Hedge funds increased short positions in large-cap technology and index-tracking securities in August, while select EMEA and APAC names showed sharp utilisation spikes, highlighting potential short-squeeze risks, according to Hazeltree’s latest Shortside Crowdedness Report.
In the Americas, Super Micro Computer, Advanced Micro Devices (AMD), and IBM ranked among the top 10 most crowded tech shorts, while the SPDR S&P 500 ETF reappeared on the list, reflecting rising hedge fund interest amid new US tariffs. Other heavily shorted US names included Kraft Heinz and Charter Communications, with Super Micro continuing to show the highest institutional supply utilisation for the ninth consecutive month.
Across EMEA, luxury and consumer names saw notable activity, with Kering, Pernod Ricard, and Legal & General among the most crowded large-cap shorts. Mid- and small-cap stocks such as Barry Callebaut and HelloFresh registered elevated supply utilisation above 60%, pointing to concentrated short positions that could amplify volatility.
In APAC, Oriental Land led large-cap crowdedness, while Tokyo Metro and M&A Research Institute showed particularly high utilisation levels, with some mid- and small-cap securities exceeding 88% in institutional supply utilisation. Hazeltree flagged these spikes as indicative of potential short-squeeze conditions in markets where borrowing costs are elevated.
The report, which ranks the most crowded shorted securities across Americas, EMEA, and APAC by large-, mid-, and small-cap categories, is based on data from Hazeltree’s securities finance platform tracking around 15,000 global equities. Each security receives a Crowdedness Score on a 1-to-99 scale, reflecting short concentration and supply-demand dynamics in the securities lending market.
“With U.S. tariffs taking effect in August, we anticipated an uptick in global short selling and observed pronounced interest across consumer/luxury, transport, health care, and tech/semiconductors,” said Tim Smith, Managing Director, Data Insights, at Hazeltree. “In the Americas, we also saw the re-emergence of the SPDR S&P 500 ETF among the top 10 shorted names during an up month for the S&P 500, along with increased short interest in Kraft Heinz ahead of the September corporate business split headlines.”
