These are the 10 most shorted ASX shares

At the start of each week, I like to look at ASIC’s short position report to find out which shares are being targeted by short sellers.

This is because I believe it is well worth keeping a close eye on short interest levels as high levels can sometimes be a sign that something isn’t quite right with a company.

With that in mind, here are the 10 most shorted shares on the ASX this week according to ASIC:

• Pilbara Minerals Ltd (ASX: PLS) remains the most shorted ASX share after its short interest rose slightly week on week to 21.4%. Short sellers don’t seem to believe that lithium prices will be rebounding any time soon.
• Syrah Resources Ltd (ASX: SYR) has short interest of 15.7%, which is up week on week. Weak graphite prices mean that Syrah is currently limiting production from its Balama operation to save cash.
• Core Lithium Ltd (ASX: CXO) has short interest of 12.8%, which is down week on week. Much like Syrah, this lithium miner has announced plans to suspend production to conserve cash.
• Sayona Mining Ltd (ASX: SYA) has 10.7% of its shares held short, which is up sharply week on week. Short sellers may believe that Sayona Mining will be next in line to hit pause on production.
• IDP Education Ltd (ASX: IEL) has 10.2% of its shares held short, which is up week on week. This language testing and student placement company’s shares recently hit a 52-week low. This has been driven by concerns over the impact of student visa changes and the loss of its monopoly in Canada.
• Deep Yellow Limited (ASX: DYL) has seen its short interest fall to 9%. Short sellers may be regretting this one. Booming uranium prices mean that Deep Yellow’s shares are up 35% in January.
• Genesis Minerals Ltd (ASX: GMD) has seen its short interest remain flat at 8.9%. This high level of short interest may be due to integration risks from recent acquisitions.
• Liontown Resources Ltd (ASX: LTR) has short interest of 8.5%, which is up since last week. Last week, Albemarle Corp (NYSE: ALB) sold off its stake in the lithium developer at a sizeable discount.
• Weebit Nano Ltd (ASX: WBT) has returned to the top ten with short interest of 8.3%. The smart end of town appears to believe this semiconductor company is another Brainchip Holdings Ltd (ASX: BRN). All hype and no substance (or revenue).
• Flight Centre Travel Group Ltd (ASX: FLT) has 8.3% of its shares held short, which is down week on week. Short sellers appear to believe that the market is too optimistic on the travel agent’s outlook.

The post These are the 10 most shorted ASX shares appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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More reading

• Why these ASX 200 shares could rise 20% to 50%
• Are Pilbara Minerals shares a buy for that 7% dividend yield?
• Here are the top 10 ASX 200 shares today
• Why is the Deep Yellow share price missing out on today’s market rally?
• If I’d invested $10,000 in Flight Centre shares a year ago here’s what I’d have now!

Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has positions in and has recommended Idp Education. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Flight Centre Travel Group and Idp Education. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

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