Short Sellers Are Rushing Back Into Stocks as Volatility Returns
- Some say that’s likely to put near-term pressure on market
- Contrarians view sales as a source of future demand for stocks
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One group of equity skeptics who faded out of view during the summer rally are making a comeback with the S&P 500 heading for its worst September in almost a decade.
Investors who sell borrowed shares in anticipation of price declines are back in force. Bearish wagers climbed to about 7% of total stocks available for lending this month, up from 2020’s low of a little above 6% reached in August, data compiled by JPMorgan Chase & Co. show. That’s poised for the biggest increase since March.