JC Penney, Twilio Top The Hottest Stocks Among Short Sellers

FIS Astec Analytics has released its latest weekly report on the hottest stocks among short sellers from the previous week.

Here's a look at last week's report, which includes many of the same names featured in the latest release.

Top Pick: JC Penney

Holding on to the top spot from last week, struggling retailer J C Penney Company Inc JCP's recent earnings report confirms what many short sellers believed. Specifically, confidence over a turn-around plan is "sadly lacking," and conversations regarding the demise of the chain has reignited after a brief period of optimism.

Short-selling volumes moved higher last week also some short sellers took some profits off the table. But 68 percent of shares remain borrowed, which implies short sellers are confident that further declines could be seen.

1. Twilio

Shares of Twilio Inc TWLO closed last week near $24. Meanwhile, insider buying activity observed last week in which two directors bought 110,000 shares isn't convincing enough for the market as 96 percent of the available shares available to be shorted are held by short sellers.

2. Under Armour

Under Armour Inc UAA, a name that is no stranger in the hottest stocks to short, actually saw a small reduction in short interest volume last week. But as it stands, 98 percent of the available shares available to be shorted are held by short sellers. At the same time, a total of 21 insider transactions was observed over the last 90 days with the net result being 11,695 shares sold.

3. Frontier Communications

Shares of Frontier Communications Corp FTR have collapsed over the past year from a high of $5.33 to a close last week at $1.46. Last week, short sellers added a further 5 percent of volume to an already high short interest where over 95 percent of the available shares are already borrowed.

4. Snap

Snap Inc SNAP's first-earnings report as a public company disappointed investors but not short sellers. Heading into the earnings report, more than 85 percent of the available supply were already shorted. But moving forward, the stock will likely be hotly contested among bulls and bears who each over different views of the social media company's outlook.

5. RH

RH RH, formerly known as Restoration Hardware, saw its stock trade as low as $25.08 in February but gained more than 100 percent since then. But short sellers are now holding 100 percent of the available shares as short positions, which implies expectations for a burst bubble, perhaps as soon as the company's first-quarter earnings report, which is scheduled for June 6.

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