Short sellers have rapidly increased their positions in SpaceX as the company heads toward two big events next week. The first is the release of its inaugural earnings report on August 4. The second is the unlocking of 911.5 million shares on August 6.
As of July 29, short interest stood at 219.3 million shares, which equals about 34% of the shares that are available for public trading. This is a sharp rise from the 23.3 million shares reported on June 16, according to S3 Partners.
The value of these bearish bets is $24.6 billion, which is higher than the short positions against Tesla Inc., another company led by Elon Musk.
Sam Pierson, director of research at S3, said the biggest bet now is on the unlock event and that earnings will probably not offset the massive influx of shares into the market.
SpaceX’s first quarterly results as a public company are scheduled for August 4, less than two months after its successful initial public offering. Two days later, a large number of shares could become tradable.
Because of this, the cost to borrow shares for short sellers is a bit higher now, but Pierson added that after the unlock the borrowing cost is likely to ease again.
Currently, SpaceX has about 640 million shares available for trading, which is roughly 5% of its total shares outstanding. After the first lock‑up expires, that proportion will rise to about 12%.
The stock fell 3% to $108.83 at 12:48 p.m. in New York, which is about 19% below its IPO price.
Pierson highlighted three key drivers to watch over the next year. The first is the unlock ladder, the second is the company’s potential entry into the S&P 500, and the third is a possible combination with Tesla.
These factors could shape investor sentiment and the trading dynamics of SpaceX in the months ahead.