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Squeeze Radar: Covering Rallies, Caught in the Act

Short squeezes in two honesty tiers. Confirmed: rallies where FINRA filings prove the shorts left — short interest was big, fell hard, and the price ran, all between the same two settlements. Live candidates: heavily-shorted names rising on unusual volume right now, where covering is inferred until the next filing prints. Built on the Short Interest & Squeeze Watch base — whose study says the typical high-SI stock goes nowhere; this page hunts the ~6% that don't.

Radar status

12 live squeeze candidates on the radar — led by CAPR (35.0% of shares short, +53.8% over 10 sessions on 2.8× volume) — 5 show shorts still adding and 6 have an estimated short base below today’s price. 6 covering rallies were confirmed by the July 31, 2026 settlement filings. Across the last 12 settlements, an average of 4.3 rallies per period met the confirmed bar.

Sources, methodology & freshnessLast updated 2026-08-21 · Open ↓
Source
FINRA consolidated bi-monthly short interest joined to our daily price and volume data
Methodology
Pressure tier: SI >= 15%, +10% over 10 sessions on >= 1.5x volume, with an SI-phase read (pressing/holding/covering) over the last 3 settlements. True squeezes: SI peaked >= 15% in the trailing year, since cut >= 40% with price up >= 20%. Fresh covering: SI >= 10% falling >= 15% with price +15% between the last two settlements. Estimated short entry = each period's SI additions weighted by that period's average price. Floors: $300M mcap, $5 price.
Updates
Live tier refreshes daily with prices and volumes; the short-interest base refreshes each bi-monthly settlementLast: 2026-08-21
Maintained & reviewed by Yuriy Matso — methodology shown on the page.
Squeeze Radar2026-08-21
12
live candidates on the radar

Heavily-shorted names (15%+ of shares) rising 10%+ over ten sessions on 1.5×+ volume.

Shorts adding
5 names
Underwater
6 bases
Slow exits
9 at 5+ DTC
Confirmed
6 rallies

FDMT has the clearest combined exit pressure: 21.1% short, 17.7 days to cover, and its estimated short base is 77% underwater. This is a watchlist, not a buy signal; the base rate for a +50% quarter among the highest-SI names is only ~6%.

01

Where is the exit pressure concentrated?

High short interest supplies potential buyers, but days to cover tells you whether those buyers can exit quietly. The most combustible setups sit toward the upper-right: a thick short base paired with a slow exit. Bubble size adds today's participation; color shows whether shorts were pressing, holding, or covering at the last few settlements.

Most shorted
ASST
Slowest exit
FDMT
Biggest volume
CAPR
Shorts pressingHoldingCoveringBubble size = volume vs norm
02

Shorts under pressure — big base, fresh momentum, unusual volume

Ranked by composite score (short interest × momentum × volume spike). Most of these are not squeezes yet — the phase column says what the shorts were doing through the last few settlements: pressing (adding into the rally — fuel building), holding, or already covering. The purple dashed line on each chart is the estimated average entry of the standing short base — each period's SI additions weighted by that period's average price. Price above the line means the book is underwater; that, not momentum alone, is what makes a squeeze. An estimate by construction — covering order is unknowable. The next filing is the referee.

CAPR+53.8% / 10s
SI 35.0%2.8× volDTC 2.1
pressing +37%short base 67% in profit
ASST+46.0% / 10s
SI 35.5%1.6× volDTC 8.0
pressing +35%short base 28% in profit
ABCL+63.3% / 10s
SI 16.1%2.3× volDTC 9.7
pressing +8%short base 123% underwater
OMER+45.4% / 10s
SI 21.7%1.9× volDTC 9.9
covering -15%short base 81% underwater
PURR+55.4% / 10s
SI 19.5%1.9× volDTC 2.8
pressing +70%short base 44% underwater
FDMT+47.3% / 10s
SI 21.1%1.7× volDTC 17.7
covering -7%short base 77% underwater
BKKT+14.1% / 10s
SI 25.3%1.8× volDTC 6.3
holding +5%short base 30% in profit
CRMD+10.2% / 10s
SI 20.7%1.9× volDTC 17.1
pressing +12%short base 27% in profit
TEM+39.7% / 10s
SI 19.2%1.6× volDTC 5.9
covering -13%short base 32% underwater
GO+17.1% / 10s
SI 24.1%1.5× volDTC 10.3
covering -9%short base 3% in profit
KURA+24.2% / 10s
SI 15.1%1.6× volDTC 11.8
covering -10%short base 30% underwater
SMCI+19.6% / 10s
SI 15.3%1.6× volDTC 1.8
covering -5%short base 3% in profit
03

