The 10 Most Shorted ASX Stocks · Week 4, 2025
Shorts rotate: uranium gets crowded, PLS finally gets a breather
20 Jan 2025 — 24 Jan 2025
The cleanest move this week was rotation: shorts added to uranium (BOE +0.71% to 19.55%, DYL +0.38% to 11.01%) while covering lithium leader PLS (-1.12% to 12.48%). The Star (SGR) wore the biggest equity hit, up +1.02% to 9.91% short. Across 738 names, positioning eased overall (period average change: -0.11%).
By Shorted AI Research · Published · Sourced from official ASIC short position reports (T+4 delay). Methodology · Not financial advice.
This Week's Analysis
Pilbara Minerals didn’t get loved this week — it just got less hated. PLS short interest fell -1.12% to 12.48% while uranium stayed a magnet for fresh shorts, led by BOE lifting +0.71% to 19.55%. Same market, different pain trade.
Start by stripping out the structural noise. GSBW34 at 127.93% short (-0.04%) and FHNG at 32.51% (flat) are positioning/market-structure outliers, not a weekly fundamentals tell. In single stocks, BOE is the pressure point: 19.55% short after a +0.71% weekly add. At these levels, the bet is simple — execution. Boss is moving from story to delivery as it ramps Honeymoon and advances Alta Mesa, and shorts are leaning into the risk of timelines, costs and ramp-up hiccups. The company’s own framing is in its materials here: http://www.bossenergy.com/images/media/2973720.pdf and http://www.bossenergy.com/images/documents/Dec24-Quarterly-Results-Presentation.pdf. PDN stayed heavily shorted at 15.06% but saw covering (-0.49%). That split with BOE reads like the market picking its target inside the same theme: PDN is still crowded, but the incremental scepticism is landing harder on the higher-beta ramp story. DMP (13.30%, -0.25%) and IEL (12.56%, -0.29%) both saw small covers, but neither is close to “cleared”. These are still big positions — just slightly less aggressive ones. PLS (12.48%, -1.12%) was the standout cover inside the top 10, while MIN (12.42%, -0.11%) barely budged. Shorts are trimming the pure lithium expression faster than the diversified miner/services exposure. PLS’ key reference point for the next round of modelling is its December quarterly advisory: https://1pls.irmau.com/site/pdf/3bba2523-52c7-4c38-bc03-b945945d9698/December-2025-quarterly-activities-report-advisory.pdf?Platform=ListPage.
Daily Snapshots
Top Shorted Stocks This Week
Financial Snapshot
Key financial metrics from recent company reports for the most shorted stocks.
Biggest Risers
Stocks with the largest increase in short interest this week.
Biggest Fallers
Stocks with the largest decrease in short interest this week.
Movers Analysis
The biggest riser on the whole sheet was a bond line: XQLQAR (Queensland Treasury 5% 21-Jul-37) jumped from 2.34% to 7.60% (+5.26%). That’s macro positioning in big letters — duration is back in play as traders jockey around the path of rates. In equities, SGR was the cleanest “pile in”: 8.89% to 9.91% (+1.02%). Casinos don’t need much to go wrong for the maths to turn ugly, and shorts are treating SGR as a high-leverage, high-headline-risk setup. NVX rose 2.96% to 3.82% (+0.86%), consistent with the market staying sceptical on capital intensity and delivery timelines in battery materials. BGL lifted 6.62% to 7.46% (+0.83%), a reminder that gold miners can still attract shorts when the market wants to fade cost pressure and execution risk. PNV moved 1.57% to 2.36% (+0.79%). For a medtech name, that’s a meaningful weekly add — more a valuation/growth bet than a sudden product scare. On the cover side, SQ2 collapsed from 1.22% to 0.11% (-1.12%), basically exiting the short list in one week. BVS fell 0.90% to 0.17% (-0.73%) and FCL fell 0.82% to 0.17% (-0.65%), consistent with shorts stepping back from smaller software names. MSB eased 2.44% to 1.80% (-0.63%), typical of shorts banking gains rather than carrying risk into the next biotech catalyst.
Industry Positioning
Resources is where the story lives. Uranium is still crowded, and getting more selective. BOE (19.55%, +0.71%) and DYL (11.01%, +0.38%) both saw shorts add, while PDN (15.06%, -0.49%) saw covering. Same commodity, different targets: the market is paying for perceived execution risk. For PDN context, its annual reporting is here: https://www.paladinenergy.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/Paladin-2025AnnualReport-Full-Web.pdf. For DYL’s broader strategy and pipeline, its annual report is here: http://www.deepyellow.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2025AnnualReport06Oct25NoCoverSheet.pdf. Lithium, by contrast, saw a real de-crowding signal through PLS (-1.12% to 12.48%). That doesn’t flip the sector bullish by itself; it says shorts are managing exposure rather than pressing. When the sector bellwether gets covered that hard in a week, it changes the supply/demand balance for the next move. Outside resources, consumer/services positioning split: DMP and IEL were lightly covered, but SGR was hit hard. Rate-cut hope is one thing; regulatory and balance-sheet stress is another.
Outlook
Watch BOE’s next production/ramp update like it’s a macro print: at 19.55% short, any clean delivery headline forces positioning decisions fast. In the same breath, track whether PLS keeps bleeding shorts after this week’s -1.12% drop — if covering continues, the lithium tape will start to feel different.
Frequently Asked Questions
How can short interest be over 100% like GSBW34 at 127.93%?
Because securities can be lent and re-lent, creating multiple short positions against the same underlying line. It’s common in certain instruments and is often tied to hedging and market-making rather than a simple directional bet.
Why are uranium stocks (BOE, PDN, DYL) so heavily shorted?
The market is targeting valuation and execution risk. This week’s split shows it: BOE rose to 19.55% short (+0.71%) while PDN was trimmed to 15.06% (-0.49%) and DYL increased to 11.01% (+0.38%).
What does a -1.12% weekly drop in PLS short interest usually mean?
It typically signals short covering (profit-taking or risk reduction) rather than fresh bearish conviction. PLS fell from 13.60% to 12.48% (-1.12%) this week.
Why did SGR short interest jump to 9.91%?
Shorts increased SGR from 8.89% to 9.91% (+1.02%) in a week, which is a clear conviction add. Casinos have high operating leverage, and SGR also carries ongoing regulatory and balance-sheet sensitivity that attracts short sellers.
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.