New Hazeltree Shortside Crowdedness Report Reveals Kering SA and H&M in EMEA and Disco Corporation in APAC Most Crowded Large Cap Securities
The tech sector remained the most shorted sector for the third consecutive month, with heavily shorted securities in February including Apple, IBM, Super Micro, SoFi, and Texas Instruments, according to Hazeltree's latest Shortside Crowdedness Report. Hazeltree, a leader in active treasury and intelligent operations technology for the alternative asset industry, also identified Kering SA and H&M as the most shorted large-cap stocks in EMEA, with Kering and APAC's Disco Corporation both appearing for the second consecutive month.
The report is a monthly listing of the top 10 shorted securities in the Americas, EMEA, and APAC regions in the large-, mid-, and small-cap ranges. The data is compiled from Hazeltree's proprietary securities finance platform data, which tracks approximately 15,000 global equities across the Americas, EMEA, and APAC. The data available to select clients is aggregated and anonymized from the contributing Hazeltree community, which includes approximately 700 asset manager funds. The securities are assigned a Hazeltree Crowdedness Score, a key metric, which grades securities on a scale of 1 to 99, with 99 representing the highest concentration of shorting activity. This scoring highlights securities most targeted by investors and reflects key supply-demand dynamics.
"Our February Shortside Crowdedness Report analysis shows the U.S. tech sector continued to see layoffs, though at a slower pace than last year, alongside a surge in job postings, low unemployment, and a contracting IT job market," said Tim Smith, Managing Director of Data Insights at Hazeltree. "This points to a market in transition not collapse as companies recalibrate talent strategies to align with shifting priorities and economic conditions. Tech remained a top target for short sellers in the Americas for the third consecutive month, with eight of the 10 most crowded large-cap securities."
Highlights from the February 2025 report include:
Americas
- In the large-cap category, Chevron Corporation held steady for back-to-back months as the most crowded security with a score of 99. Super Micro Computer, Inc. was the second most crowded security following January with a score of 91 and held the highest institutional supply utilization (53.27%) for the third straight month.
- In the mid-cap category, Dayforce, Inc. returned to the top from 2024, with a Hazeltree Crowdedness Score of 99. Shift4Payments, Inc. held the highest institutional supply utilization figure (35.88%).
- In the small-cap category, Wolfspeed, Inc. continued its hold as the most crowded security for the seventh consecutive month, with a score of 99. Enovix Corporation had the highest institutional supply utilization (85.91%).
EMEA
- In the large-cap category, Kering SA and H&M Hennes Mauritz AB were the most crowded securities with a score of 99. Kering returned to the top for the second consecutive month and H&M had the highest institutional supply utilization (76.34%) for the eighth successive month.
- In the mid-cap category, Kingfisher plc, BE Semiconductor Industries NV and Delivery Hero SE were the most crowded securities (99). Carl Zeiss Meditec AG had the highest institutional supply utilization (51.20%).
- In the small-cap category, Alphawave IP Group plc was the most crowded security for the third straight month, achieving a score of 99. Oxford Nanopore Technologies PLC led in institutional supply utilization (74.11%).
APAC
- In the large-cap category, Disco Corporation was one of the most crowded securities with a score of 99 for the second consecutive month. MTR Corp. Ltd. had the highest institutional supply utilization (21.07%).
- In the mid-cap category, Kokusai Electric Corporation, was the most crowded security with a score of 99 for the second consecutive month and had the highest institutional supply utilization (51.66%).
- In the small-cap category, Tokai Carbon Co., Ltd., reemerged as the most crowded security (99) for the second consecutive month. KeePer Technical Laboratory Co. Ltd. had the highest institutional supply utilization (74.51%).
To view Hazeltree's February 2025 Shortside Crowdedness Report and past reports, click here.
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Hazeltree Shortside Crowdedness Report Methodology
The Shortside Crowdedness Report tracks shorting activity in three different metrics:
- Hazeltree Crowdedness Score: This score represents securities that are being shorted by the highest percentage of funds in Hazeltree's community in a pre-defined category. The securities are graded on a scale of 1-99, with 99 representing the security that the highest percentage of funds are shorting.
- Institutional Supply Utilization: This figure represents the percentage of the institutional investors' supply of a particular security that is being lent out. The institutional supply utilization rate is an indicator of how "hot" a security is in terms of the supply-demand dynamic. It is possible to see 100% utilization of a security's availability, making it difficult to establish new short positions.
- Hazeltree Community Borrow Fee: This figure is the average weighted fee for what funds in the Hazeltree community are paying to borrow a security. The fee is represented as the annualized cost calculated as a percentage of the price of the security.
About Hazeltree
Hazeltree is a leader in active treasury and intelligent operations technology. Purpose-built for the alternative asset management ecosystem, Hazeltree's modular platform aggregates internal and external data, providing a comprehensive view of operations and counterparty relationships while proactively highlighting opportunities to extract more value from every transaction. Hazeltree is headquartered in New York with offices in London, Bournemouth, and Hong Kong. For more information, please visit www.hazeltree.com.
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Media:
Ben Tanner
Hazeltree
btanner@hazeltree.com
