32%) while FLT is being covered (-1.63%). Shorts are still leaning against discretionary margins, but they’re choosing their spots.
Watch whether LRS keeps climbing from 5.59% while PLS keeps easing from 21.42%. If that divergence extends for another week, it’s a clear signal the short book is rotating from producers to developers — and the next “+3% in a week” move is likely to hit another small-cap Materials name.
PLS has 21.42% of its shares reported short, the highest in the market, because it’s a liquid way to express a bearish view on lithium pricing and earnings sensitivity even after this week’s trimming (-0.94%).
Yes. LRS moved from 2.52% to 5.59% in one week (+3.07%), which is a rapid build that typically reflects a new, aggressive position rather than routine rebalancing.
IEL increased to 13.21% short (+0.39%), which usually points to positioning around earnings and guidance risk tied to international student demand, policy settings, and currency sensitivity.
FLT fell from 8.86% short to 7.24% (-1.63%), consistent with shorts locking in gains or reducing risk in a cyclical name rather than adding to the position.
Materials dominate: 6 of the top 10 most shorted stocks are Materials (PLS, SYR, LTR, LYC, CHN, SYA), and the biggest weekly riser in short interest is also Materials (LRS).
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.
