NUAI: 47% Short Float, 15% Availability — Squeeze Conditions Build

Three signals aligned on NUAI Wednesday. Short interest sits at 47.4% of free float. Borrow availability has collapsed to 15.5%. The put-call ratio just hit its highest level in weeks.

The Borrow Market Is Tightening Fast

Availability dropped from 47.8% on September 16 to just 15.5% on September 23. That is a 67% tightening in one week. Only roughly one share remains available to borrow for every six already lent out.

The 52-week availability low is 2.1%. The market has been this tight before. In late August, availability fell to 4.1% across four consecutive sessions while short interest remained elevated.

Short interest itself rose 10% over the past week to 25.3 million shares. That is 47.4% of free float — one of the highest readings on the US market. The ORTEX short score sits at 71.9, in the bottom 3rd percentile for its sector on both short score rank and availability rank.

Options Market Signals Hedging

The put-call ratio hit 0.42 on September 23. The 20-day mean is 0.26. That puts the reading 3.4 standard deviations above the recent average — the highest z-score in weeks.

The PCR has moved sharply in just two sessions. It stood at 0.23 on September 21. By September 23 it had risen to 0.42. Options participants are buying protection at an accelerating pace as the stock rallies.

The Rally Is the Context

NUAI is up 29% over one week and 44% over one month, closing at $6.99 on September 23. That kind of move in a stock with nearly half its float short creates a feedback loop. Rising prices force shorts to pay more to hold positions. Tightening availability makes it harder to add new shorts.

B. Riley Securities initiated with a Buy and a $10 target in July 2026. The stock is now approaching that level from below. The analyst data is flagged as stale, so no recent changes are on record.

BlackRock added 6.4 million shares as of August 31. State Street added 4.0 million shares in the same period. Conversant Capital initiated a 5.1% position. These are not trivial flows into a micro-cap name.

Data Summary

• Short Interest: 47.4% of free float, up 10% week-on-week
• Availability: 15.5% — down from 47.8% one week ago; 52-week low is 2.1%
• Put-Call Ratio: 0.42, z-score of 3.4 vs. 20-day mean of 0.26
• Price: $6.99 (+29% 1w, +44% 1m)
• ORTEX Short Score: 71.9; short score rank in bottom 3rd percentile
• Next Earnings: November 17, 2026