HDV, the iShares Core High Dividend ETF, heads into September with two notable shifts running in the same direction: short sellers are unwinding fast, and options traders have swung sharply toward calls.
The most striking move in the positioning data is options sentiment. Call demand has surged relative to puts, pushing the put/call ratio to just 0.075 — well below its 20-day average of 0.30 and nearly 1.4 standard deviations below that mean. That places the ratio close to its 52-week floor, indicating options participants are expressing far more bullish intent than at almost any point in the past year. The shift is sharp and recent: the PCR ran near 0.50 through mid-August before dropping abruptly in the week of August 24, suggesting a deliberate rotation into upside exposure rather than a gradual drift.
Short interest reinforces the picture. Bearish positioning has collapsed — shares short fell 48% on the week to just 0.68% of the float, and are down more than 56% over the past month. That is already a low absolute level for any instrument, and the pace of the unwind is the notable detail. Borrow costs, at just over 1%, remain modest and have eased about 5% on the week, consistent with less demand for borrows. Availability has loosened meaningfully too, climbing to 143% — nearly double the 75% reading seen on August 21. The borrow market is in comfortable territory, with no squeeze dynamics at play.
The short score of 45, sitting near the middle of ORTEX's percentile range, reflects the unremarkable short-side story. HDV is not a heavily contested name — it is an income vehicle, and the short score corroborates that. The combined score of 45 has been stable across the past two weeks, with little directional drift, which is consistent with an ETF that attracts patient, yield-focused capital rather than tactical short sellers.
The dividend record reinforces HDV's core appeal. The fund paid $0.104 per share in August and $0.087 in July, with a larger $0.843 distribution in March. That cadence supports steady inflows from income-oriented allocators, which likely explains why shorts have found little traction. On price, HDV added 3.1% over the past month despite a modest 0.7% weekly dip, with Tuesday's session recovering 0.37% to close at $29.61. The broader one-month gain suggests the income story has attracted buyers even as broader equity sentiment has been choppy.
What to watch next is whether the options tilt toward calls deepens or reverts — the PCR has been near its lows for six consecutive sessions, which is unusually persistent, and any reversal toward the 0.30 average would be the clearest signal that the near-term enthusiasm is fading.
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