- Three UK-listed companies currently have disclosed net short positions of more than 10%, compared with none at any point in 20251
- 20 UK-listed companies currently have disclosed net short positions of more than 5%, compared with just two at any point in 20252
- Consumer sector is the most heavily shorted2
New analysis of publicly disclosed FCA net short positions by global law firm White & Case LLP reveals that short-selling has returned to the UK market with a vengeance. Three UK-listed companies have net short positions of more than 10%, as at 23 March 2026, compared with none at any point in 20251.
Additionally, 20 UK-listed companies have net short positions of more than 5%, as at 23 March 20262, compared with just two at any point in 20253. Among these 20 companies, the consumer sector appears to be the most heavily shorted2.
The analysis comes amid recent high-profile short-selling activity. Viceroy Research published a note on Close Brothers arguing that the specialist lender had not set aside enough money to cover potential liabilities from the car finance scandal, while Wizz Air was targeted by short-sellers after warning that it would be impacted by the Iran conflict.
Commenting, Patrick Sarch, Head of UK Public M&A at global law firm White & Case LLP, said:
“Only when the tide goes out do you discover who's not wearing shorts - and indeed who is being shorted.
“We predicted at the end of 2025 that 2026 would see a significant increase in shorting shares in UK companies and this research vindicates that prediction.
“The opportunities for short-sellers are more attractive now than they have been for many years. Global stock markets have experienced a relatively long decade-plus bull market with strengthening equity valuations, and although the UK remains more moderately priced relative to other markets, UK stocks had been at record highs until the recent geopolitical tensions in the Middle East and were not generally undervalued relative to each other.
“However, markets are beginning to come off these highs following the recent reallocation out of AI-driven stocks and heightened macro uncertainty. As individual valuations come under pressure, investors are increasingly taking a closer look at those UK-listed companies whose equity stories appear too good to be true and whose fundamentals don’t support their valuations.
“Despite this recent uptick in short-selling activity, short-selling has always played a healthy role in capital markets, supporting price discovery, liquidity, transparency, good governance and market discipline. Short-sellers are often sophisticated investors who produce extensive and well-researched theses on companies, and many have played a crucial role in exposing fraud at companies such as Wirecard and Home REIT.”
What issuers should do
White & Case is talking to a number of listed companies about what they can do to mitigate these risks – it does not act for short-sellers attacking UK listed companies.
The best way to prevent becoming vulnerable is to be proactive and transparent. A number of potentially vulnerable companies have an internal investor engagement or audit committee that meets quarterly to review and assess vulnerabilities and risks, including accounting policies, revenue recognition, provisions, disclosure, related party issues and undisclosed vulnerabilities. The investor engagement function should serve as the harshest internal critic, regularly challenging Boards and management teams and relaying feedback from the market. Issuers should also demonstrate strong governance and transparency and seek investor and analyst views on strengths and weaknesses.
It is often possible for us to anticipate issues which a short-seller may focus on. The most effective prevention is for the company to drive the narrative by consistently and proactively explaining its “equity story” or value proposition to investors, supported by objective evidence where possible, and to be honest and transparent about its weaknesses and risks. Where the market first hears about negative news or misunderstood liabilities from a bear attacker, the company is on the back foot and may be in trouble. Trust in management and the Board’s oversight is immediately lost and can be very hard to regain, while the share price is impacted and the stock is negatively rerated until there is a strong basis for rehabilitation.
Companies should work with advisers to prepare a short-selling defence manual that includes key details of who responds, how, when and with what evidence, and scenario planning for the most foreseeable attacks. It is crucial to rehearse these defence plans so people know what to do in the first minute and hour in the event of an attack – which may be combined with other events, such as a cyber-attack, profit warning, C-suite succession issue or a relevant market disruption. Issuers should also be ready to commission independent reviews - accounting, legal and forensic – and engage regulators if manipulation is suspected.
Regulatory irony: deregulation just as short-selling ramps up
There’s an added irony to all this – just as shorting activity is surging in the UK, the FCA is finalising rule changes that would reduce market transparency by removing the requirement for short-sellers to disclose their identities and replacing this with an anonymised, aggregated issuer-level figure. This is intended to reduce inhibitions on short-selling. That may well be good for the market as a whole, but may make it hard for specific companies to respond and easier for short-sellers to make a negative impact on their share price.
About the analysis
This analysis is based on publicly disclosed FCA net short positions as at 23 March 2026 and historical disclosures available at: https://www.fca.org.uk/markets/short-selling/notification-disclosure-net-short-positions. FCA public disclosures exclude short positions below the 0.5% public disclosure threshold.
2026 figures are based on aggregate disclosed net short positions by issuer as at 23 March 2026. 2025 comparisons are based on the maximum aggregate disclosed net short position reached by each issuer at any point during 2025.
Notes
- The three UK-listed companies with disclosed net short positions of more than 10% as at 23 March 2026 are:
- Wizz Air Holdings — 15.21%
- Greggs — 13.43%
- Ibstock — 13.21%
- The 20 UK-listed companies with disclosed net short positions of more than 5% as at 23 March 2026 a
- Wizz Air Holdings — 15.21%
- Greggs — 13.43%
- Ibstock — 13.21%
- B&M European Value Retail — 8.49%
- WH Smith — 8.47%
- NCC Group — 8.01%
- Autotrader Group — 8.01%
- Future — 7.70%
- Ocado Group — 7.47%
- Land Securities — 6.81%
- Kingfisher — 6.67%
- Tate & Lyle — 6.59%
- Whitbread — 6.50%
- Domino’s Pizza Group — 6.29%
- WPP — 6.27%
- J Sainsbury — 6.02%
- easyJet — 5.91%
- GB Group — 5.67%
- Vistry Group – 5.64%
- Flutter Entertainment – 5.05%
- The only two UK-listed companies whose aggregate disclosed net short positions exceeded 5% at any point during 2025 were Indivior plc and Pennon Group plc.