Inspect a live candidate — price, volume, and the short base

Each candidate's recent tape against its own short-interest history (amber line, right scale, one dot per bi-monthly settlement). The dashed amber segment extends the last known SI print to today — a reminder that positioning data always lags the candles. Volume bars shade the base.

Select a ticker to inspectPositioning through 2026-07-31
CAPRpressing

Capricor Therapeutics, Inc. Co

Open full price chart →
10-session move
+53.8%
Reported SI
35.0%
Volume / norm
2.8×
Days to cover
2.1
Short base P&L
67% in profit
Radar score
149
Price candlesReported SI%Estimated short entryHover or tap for OHLC, volume, and known SI
04

The true squeezes — major unwinds over the trailing year

The pattern experienced traders mean by “a real squeeze”: short interest that peaked at 15%+ within the last year and has since been cut by 40% or more while the price rose — SI at 10% today that was 30% a year ago. These are covering journeys measured across many settlements, ranked by how much of the short base is already gone. The charts show ~a year of candles with the whole unwind drawn on them.

LXP+34%
SI 22.5% (2025-08) → 2.2% (-90%)
ZIM+76%
SI 21.1% (2025-11) → 2.7% (-87%)
OSCR+115%
SI 27.3% (2025-07) → 7.8% (-72%)
ACLS+77%
SI 17.4% (2025-07) → 5.2% (-70%)
TECX+105%
SI 28.6% (2025-12) → 9.4% (-67%)
CNK+43%
SI 19.9% (2025-08) → 6.8% (-66%)
CRNX+133%
SI 16.9% (2026-03) → 6.2% (-64%)
APGE+64%
SI 15.4% (2026-05) → 6.2% (-60%)
URGN+129%
SI 24.1% (2025-10) → 9.8% (-59%)
NXE+62%
SI 15.4% (2025-07) → 6.7% (-56%)
NBR+122%
SI 17.4% (2025-09) → 7.6% (-56%)
BE+439%
SI 19.6% (2025-07) → 8.6% (-56%)
Select a ticker to inspectPositioning through 2026-07-31

LXP Industrial Trust

Open full price chart →
Peak SI
22.5%
Reported SI now
2.2%
Short base removed
90%
Price since peak SI
+34%
Days to cover
1.3
Remaining short P&L
34% underwater
Price candlesReported SI%Estimated short entryHover or tap for OHLC, volume, and known SI
05

Fresh covering — confirmed by the latest filings

Between the July 15, 2026 and July 31, 2026 settlements: short interest started at 10%+ of shares, fell 15%+, and the price rose 15%+ over the same stretch. These rallies were partly mechanical — shorts buying to exit — which means that bid is now spent.

ATAI+34.0%
SI 10.4% → 5.5%-47.5% SI
MAN+34.3%
SI 13.5% → 10.4%-23.2% SI
CTSH+28.2%
SI 11.8% → 9.3%-21.5% SI
UTZ+90.6%
SI 10.2% → 8.5%-16.7% SI
LAD+16.3%
SI 10.7% → 8.9%-16.5% SI
ITGR+26.8%
SI 12.4% → 10.5%-15.1% SI
06

How often does the fresh-covering bar fire?

Confirmed covering rallies per settlement period over the last 12 — the honest base rate for this page's strictest signal.

