XMAX Borrow Market Near Frozen as Short Score Hits 80

The lending market for XMAX has effectively seized up. Availability stands at just 2.1% — meaning only one share is available to borrow for every 47 already lent out. That is as close to a frozen borrow market as exists in practice.

A Month of Relentless Pressure

The squeeze on XMAX shares has been building for weeks. Short interest sat near 3.4 million shares on May 18. By June 26 it had reached 5.8 million — a 70% rise in just over a month.

Cost to borrow has moved in lockstep. It stood at 7.7% in mid-May. It has since more than quintupled to 39.3%, up 69% in the past week alone.

Availability has been sub-2% for most of the past six weeks. On several days it dipped below 0.5%. On May 28 it touched 0.06% — effectively zero.

Short Score Climbs Toward Extreme

ORTEX's short score for XMAX reached 79.9 on June 25, up from 73.7 just ten days earlier. The short score ranks in the 2nd percentile of all stocks — meaning almost no stock in the market carries heavier bearish signal from the lending data.

Days-to-cover stands at 4.5, per FINRA's most recent official filing. That is the number of average trading days it would take short sellers to fully cover their positions.

What the Numbers Say Together

Short interest at 13.8% of free float is already elevated. Rising 22% in a single week while the borrow market is essentially frozen is the convergence that matters. New shorts who want to open positions face a 39% annual cost just to hold them. Existing shorts face the same to stay.

The stock itself is up 7.5% over the past month. It has next earnings due on August 14.

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Data summary

• SI % of free float: 13.8% (June 26), up 22% week-on-week, up 70% month-on-month
• Cost to borrow: 39.3%, up 69% week-on-week, up 90% month-on-month
• Availability: 2.1% — extremely tight (52-week low: 0.0%)
• ORTEX short score: 79.9 (2nd percentile rank)
• Next earnings: August 14, 2026