Bears Pile In as AppLovin Rockets, Wolfspeed Stays in Bulls-eye

Short sellers are sending mixed signals this Thursday. Some of the market's most battered names are shedding bearish positions. Others are attracting fresh shorts at a rapid pace.

Wolfspeed remains the standout case in US large caps. Short Interest sits at 88% of free float. It barely moved over the past five days, down just 0.84 percentage points. Availability is effectively zero, meaning there is almost nothing left to borrow. Cost to borrow at the semiconductor firm sits below 2%, but with nothing available, that number is academic.

Hertz is another name bears keep returning to. SI stands at 73% of free float. Borrowing costs have surged to 67%, making fresh short positions expensive to hold. The stock is up 35% over three months, yet the bears are not retreating.

Lucid Group tells a similar story. SI nudged up to 65.9% of free float from 65.1% a week ago. The EV maker dropped 61% over the past three months. Washington State battery-electric registrations fell 32% year-on-year in September, adding to the gloomy demand backdrop ORTEX alt data tracks.

AppLovin is the week's headline stock. The ad-tech firm shot 23% higher in after-hours trading after reporting strong earnings. Its SI is a modest 4.1% of free float. That means bears have limited exposure to cover, and a squeeze is not the story here. The story is bulls winning cleanly.

EverCommerce carries the highest short score among mid-caps at 97. SI holds at 15% of free float with a cost to borrow above 81%.

Sprouts Farmers Market saw the sharpest SI drop among meaningful US names. Shorts trimmed 2.5 percentage points over five days, bringing SI to 11.9%. Covering into strength is the clearest read on that move.

Charter Communications holds 16.7% SI. ORTEX Index Rebalance Radar puts MSCI World deletion odds for Charter at 71%, with $901M of forced selling possible if the November review confirms removal.