Shorts take a swing at IPH (+1.47%) while BOE stays crowded
Week 49, 2025 (1 Dec 2025 — 5 Dec 2025)
Boss Energy (BOE) still tops the hit list at 23.27% short, even after a small trim (-0.41%). The week’s cleanest signal was IPH ripping from 9.26% to 10.72% (+1.47%) — a big, targeted build in a stock that usually doesn’t attract drama. Shorts also added to Champion Iron (CIA) (+1.35%) and HMC Capital (HMC) (+1.23%), while covering hard in Clinuvel (CUV) (-2.85%) and ARB (ARB) (-1.76%).
This Week's Analysis
This wasn’t a “risk-off” week. It was sniper fire. The average short position across 645 names barely moved (period average change: +0.03%), yet IPH still wore a +1.47% jump. In a $933M professional services stock, that’s not background noise — that’s a bet being put on.
BOE remains the ASX’s most shorted stock at 23.27% despite a -0.41% WoW ease. PDN also saw a small cover to 12.96% (-0.19%). The uranium trade is still crowded, but this week reads like position management, not surrender: when a name is this packed, even modest covering can be about keeping the book nimble rather than changing the view. Consumer-facing shorts are still glued to the top of the table. DMP sits at 16.80% (+0.07%) and GYG at 13.34% (+0.36%). That’s the market leaning into the same pressure points: valuation meets margin reality, with traffic, discounting and input costs doing the damage if anything slips. FLT at 11.73% (+0.33%) stays in the cyclicals penalty box too — travel looks bulletproof right up until it isn’t. IEL continued to deflate to 12.13% (-0.25%). That’s not a clean “bull case” signal; it’s shorts taking some exposure off in a stock still tied to policy and student mobility risk. Healthcare remains a two-speed tape: PNV barely changed at 11.20% (+0.08%), while TLX edged up to 10.90% (+0.22%). In both, the short case tends to live in valuation and newsflow timing — the kind of trade that gets adjusted ahead of trial, regulatory or commercial updates. Then there’s IPH at 10.72% (+1.47%). The context matters: CEO Andrew Blattman’s retirement is on the board, and the market’s treating “steady” professional services as less steady into year-end. Shorts piled in anyway.
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
IPH was the week’s main event: 9.26% → 10.72% (+1.47%). That’s large enough to change the stock’s day-to-day feel — and it raises the stakes for any update that touches earnings durability, competition, or the management handover. CIA lifted from 4.90% → 6.26% (+1.35%). That’s a straight commodity macro expression: iron ore price and demand sensitivity. When shorts add to a producer, they’re usually not arguing about the mine plan — they’re arguing about the tape. HMC jumped 6.24% → 7.48% (+1.23%). Alternative asset managers get hit when rate expectations and funding costs won’t sit still. If transaction volumes slow and asset values wobble, the model gets less forgiving. AUB moved 0.39% → 1.53% (+1.14%). The level is still small, but the move is sharp — this looks like a fresh position being established, not a tweak. VUL rose 8.36% → 9.49% (+1.13%). Execution and capital intensity remain the market’s favourite pressure points in energy-transition materials. On the other side, CUV was the big cover: 9.41% → 6.56% (-2.85%). That’s what it looks like when shorts decide they don’t want to be there for the next piece of news. ARB dropped 5.25% → 3.49% (-1.76%) and JBH eased 3.95% → 2.99% (-0.96%). That’s bears taking profit out of “hard goods” discretionary into December — the crash trade is being pared back here, even while food and travel shorts stay elevated. SGM fell 2.72% → 1.92% (-0.80%). BML was effectively cleared out: 0.69% → 0.01% (-0.69%).
Industry Trends
The split this week is sectoral, not market-wide. Resources shorts got more selective: uranium (BOE, PDN) saw mild covering while iron ore (CIA) attracted fresh weight. Same broad bucket, different conviction. Rate sensitivity also crept back into the short book via HMC, while consumer shorts stayed concentrated in the names where pricing power gets tested every week (DMP, GYG) and cyclicality can turn fast (FLT). Meanwhile, the covers in ARB and JBH say the “consumer cliff” trade is being trimmed where the businesses have already proven they can defend earnings. Net-net: the tape says targeted bets, not a blanket risk purge.
Outlook
Watch IPH for any management-transition or trading update headlines — with 10.72% short, a clean surprise will force a fast scramble. Second, keep an eye on iron ore pricing: if CIA’s short build is the start of a broader materials fade, it won’t stay isolated for long.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why did IPH’s short interest jump so much in one week?
IPH rose from 9.26% to 10.72% short (+1.47%) while the period average change across the market was only +0.03%, pointing to a deliberate build in bearish positions rather than routine rebalancing.
Is BOE still the most shorted stock on the ASX?
Yes. BOE is 23.27% short (WoW change: -0.41%), the highest short position in the dataset.
What does the big fall in Clinuvel (CUV) shorts mean?
CUV’s short interest fell from 9.41% to 6.56% (-2.85%), which is consistent with shorts closing positions quickly — often because the risk/reward has worsened or they don’t want exposure to near-term newsflow.
Why are shorts increasing in Champion Iron (CIA)?
CIA increased from 4.90% to 6.26% short (+1.35%), which typically reflects a more cautious view on iron ore price and demand sensitivity rather than a company-specific issue.
Does JB Hi-Fi having only 2.99% short mean it’s a buy?
No. It only tells you short sellers reduced their position from 3.95% to 2.99% (-0.96%) and are less focused on that downside trade right now; it’s not a valuation call.
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.