Short interest in Douglas Elliman jumped 11% over the past week while cost to borrow fell sharply. Options sentiment turned distinctly bullish with puts collapsing to a multi-week low. The stock gained 6.5% this week.
DOUG closed at $1.96 on April 24. The stock rose 4.8% that day and gained 6.5% over the week. The one-month gain stands at 14.0%. The real estate services firm trades near the top of its recent range.
Short interest hit 2.21 million shares on April 23. That represents 2.48% of the float. The position grew 6.6% in one day and jumped 11.1% over the past week. This marks the highest level in three weeks — last comparable reading was April 10. Short interest dropped 11.7% over the month, down from 2.50 million shares in late March.
Cost to borrow fell to 0.50% from 0.68% a week earlier. The 7.2% weekly drop extends a month-long decline. CTB peaked at 0.86% on April 20 and has now fallen 30% from the late-March high of 0.71%. Borrowing costs sit at the lowest point since early April.
Utilisation rose to 9.44% from 8.70% a week ago. The measure climbed from a March low of 6.54% but remains well below the 52-week peak of 14.0% reached March 16. The 14% reading represented the tightest supply conditions in the past year. Current utilisation sits in the middle of the recent range.
Days to cover stood at 4.55 on the most recent FINRA report dated April 15.
The put-call ratio collapsed to 0.16 on April 24. That sits far below the 20-day mean of 0.27 and registers a z-score of -1.76. The reading indicates unusually bullish sentiment. Over the past 52 weeks PCR ranged from 0.05 to 1.04. The current level marks the lowest since mid-April. Prior to this week PCR hovered near 0.37 through late March. The sharp drop over the past few days signals a distinct shift in options positioning.
Michael Liebowitz added 1.25 million shares in a filing dated April 10. His stake now stands at 4.13 million shares or 4.68% of the company. James Kirkland added 1.0 million shares, bringing his position to 1.88 million shares or 2.13%. These two active holders made the most significant recent moves.
Columbia Management bought 1.08 million shares in the first quarter. The position now totals 2.17 million shares or 2.47%. Saber Capital initiated a 1.26 million share stake in the fourth quarter.
BlackRock added 49,692 shares to reach 5.0 million shares. Vanguard added 37,584 shares and holds 4.21 million. Renaissance Technologies trimmed 233,200 shares, leaving 3.49 million.
Phillip Frost remains the largest holder with 7.64 million shares or 8.66%. The position was unchanged in the most recent filing.
Over the past 90 days insiders sold a net 306,000 shares worth $775,000. The December sales window accounts for all the activity. CFO James Kirkland sold 75,256 shares at $2.76 for $207,330. Chairman and CEO Michael Liebowitz sold 196,750 shares at $2.41 for $474,168. Vice presidents Stephen Larkin and Lisa Seligman sold smaller stakes in December as well.
Director Patrick Bartels bought 135,000 shares in May 2025 at prices from $1.85 to $1.92. Those purchases totaled $253,682. No insider buys have been reported in the past four months.
Douglas Elliman reports next earnings May 5 at 16:30 UTC. The company last reported March 13. Prior earnings dates fell February 27 and November 4, 2025. Historical price reactions to these prints are not available in the dataset.
Earnings land May 5. Short interest has climbed back over 2.2 million shares after falling through early April. Options positioning shifted sharply bullish this week. The gap between rising short interest and collapsing put demand creates an unusual setup ahead of the print.
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