Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) is one of the least shorted stocks on the Wall Street. The stock declined for the most of the last year, falling below $400 at one point in June 2013. However, short-sellers never seem to have attacked Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) in a big way. Over the past two years, the Cupertino-based company’s short ratio has been in the range of 0.5% to 2%. And last year, the ratio was between 1% and 2%. That’s much lower than 11% short interest in Netflix, Inc. (NASDAQ:NFLX), 37% in Angie’s List Inc (NASDAQ:ANGI) and over 37.5% in Tesla Motors Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA).
Even the normal short interest in the market is higher than Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)’s. Overall short interest across all sectors is 5.62%. Slightly less than 6% of shares in the IT sector are shorted, while the short interest in consumer discretionary sector is a bit above 6%. Look at the stock price vis-à-vis short interest for a sensible correlation.
In 2013, Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) short interest registered a consistent growth once between February and June, and again between September and November. A glance at the stock price shows that Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) shares were highly volatile between February and June, and marched up between September and November. It indicates that short interest doesn’t give any clear indication about the tech giant’s stock price, according to Hedgemony. Even if you compare the short interest ratio with the average daily volume, the ratio has consistently decreased through 2013.
Selling in Apple stock likely to remain muted
Short-sellers are unlikely to have brought down the stock last year. It might have happened due to two reasons. One, many long-term Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) investors, who remained invested for at least five years, booked heavy profits. Two, skepticism around the lack of new revolutionary product launches drove the stock down. Hedgemony says new buyers entered their long positions in 2013 on dips, they are likely to hold for at least five years. And Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)’s recent deal with China Mobile, upcoming products such as iPhone 6, iTV and iWatch should fuel the stock. So, selling activity is expected to remain muted over the next few years.
