Nokia short sellers are rapidly exiting the lending market. Cost to borrow has crashed from 9.57% on April 28 to just 0.43% by May 7 — a 95% drop in under two weeks.
The April 28 spike was brief and sharp. It coincided with Nokia's Q1 earnings, which delivered a +6.1% one-day move and a remarkable +30.9% five-day return. Short sellers who rushed to borrow shares ahead of earnings faced peak borrow costs. They're now unwinding fast.
Short interest has fallen 14% over the past week to approximately 59.5 million shares as of May 7. Over the past month, shares short rose 13.6% — a build-up that coincided with the late-April borrow squeeze. That position is now being unwound.
The borrow market has returned to loose conditions. Availability is ample, with cost to borrow sitting near multi-month lows. The ORTEX short score stands at 39.1, down sharply from 52.7 on April 28. That's a significant decompression in short-side pressure in just ten trading days.
Against this backdrop, the put/call ratio rose to 0.28 on May 8. That sits 2.02 standard deviations above its 20-day mean of 0.24. The absolute level is low — the 52-week range runs from 0.16 to 0.83 — but the relative spike is notable.
The stock gained 45% over the past month. Some options activity at elevated PCR levels may reflect hedging on those gains rather than fresh directional bearishness. Still, the deviation from trend is worth flagging.
On April 27, Argus Research analyst Jim Kelleher upgraded NOK from Hold to Buy with a $15 price target. That target sits well above the current close of $12.82 — and above any target in the snapshot's prior history.
Morgan Stanley carries an Overweight rating initiated in February. JP Morgan also holds Overweight with an $8 target, though that was set before the stock's sharp April rally. The consensus currently reads as a sell, with one underperform rating dragging on the aggregate.
FMR (Fidelity) added 234.5 million shares in the most recent reporting period, lifting its stake to 514.3 million shares — 9.4% of the company. That's the largest single holder position in the snapshot and a substantial new build.
Key figures: CTB 0.43% (was 9.57% on Apr 28) · Short interest ~59.5M shares, –14% week-on-week · PCR 0.28, z-score +2.02 · ORTEX short score 39.1, down from 52.7 · FMR added 234.5M shares · Argus Buy, $15 PT
See the live data behind this article on ORTEX.
Open NOK on ORTEX →ORTEX Market Intelligence content is generated by AI from a snapshot of ORTEX's proprietary data. Content is informational only and does not constitute investment advice.
