If someone is betting heavily against a UK stock I either own, or plan to own, then I want to know about it. Luckily for me, all firms with a net short position greater than or equal to 0.1% of the issued share capital of a UK listed company have to report that position to the the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). The FCA publishes a daily short position update based on the notifications that it receives. This includes company stock with net short positions in excess of 0.5% against their issued share capital along with the identity of the position holders.
The FCA’s daily short position update is an important source of information for those who invest in UK stocks. I tend to ignore most of the daily updates and focus on the Friday one. There a a few things I like to do with it. In this post I will be looking at the short position update from Friday, 28 July, 2023
Top 20 most shorted UK stocks on 28 July, 2023
After knocking Ocado of the top spot last week, Kingfisher has been replaced by ITM Power and now finds itself in second place. Ocado has continued to tumble down the list and now finds itself in 12th position.
Over the last week many short positions against the top 20 most shorted UK stocks have reduced, or remained unchanged.
| Rank | Company | Sector | Industry | Net Short Position | Change Since Last Week |
| 1 | ITM Power | Energy | Renewable Energy Equipment | 4.57% | -0.26% |
| 2 | Kingfisher | Consumer Discretionary | Home Improvement Retailers | 4.49% | -0.71% |
| 3 | Keywords Studios | Consumer Discretionary | Electronic Entertainment | 4.13% | -0.01% |
| 4 | BooHoo | Consumer Discretionary | Apparel Retailers | 3.84% | -0.03% |
| 5 | Naked Wines | Consumer Discretionary | Speciality Retailers | 3.63% | no change |
| 6 | Hargreaves Lansdown | Financials | Asset Managers and Custodians | 3.46% | 0.06% |
| 7 | DG Innovate | Consumer Discretionary | Auto Parts | 3.40% | no change |
| 8 | Hammerson | Real Estate | Retail REITs | 3.34% | -0.03% |
| 9 | Cineworld | Consumer Discretionary | Recreational Services | 3.29% | no change |
| 10 | J. Sainsbury | Consumer Staples | Food Retailers and Wholesalers | 3.24% | no change |
| 11 | Moonpig | Consumer Discretionary | Speciality Retailers | 3.01% | -0.26% |
| 12 | Ocado | Consumer Staples | Food Retailers and Wholesalers | 2.99% | -0.76% |
| 13 | Harbour Energy | Energy | Oil: Crude Producers | 2.78% | no change |
| 14 | Johnson Matthey | Basic Materials | Chemicals: Diversified | 2.69% | 0.08% |
| 15 | Tullow Oil | Energy | Oil: Crude Producers | 2.69% | -0.17% |
| 16 | Alliance Pharma | Health Care | Pharmaceuticals | 2.62% | 0.19% |
| 17 | Primary Health Properties | Real Estate | Health Care REITs | 2.46% | -0.08% |
| 18 | British Land | Real Estate | Diversified REITs | 2.27% | 0.05% |
| 19 | AFC Energy | Energy | Alternative Fuels | 2.21% | 0.25% |
| 20 | DFS Furniture | Consumer Discretionary | Home Improvement Retailers | 2.18% | -0.07% |
Abrdn and Petrofac have dropped out of the top 20 to be replaced by AFC Energy and DG Innovate. Regular readers will be familiar with AFC Energy. The provider of hydrogen power generation technologies registered the largest one week increase in net short position last week.
DG Innovate seems to have come from nowhere to take 7th place in the top 20. This company is developing electric drive trains, motor and batteries for electric vehicles. So far there is no meaningful revenue, and significant cash burn, which is all being funded by large equity raises.
The 10 biggest increases in net short position this week
Short sellers pilled onto Wizz Air, increasing the net short position against the low-cost carrier increased by 0.66%.
| Rank | Company | Industry | One Week Change in Net Short Position (%) | Net Short Position (%) |
| 1 | Wizz Air | Airlines | 0.66% | 1.56% |
| 2 | Rightmove | Real Estate Services | 0.57% | 1.28% |
| 3 | Pennon | Water | 0.53% | 1.43% |
| 4 | 888 Holdings | Casinos and Gambling | 0.30% | 0.82% |
| 5 | AFC Energy | Alternative Fuels | 0.25% | 2.21% |
| 6 | Metro Bank | Banks | 0.20% | 1.09% |
| 7 | Alliance Pharma | Pharmaceuticals | 0.19% | 2.62% |
| 8 | Phoenix Group | Life Insurance | 0.10% | 1.62% |
| 9 | Victrex | Speciality Chemicals | 0.10% | 0.60% |
| 10 | Johnson Matthey | Chemicals: Diversified | 0.08% | 2.69% |
The 10 UK stocks whose net short position declined the most this week
Its worth taking notice when particular themes emerge in these reports. The industry is really the FTSE subsector, the lowest level of granularity we can find. There are a couple of stocks from the industrial suppliers industry, in this weeks top 10 stocks with the biggest fall in net short position against them.
| Rank | Company | Industry | One Week Change in Net Short Position (%) | Net Short Position (%) |
| 1 | Ocado | Food Retailers and Wholesalers | -0.76% | 2.99% |
| 2 | Kingfisher | Home Improvement Retailers | -0.71% | 4.49% |
| 3 | THG | Miscellaneous Consumer Staple Goods | -0.57% | 0.89% |
| 4 | Travis Perkins | Industrial Suppliers | -0.51% | 1.66% |
| 5 | SIG | Industrial Suppliers | -0.50% | 1.61% |
| 6 | Abrdn | Asset Managers and Custodians | -0.48% | 2.11% |
| 7 | Greencore | Food Products | -0.30% | 0.79% |
| 8 | Moonpig | Speciality Retailers | -0.26% | 3.01% |
| 9 | ITM Power | Energy | -0.26% | 4.57% |
| 10 | Mobico | Travel and Tourism | -0.20% | 1.86% |
DISCLAIMER: James J. McCombie owns shares in Kingfisher and Greencore. The Storied Investor has no beneficial ownership position in any of the stocks or securities mentioned. No comment in this article should be construed as a recommendation of, or opinion regarding the future performance of, any stock or security or collection of them mentioned herein. Opinions expressed are the author’s and do not represent the views of The Storied Investor.
The Storied Investor 