Vistry Group, London’s most heavily shorted stock, has seen disclosed short positions climb even higher, according to Research Tree’s Short Interest Tracker.
Total disclosed shorts now stand at 16.74% of issued share capital — up 4.22 percentage points over the past month, the largest monthly rise of any FTSE-listed company and a fresh extension of the housebuilder’s already-dominant position at the top of the UK’s short-seller league table.
The scale of the increase stands out against Vistry’s own recent history: FCA-disclosed short interest sat at just 1.22% as recently as February, meaning the stock’s bearish overhang has built dramatically since then. Other trackers corroborate the trend — ii.co.uk reported Vistry as London’s second most-shorted share in June with 14.7% out on loan, a figure that has since been overtaken by the latest 16.74% reading.
Ready to put what you’ve learned into practice?
Try IG’s platform with £10,000 in virtual funds and practise trading
without putting your own money at risk.
Try IG with a demo account →
Spread bets and CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 69% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading spread bets and CFDs with this provider.
Learn the markets with IG Academy
Build your knowledge with IG Academy educational content, then use a
demo account to practise what you’ve learned on the IG platform.
Explore IG →
Spread bets and CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 69% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading spread bets and CFDs with this provider.
See how trading works before risking real money
IG’s demo gives you access to thousands of markets and £10,000 in
virtual funds, so you can explore the platform and test your ideas first.
Open an IG demo →
Spread bets and CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 69% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading spread bets and CFDs with this provider.
Turn trading theory into practical experience
Learn with IG Academy, explore charts and market tools, and practise
strategies in a simulated trading environment before going live.
Start practising with IG →
Spread bets and CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 69% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading spread bets and CFDs with this provider.
Ready to take your learning further?
IG combines market education, analysis and an established trading platform,
giving you the tools to keep learning as you develop your trading skills.
Discover IG →
Spread bets and CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 69% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading spread bets and CFDs with this provider.
Behind the rise, several well-known short-sellers have added to or initiated positions. Schonfeld Strategic Advisors (UK) LLP increased its short to 2.44%, up 0.19 percentage points, while its US affiliate, Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC, added 0.07 points to reach 0.73%.
Soundstone Italy S.r.l lifted its position by 0.11 points to 0.68%, and Premier Miton Group plc — a name more usually associated with long-only fund management — disclosed a new 0.54% short. Citadel Advisors LLC was a rare exception, trimming its stake slightly to 1.19%.
The intensifying short interest reflects investor concern over Vistry’s profit warnings, writedowns on legacy partnership developments, and exposure to softer government-backed housing demand.
With shorts at high levels, any positive surprise at Vistry’s next trading update could spark a sharp short-covering rally — while further bad news risks pushing short interest higher still.
