Shorts hit travel and pizza hard as FLT jumps 2.5% in a week
Week 35, 2025 (25 Aug 2025 — 29 Aug 2025)
The week’s loudest move was FLT, where short interest surged from 5.63% to 8.13% (+2.50%). DMP (+2.17% to 9.36%) and PWH (+1.50% to 10.22%) also saw aggressive new shorts, while LIC (-2.01% to 9.56%) and PEN (-2.20% to 2.99%) saw meaningful covering. At the top end, uranium stays crowded: BOE is still the most shorted name on the ASX at 20.87% (despite a -0.57% trim), with PDN at 17.82% (-0.89%).
This Week's Analysis
A 2.50% weekly jump in short interest is not normal — and FLT just printed one, ripping from 5.63% to 8.13%. That’s a clear signal shorts are leaning into a travel-demand or margin squeeze narrative, likely tied to the same macro pressure hitting discretionary spending: higher-for-longer rates and consumers getting choosier about big-ticket holidays.
Uranium remains the ASX’s most crowded short trade, even as the positions were lightly trimmed. BOE is still extreme at 20.87% short (-0.57% WoW) and PDN sits at 17.82% (-0.89%). When shorts stay this high but stop pressing, it usually reads as risk management rather than a change of heart — uranium equities can gap on spot price moves, contract headlines, or production updates. If you want the bull case, it’s the structural nuclear build-out; if you want the short case, it’s execution risk and the tendency for uranium names to run ahead of fundamentals. BOE’s own materials (see Boss Energy reports: http://www.bossenergy.com/images/media/2973720.pdf and investor presentation http://www.bossenergy.com/images/documents/Dec24-Quarterly-Results-Presentation.pdf) are where the market will keep checking ramp-up progress versus expectations. The other big message in the Top 10 is lithium and consumer cyclicals. PLS is now 15.90% short after a chunky +1.05% week — that’s shorts pressing into the sector’s core bellwether. MIN (11.41% short, -0.64%) is still heavily shorted but saw some covering, suggesting the market is more comfortable fading pure lithium exposure than a diversified operator with mining services and iron ore in the mix (MIN FY results link: https://cdn.sanity.io/files/o6ep64o3/production/b23c9b1f93dbe5cc41520061cafecf0c1d214c77.pdf). IEL (15.15%, +0.86%) remains a favourite short for a reason: it’s exposed to policy and visa settings, student mobility swings, and currency moves — and when the AUD shifts or governments tighten settings, earnings expectations can move fast. PNV (12.08%, -0.14%) and CTD (9.80%, -0.17%) were basically steady-to-down on shorts: still contested, but no fresh pile-on this week. CTD’s disclosures (e.g., debt facility amendment: https://investor.travelctm.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/Agreement-to-Amend-Debt-Facilities.pdf) matter because travel businesses can be sensitive to funding costs and covenant headroom when conditions tighten.
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
FLT (+2.50% to 8.13%) is the headline. The most likely read is earnings positioning: travel demand can look fine in headlines while margins get squeezed by discounting, higher labour costs, and volatile air capacity. FLT has also been active on the corporate side (e.g., its BOS prospectus materials: https://cdn.prod.website-files.com/643e6b4601023f66d9745f21/683e6fe95e4cd49e755eb086_2025%20BOS%20Prospectus.pdf), and shorts often step in when integration risk and near-term costs are underappreciated. DMP (+2.17% to 9.36%) is another big, deliberate move. This looks like a classic consumer squeeze trade: if rates stay restrictive, value perception matters, and food input costs plus wage pressure can crimp franchisee economics. Shorts don’t need a collapse — they just need the market to stop paying up for a turnaround. PWH (+1.50% to 10.22%) is a proper push into a quality industrial. When shorts hit a business like this, it’s usually valuation and cycle risk rather than “the product is broken”. If global auto/motorsport demand softens or customers destock, high-multiple names get punished quickly. MVF (+1.35% to 8.03%) suggests the market is getting nervous about healthcare earnings visibility and regulatory/volume risk. IPH (+1.35% to 5.44%) looks like management-transition and growth-sustainability positioning after its FY25 result and CEO retirement announcement (FY25 results: https://www.iphlimited.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/2932588.pdf; CEO retirement: https://www.iphlimited.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/2978820.pdf). On the cover side, PEN (-2.20% to 2.99%) is a sharp unwind — either a catalyst passed, or shorts decided the risk/reward in uranium-adjacent names isn’t worth it with BOE/PDN already so crowded. LIC (-2.01% to 9.56%) also saw real covering; that reads like shorts taking profit into a rate-sensitive property name after a strong run in the trade. URW going from 1.95% to 0.00% is a clean exit — REIT shorts tend to be macro trades, and this looks like the position was simply closed. NVX (-1.74% to 1.63%) and DDR (-1.72% to 0.39%) show shorts backing away from smaller tech/hardware exposures, consistent with a modest risk-on tilt given the period’s average change was slightly negative (-0.04%).
Industry Trends
Two clusters stand out. First: resources are still where the biggest conviction sits. Uranium is crowded at the top (BOE 20.87%, PDN 17.82%), but the marginal move was actually lithium — PLS added +1.05% in a single week. That’s the market saying the lithium price and demand debate isn’t over, and that even the sector’s best operators aren’t immune when sentiment turns. Second: consumer and travel are back in the crosshairs. FLT and DMP both saw outsized short builds (+2.50% and +2.17%). That’s a clear macro call: discretionary spending is vulnerable when rates bite and households trade down. Meanwhile, the covering in LIC hints that some rate-sensitive shorts are getting crowded and less attractive at current levels. Zooming out, the ASX short book still looks selective rather than panicked: average short interest is only 1.26% across 638 names, and the week’s average change was slightly negative (-0.04%). The action is concentrated in a handful of battleground stocks where the next update can move the price hard.
Outlook
Next week, watch for commodity price swings (uranium and lithium in particular) because BOE/PDN/PLS are positioned to react violently. On the company side, keep an eye on any trading updates from FLT and DMP — with shorts moving this fast, even a small guidance surprise can force a scramble.
Frequently Asked Questions
What was the biggest short-interest jump this week?
FLT was the standout: short interest jumped +2.50% WoW, from 5.63% to 8.13%.
Which stock is the most shorted on the ASX right now?
BOE is the most shorted in this report at 20.87% short interest (down -0.57% on the week).
Are shorts still pressing uranium names?
They’re still heavily positioned (BOE 20.87%, PDN 17.82%), but both saw modest covering this week (-0.57% and -0.89%), suggesting risk is being managed rather than increased.
Why are lithium shorts building again?
PLS added +1.05% to 15.90% short, which fits a sector thesis around lithium price volatility and demand uncertainty; shorts tend to target the liquid bellwethers when sentiment turns.
Which names saw the biggest short covering?
PEN fell -2.20% (5.19% to 2.99%) and LIC fell -2.01% (11.58% to 9.56%), both meaningful reductions in a single week.
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.