10 Most Shorted ASX Stocks: Uranium Leads at 17.16%

Lotus Resources is now the most shorted stock on the entire ASX. As of 18 May 2026, 17.16% of its shares had been sold short, a position that has climbed to record levels almost every trading day since mid-April. It is not alone. Two uranium stocks now sit in the top four most shorted positions nationally, and short sellers are stacking into healthcare and consumer names at a pace that stands out even in a market accustomed to elevated short interest.

The weekly ASX short interest data covering 12-18 May 2026 (published with a standard four-day lag) reveals where professional capital is betting against individual companies. What follows breaks down the full top-ten list, the specific catalysts driving the uranium short trade, what short interest data actually tells investors and what it does not, and which other names are seeing the fastest accumulation of short positions right now.

The ASX’s most shorted stocks as of 18 May 2026

The table below ranks the ten most shorted stocks on the ASX by short interest percentage, based on settlement data covering 12-18 May 2026. The four-day publication lag reflects the three-business-day mandatory disclosure window under ASX rules.

The direction of change matters as much as the absolute level. Of the top ten:

• Seven stocks saw short interest rise during the week: Lotus Resources, Domino’s Pizza, Boss Energy, Guzman Y Gomez, Treasury Wine Estates, Droneshield, and Car Group.
• Three stocks saw short interest decline: Telix Pharmaceuticals, Polynovo, and Zip Co, suggesting short sellers in those names may be reducing conviction or taking profits.

The two standouts for active accumulation are Lotus Resources (up 6.15% in a single month) and Boss Energy (up 2.77% month-over-month). Both are uranium producers, and both face company-specific catalysts that explain the positioning.

What short selling actually means for ASX investors

Short selling is the practice of borrowing shares from an existing holder, selling them at the current market price, and aiming to buy them back later at a lower price. The difference between the sale price and the repurchase price represents the short seller’s profit, or loss if the stock rises instead.

Three terms are worth defining clearly:

• Short interest percentage: The proportion of a company’s total shares on issue that are currently held in short positions. A higher figure indicates a larger share of the register is positioned for a price decline.
• Week-over-week change: The shift in short interest between two consecutive weekly snapshots. A movement above 0.5% in either direction typically signals meaningful new positioning rather than routine fluctuation. The comparison in this data spans 12-18 May 2026, with the prior week as the baseline.
• Short squeeze risk: The possibility that a rising share price forces short sellers to buy back shares to limit losses, which in turn drives the price higher still. Stocks with very high short interest are more exposed to this dynamic.

Interpreting the numbers

A high short interest reading is not a verdict on a company. It is an argument, backed by capital, that the current share price is too high. That argument can be won or lost. Month-over-month data (spanning 20 April to 18 May 2026 in this dataset) shows whether that argument is intensifying or losing support, a distinction that matters more than the headline figure alone. The four-day publication lag also means these figures reflect settled activity as of 18 May 2026, not live positions.

The ASIC short position reporting requirements mandate that short sellers report positions electronically, with aggregated totals published four business days after the reporting date, which is why the figures in this dataset reflect settled activity as of 18 May 2026 rather than live intraday positioning.

Lotus Resources: why short sellers are at record levels

On 30 April 2026, Lotus Resources announced the retraction of prior Kayelekera production results alongside leadership changes. The share price fell 34% in a single session. It has dropped a further 23% since.

Short interest has climbed to record highs on nearly every trading day since mid-April, reaching 17.16% as of 18 May 2026, an increase of 6.15% in a single month. That is the fastest monthly accumulation of short interest in any ASX stock in the current dataset.

The short thesis rests on three specific pillars:

• Production credibility: Lotus achieved first production at Kayelekera in August 2025 and was targeting steady-state output of 2.4 million pounds of U3O8 per annum by Q2 2026. The retraction of prior results raises direct questions about whether the ramp-up is on track.
• Leadership disruption: The management changes announced alongside the retraction introduced additional uncertainty about operational continuity.
• Cash runway: Macquarie estimated that Lotus held approximately $85 million in cash as at 31 March 2026, against $38 million in operating cash outflows during the March quarter.

“A$85 million cash balance against A$38 million quarterly operating outflows implies one to two quarters of financial runway.” — Macquarie estimate

That combination, a credibility shock intersecting with a finite cash position, creates exactly the binary risk profile that short sellers target. Either the company resolves the production questions and secures its financial position, or the runway runs out. The short interest reflects capital betting on the latter.

Boss Energy: the feasibility study that could reset everything

Boss Energy presents a structurally different short thesis. There is no credibility crisis here; instead, the market is watching a valuation reset unfold in slow motion.

In December 2025, Boss Energy withdrew its 2021 Enhanced Feasibility Study for the Honeymoon uranium project after a strategic review identified material deviations in assumptions around mine life, annual production, and costs. A replacement pathway was announced:

1. 2021 Enhanced Feasibility Study published and used as the basis for project valuation.
2. December 2025: Strategic review identifies material deviations; the 2021 study is withdrawn.
3. Q2 CY2026: New scoping study targeted for release.
4. Q3 CY2026: Full feasibility study targeted for release.

