REXR Options Flare Bullish as Bears Keep Retreating

Three data streams on REXR are now pointing the same direction. Call buyers have surged in. Short sellers continue to exit. The borrow market has loosened dramatically. Post-earnings, the picture looks notably more constructive than it did heading into Q2 results.

Call Buyers Take Control

The put/call ratio collapsed to 0.889 on July 27. That is the lowest reading in 52 weeks. It sits 3.8 standard deviations below the 20-day mean of 1.19. For context, that mean had held in a tight band above 1.15 for months — the move to sub-0.9 is abrupt and significant. Rexford's Q2 earnings dropped on July 23-24 and the stock jumped more than 6% on the news. The options market appears to be pricing in continued momentum rather than fading the move.

Short Sellers Have Been Unwinding for Weeks

SI now stands at 3.5% of free float, down 11% over the past week and 21% over the past month. This continues a trend flagged in our pre-earnings note: bears have been cutting exposure steadily since mid-June, when SI was closer to 5.3% of float. The retreat has accelerated since the earnings print. At 3.5%, SI is not at a level that creates squeeze dynamics — but the direction is unambiguous.

Borrow Market Is Wide Open

Availability has expanded sharply. It now stands at 2,719% — meaning more than 27 shares are available to borrow for every one currently borrowed. That is up nearly 39% week-on-week and sits well above the 52-week low of 549%. The lending market is loose. Cost to borrow is 0.35%, among the cheapest levels seen all year. There is no supply constraint forcing the short-seller retreat — this is discretionary covering, not a squeeze.

Analysts Split, But a Fresh Raise Stands Out

Evercore ISI raised its price target to $42 from $40 on July 27, maintaining Outperform. That puts it above the consensus mean of $39.19 and notably above the current price of $38.71. Barclays sits on the other side, holding Underweight with a $36 target. The divide is familiar — bulls point to 96.6% occupancy and upward FFO revisions; bears flag recession risk and Southern California demand headwinds. The post-earnings stock reaction (+6%) argues the near-term data is landing on the bull side.

Data Summary

• PCR: 0.889, 52-week low, z-score –3.77
• SI % of free float: 3.5%, down 11% week-on-week, down 21% month-on-month
• Borrow availability: 2,719% — wide open
• Cost to borrow: 0.35%
• Price: $38.71, +4.9% on the week, +12.7% on the month
• Evercore ISI target: $42 (raised July 27) | Barclays target: $36