The S&P Financials Sector is now up ~60% since March 6. Given this huge run, it looks like the shorts are back. Here is a look at how the short interest in these beaten companies has changed over time.
Amongst the Financials, the regional banks appear to have taken it on the chin the most so far
this year with Huntington Bancshares , Fifth Third Bancorp
and Suntrust all down over 50% YTD. Of course the big banks have continued to fall as well led by Citigroup which is down 60% YTD. However, since the intraday low hit on March 6, all of the financials have
rallied big with Citi up over 170% since it fell below $1 per share earlier this month.
With such a run, it's no surprise there has been a surge in short interest. The table to the right based on data from Thomson Reuters shows how the short interest as a percent of shares outstanding has changed since last month and six months ago. Citi's short interest has increased over five times its February levels.
By contrast, Huntington Bancshares which led the pack down last month has seen its short interest drop 25% since February. Most of the companies are still down from where they were in September when the market had its big sell off.
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