The scoping study result is now imminent. Short interest has risen 2.77% over the past month to 14.33%, with steady accumulation visible in the weekly figures (up 1.07% in the most recent week alone).

Why the short thesis follows

Short sellers are positioning for the possibility that the new feasibility study will confirm a smaller, less profitable Honeymoon project than the market had previously priced. The withdrawal itself was an admission that prior assumptions were materially wrong. Whether the replacement numbers are better or worse than current expectations will determine which side of the trade is vindicated. The short interest figure, rising steadily as the catalyst date approaches, functions as a real-time measure of how much capital expects the news to disappoint.

The uranium short trade was already forming in the week ending 4 May 2026, when Lotus Resources had surged 5.41 percentage points to 15.11% short interest and Boss Energy was attracting accelerating short interest at 13.38%, suggesting the sector-level thesis was established well before the current week’s figures confirmed its persistence.

Beyond uranium: other stocks seeing fast-rising short interest

The uranium trade is the most dramatic, but it is not the only story. Short sellers are active across healthcare, consumer, and agriculture names simultaneously.

Healius stands out in healthcare. Shares have fallen approximately 60% year-to-date and hit all-time lows after the company’s FY26 trading update on 13 May 2026 guided to underlying EBITDA of $259-264 million, roughly 4% below analyst consensus of $271.4 million. The Fair Work Commission’s gender undervaluation ruling adds $1.8 million in pathology labour costs in Q4 FY26 alone, with further increases from January 2027. Most pathology tests remain subject to an indexation freeze, compressing margins further.

Post-downgrade short accumulation is a documented pattern across ASX names, with short sellers in Accent Group, G8 Education, and Bank of Queensland all adding positions in the same week as each stock’s respective earnings-driven collapse, using the selloff itself as a confirmed entry signal rather than retreating on the volatility.

Paladin Energy (PDN) at 10.37% short interest, up 0.96% in the week, reinforces that the uranium short trade extends beyond Lotus and Boss to a third ASX-listed producer.

4DMedical posted the fastest week-over-week rise of any stock in the rising-shorts dataset, up 1.94% to 8.49%.

Where the uranium short trade goes from here

“Uranium traded at US$84.70/lb on 22 May 2026, with long-term supply fundamentals continuing to tighten.” — Trading Economics; Sprott sector commentary

The macro case for uranium has not changed. Sprott’s sector analysis notes that short-term volatility has masked strengthening long-term fundamentals as supply tightens and demand from nuclear power generation continues to grow. The current short positions in Lotus and Boss Energy are not macro bets against uranium as a commodity. They are company-specific execution-risk bets, targeting whether these individual producers can deliver on their project timelines and economics.

Three specific catalysts will determine whether the short sellers are proved right:

• Lotus Resources operational update on Kayelekera production status and cash position
• Boss Energy scoping study (targeted Q2 CY2026, imminent at the time of publication)
• Boss Energy full feasibility study (targeted Q3 CY2026)

There is also a reminder of how quickly short positions can unwind. Elevra Lithium (ELV) saw short interest drop 1.67% in a single week to 3.57% after a price round-trip of approximately 20% over nine trading sessions. When the price-action thesis breaks down, short sellers exit fast.

For investors holding uranium stocks or considering entry, the distinction matters: the short thesis is execution-specific, not macro-bearish. If company-level catalysts disappoint the short sellers, the same concentrated positioning that pushed short interest to record levels could fuel sharp recoveries.

The short interest data is a signal, not a sentence

Elevated short interest reflects a current market argument, not a guaranteed outcome. Short sellers can and do get squeezed when catalysts resolve favourably, and the concentration of short capital in a small number of names amplifies the reversal potential in both directions.

Investors who want to track this data can check ASX short interest disclosures weekly, keeping in mind the four-day publication lag that means figures reflect settled positions, not real-time activity.

ASX short sale reporting operates on a transaction-granular basis, requiring disclosure of every on-market short sale regardless of size, a regime that is more demanding than equivalent US or UK frameworks and the one that produced a $35 million NSW Supreme Court penalty against Macquarie Securities in March 2026 for systemic misreporting across up to 1.5 billion transactions.

The concentration of short interest in uranium names alongside healthcare and consumer discretionary stocks points to a broader theme: in a market where valuations have, in some cases, run ahead of delivery, short sellers are targeting the gap between promises and results. Whether they collect on that bet depends on what the next round of company updates actually says.

This article is for informational purposes only and should not be considered financial advice. Investors should conduct their own research and consult with financial professionals before making investment decisions.

Forward-looking statements regarding production timelines, feasibility study outcomes, and cash runway projections are subject to change based on company performance and market conditions.