Shorts hit LOT hard: +2.10% in a week as uranium stays crowded
Week 36, 2025 (1 Sept 2025 — 5 Sept 2025)
Lotus Resources (LOT) was the standout this week, with short interest jumping 2.10% to 10.35% — a big move for a $681m name. Uranium remains the most crowded trade on the ASX short tape (BOE 19.54%, PDN 17.46%), even as shorts trimmed BOE by 1.33%. In lithium, shorts leaned back into Pilbara (PLS) with a 0.93% lift to 16.83%.
This Week's Analysis
The week’s loudest signal wasn’t at the very top of the table — it was LOT. A +2.10% jump in short interest (8.25% → 10.35%) in a single week is aggressive positioning, and it tells you the uranium trade is still where hedge funds want to express a view. When a sector is this crowded, the marginal move matters more than the headline rank.
BOE remains the most shorted stock on the ASX at 19.54%, but the -1.33% weekly drop (20.87% → 19.54%) reads like risk being taken off rather than a wholesale change of mind. Boss is in ramp-up mode at Honeymoon and progressing Alta Mesa, and shorts tend to get twitchy when operational milestones approach because any clean execution can force a scramble. If you want the company’s framing, BOE’s investor material is here: http://www.bossenergy.com/images/documents/Dec24-Quarterly-Results-Presentation.pdf. PDN sits right behind at 17.46% (-0.35%). That’s still a heavy short, and it fits the classic uranium bear case: production and integration risk (PDN has expanded via acquisition) versus a commodity price that can turn quickly. PDN’s annual reporting is here: https://www.paladinenergy.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/Paladin-2025AnnualReport-Full-Web.pdf. PLS at 16.83% (+0.93%) is the clearest “macro + sector” short on the board. Shorts don’t need a company-specific blow-up to press lithium — they just need the lithium price tape to stay ugly and sentiment to stay fragile. PLS’s quarterly update reference point: https://1pls.irmau.com/site/pdf/3bba2523-52c7-4c38-bc03-b945945d9698/December-2025-quarterly-activities-report-advisory.pdf?Platform=ListPage. IEL (14.35%, -0.81%) is a different story: shorts are easing. That looks like positioning being reduced into a stock where the bear thesis (student mobility, policy risk, currency swings) can be slow-moving, while the upside risk is a sudden improvement in volumes or guidance tone. Then you’ve got the “growth at a price” names: PNV is steady at 12.12% (+0.04%), while PWH (10.90%, +0.68%) and GYG (9.80%, +0.70%) both saw meaningful weekly lifts — the market is still happy to short premium multiples when confidence wobbles.
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
Risers: LOT’s +2.10% is the week’s outlier. The most likely read is shorts are leaning into restart/permitting and execution risk at Kayelekera, and they’re doing it in a uranium name that’s smaller and potentially more volatile than the big caps. PLS (+0.93%) reinforces that lithium is still a favourite short expression. RHC also popped (+0.82% to 2.87%). The absolute level is low, but the direction matters: hospitals are sensitive to cost inflation and funding/regulatory settings, and any hint of margin pressure tends to attract shorts quickly. GDG (+0.73% to 2.93%) looks like financials-specific positioning. In wealth/insurance-adjacent models, the market tends to get nervous about flows, competition and regulatory heat — and shorts often move early when they think earnings expectations are too comfortable. Fallers: PEN collapsed from 2.99% to 1.16% (-1.83%). That’s a genuine unwind, and it suggests shorts either took profit or decided the risk/reward isn’t there at that size. BOE’s -1.33% is the other big cover. BGL (-1.26% to 6.24%) hints at shorts stepping back from gold exposure — often a sign the gold tape is behaving better, or that the easy money on the short side has been made. AGI going to 0.00% (-0.83%) is a clean exit: whatever the short thesis was, it’s been closed.
Industry Trends
Two sector calls dominate this week’s data. First: uranium is still the crowded theatre. BOE (19.54%), PDN (17.46%) and now LOT (10.35% after a +2.10% surge) show shorts are spreading exposure across producers and developers. The common thread is execution risk — ramp-ups, restarts, permitting and the ever-present reality that uranium prices can gap on geopolitics or utility contracting. Second: lithium remains a core short. PLS at 16.83% (+0.93%) and MIN at 11.58% (+0.17%) tell you the market is still sceptical on the near-term lithium cycle. MIN is a hybrid (services + commodities), but shorts tend to treat it as a leveraged resources sentiment proxy when lithium is under pressure. For investors wanting the company’s own numbers and framing, MIN’s FY results pack is here: https://cdn.sanity.io/files/o6ep64o3/production/b23c9b1f93dbe5cc41520061cafecf0c1d214c77.pdf. Outside resources, the lift in PWH and GYG shorts looks like classic valuation discipline returning: when rates and bond yields don’t fall fast enough, the market gets less forgiving on high-multiple growth stories.
Outlook
Next week, watch for commodity price direction (uranium and lithium in particular) because this tape is positioned for volatility. Also keep an eye on any company updates from the heavily shorted names — in BOE/LOT/PDN, a single clean operational milestone can force fast covering.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which ASX stock had the biggest jump in short interest this week?
LOT was the biggest riser: 8.25% → 10.35%, up 2.10% week-on-week.
What’s the most shorted stock on the ASX right now in this report?
BOE is #1 at 19.54% short, down 1.33% from last week.
Is uranium still the most crowded short theme?
Yes — BOE (19.54%), PDN (17.46%) and LOT (10.35%) are all heavily shorted, and LOT’s +2.10% weekly move shows fresh pressure.
What does a big weekly fall in short interest usually mean?
It typically signals covering (shorts taking profit or reducing risk). This week PEN (-1.83%) and BOE (-1.33%) are the clearest examples.
Where can I read the primary company documents referenced here?
Examples include PDN’s annual report (https://www.paladinenergy.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/Paladin-2025AnnualReport-Full-Web.pdf), PLS’s quarterly advisory (https://1pls.irmau.com/site/pdf/3bba2523-52c7-4c38-bc03-b945945d9698/December-2025-quarterly-activities-report-advisory.pdf?Platform=ListPage), and MIN’s FY results (https://cdn.sanity.io/files/o6ep64o3/production/b23c9b1f93dbe5cc41520061cafecf0c1d214c77.pdf).
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.