Q2 earnings season opens this week. Options flow is shaping up around some of the market's most heavily shorted names.
HTZ stands out as the clearest bear signal. Short interest hit 59.2% of free float on July 2. That is up from 43.4% just two weeks ago — a jump of nearly 16 percentage points. Availability sits at zero. There are effectively no shares left to borrow. That combination of extreme short positioning and zero availability creates a powder-keg setup heading into earnings.
CRWV is drawing fresh fire too. Short interest rose to 28.4% of free float, up 8.5 points in a fortnight. The AI infrastructure stock has attracted bears despite strong investor enthusiasm around the sector. Cost to borrow remains low at 0.47%, suggesting shorts can stay in position for now.
GME holds steady at 13.8% short interest. Availability sits at 75.5%. Options traders will watch closely for any catalyst that could trigger a squeeze.
On the earnings front, DAL and PEP both report this week. Delta's short interest is modest at 3.5%. PepsiCo carries only 2.2%. Neither looks like a bear target — but options volume around both names typically spikes into results day. AVGO shorts remain light at 1.3% of free float.
The clearest signal this week: bears are pressing hard on the most distressed names before results hit.
ORTEX Market Intelligence content is generated by AI from a snapshot of ORTEX's proprietary data. Content is informational only and does not constitute investment advice.
