Linde and Sherwin Williams Lead the Short Interest in S&P 500 Materials Stocks as of January's End

By the end of January, there was a slight decrease in short interest in materials stocks compared to mid-January levels. Notably, short interest in the container and packaging sub-sector saw an increase during this period. The overall average short interest for stocks within the S&P 500 Materials Select Sector stood at 1.68% of the shares float at the end of January, a decrease from 1.73% on January 12th. Meanwhile, the S&P 500 Materials Index Sector (NYSEARCA:XLB) experienced a modest growth of over 1%, which is less than the broader S&P 500's nearly 6% uptick year-to-date (YTD).

Most and Least Shorted Stocks

Industrial gas company Linde (LIN) topped the list as the most shorted company in the sector by the end of January, with a short interest reaching 11.82% of its float. Paint manufacturer Sherwin Williams (SHW), and industrial gas producer Air Products and Chemicals (APD) came in second and third place, with short interests at 5.33% and 5.23%, respectively. These companies, including Ecolab (ECL), are major contributors to the materials index.

On the other end of the spectrum, FMC (FMC) stood out as the stock with the least amount of short interest, recorded at just 0.68% by the end of January.

Industry Short Interest Analysis

The Containers & Packaging industry remains the most shorted within the materials sector, even though its short interest decreased to 1.93% at the end of January from 2.26% in mid-January. The Chemicals industry saw an increase in short interest during the same period, rising from 1.63% in mid-January to 1.69% by the month's end.

Additional Materials Sector Insights

Other notable mentions within the materials sector include Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (FCX), which participated in the BMO Capital Markets 33rd Global Metals, Mining & Critical Minerals Conference. Additionally, there was speculation about a potential dividend cut by mining giant Newmont which analysts suggested was not of major concern. Air Products and Chemicals (APD) also made its appearance at the Citi Global Industrial Tech and Mobility Conference. In corporate moves, FMC announced a planned reduction of 8% in its global workforce and is considering the sale of its Global Specialty Solutions business. Lastly, Newmont suffered a share price decline following a downgrade by Argus as gold prices hovered near the higher end of a five-year range.

Linde, SherwinWilliams, ShortInterest