Hedge fund short-sellers are targeting Ocado after the online grocer posted a £501 million loss, with more than 6 per cent of the company’s stock now out on loan – the highest level in almost five years – according to a report by ThisIsMoney.
Ocado now tops the Financial Conduct Authority’s list of the ‘most shorted’ stocks in London and the increased level of bets against the firm indicates that the salad days of the global pandemic, when the company’s share price soared as shoppers turned to online ordering, are well and truly over.
The company’s shares have fallen by almost a third since this time a year ago, when only 0.52 per cent of its stock was being shorted. Now at least nine investment firms, including BlackRock, have taken short positions in the company worth a combined £225 million.
Seven firms have increased their positions since the end of February, when the FTSE 100 group posted a huge loss for the previous financial year, but current short positions are still far below a peak reached in 2016, when more than 21 per cent of Ocado’s shares were on loan to hedge funds.