3
02-13
5
02-27
4
03-13
2
03-31
2
04-15
1
04-30
6
05-15
9
05-29
1
06-15
8
06-30
4
07-15
6
07-31

How Squeeze Radar Works

  1. 1
    Start from the short-interest base
    Every stock's short interest comes from FINRA's consolidated bi-monthly settlements — the same data behind our Short Interest & Squeeze Watch page — joined to our own daily prices and volumes with split-consistent share counts.
  2. 2
    Tier 1 — confirm covering from the filings
    Between the two most recent settlements, a stock qualifies when short interest started at 10%+ of shares, fell at least 15%, and the price rose at least 15% over that same stretch. The shorts demonstrably left while the price ran — a covering rally provable from filings, not inferred.
  3. 3
    Tier 2 — infer live candidates from the tape
    Since the latest settlement (always ~2 weeks stale), a stock qualifies when it still carries 15%+ short interest and has risen 10%+ over the trailing 10 sessions on volume at least 1.5x its preceding 30-session average. Covering is inferred from tape action against the known short base, and labeled as inference.
  4. 4
    Rank, floor, and disclose
    Both tiers apply $300M market-cap and $5 price floors. Live candidates rank by a composite of short interest x momentum x volume spike. Every table states the settlement date the positioning data comes from, because staleness is the honest caveat of this entire category.

Who Uses Squeeze Radar

Squeeze traders
Tier 2 is the watchlist: names where the tape is moving against a big standing short base right now, ranked by how much fuel (SI, days-to-cover) meets how much fire (momentum, volume).
Position holders in shorted names
If a stock you hold shows up in Tier 1, the rally you just enjoyed was partly covering — a mechanical, self-exhausting buyer. That changes what the follow-through is likely to look like.
Narrative checkers
When social media declares a squeeze, the radar answers with data: either the name qualifies on filings or tape, or it does not. The confirmed tier is the receipts; absence from both tiers is an answer too.
Short sellers
Tier 2 doubles as a risk report: if a name you are short appears, the crowd you are part of is being tested by momentum and volume — the classic conditions under which crowded shorts get carried out.

Pro Tips

01
The covering buyer exhausts itself
A Tier 1 rally is partly mechanical: shorts buying to close. Once they are out, that bid is gone — confirmed covering marks what already happened, and follow-through needs a fundamental buyer.
02
Fuel and fire both matter in Tier 2
The strongest setups pair high short interest AND high days-to-cover with fresh momentum. High SI with huge daily volume can cover quietly; thin volume is what turns covering into a chase.
03
Check the catalyst before the squeeze story
Many Tier 2 names are rising on earnings or news, with covering as the amplifier rather than the cause. Cross-check Unusual Volume and the options tape before crediting the shorts.
04
Mind the settlement clock
Short interest publishes ~2 weeks after settlement, twice a month. A Tier 2 name may already have covered — the next settlement print is the referee, and the page shows exactly which date the data describes.

Common Issues & Solutions

A famous squeeze is not on the radar
The floors ($300M market cap, $5 price) deliberately exclude micro-caps, where short-interest data quality is worst and manipulation risk highest. The move may also sit between settlements — check the Short Interest page tables directly.
A Tier 2 name keeps appearing but never squeezes
That is the base rate at work: in our frozen study, only ~6% of the highest-short-interest names produced a +50% quarter. The radar surfaces conditions, not certainties, and the median outcome for high-SI stocks is roughly zero.
Short interest looks different from the prior visit
The whole dataset refreshes when a new settlement publishes (twice a month); the live tier's prices and volumes refresh daily. The settlement dates in the header say which vintage you are reading.
A stock shows falling SI but no price rise (or vice versa)
Then it is not a covering rally by this page's definition — SI can fall through offerings or quiet unwinds, and prices can rise without any covering. Tier 1 requires both legs on purpose.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is a short squeeze?
A rally amplified by short sellers buying to close losing positions. Their buying pushes the price further, pressuring more shorts to cover — a feedback loop that produces fast, violent moves in heavily-shorted stocks. Squeezes need a big short base and a spark, usually news or momentum.
How does the radar confirm a squeeze actually happened?
From filings: FINRA reports each stock's short interest at bi-monthly settlements. When short interest was large and fell 15%+ between settlements while the price rose 15%+, covering demonstrably accompanied the rally — that is Tier 1. No inference involved.
What makes a stock a live squeeze candidate?
Three simultaneous conditions: 15%+ of shares still short at the latest settlement, a 10%+ price rise over the trailing 10 sessions, and volume at least 1.5x its recent average. That combination — big short base, fresh momentum, unusual participation — is the classic squeeze setup, though covering remains inferred until the next settlement prints.
Why can't this be fully real-time?
Short positions are only reported at bi-monthly settlements, published about two weeks later. Nothing public tracks short interest daily. The radar is honest about the split: filings confirm the past; daily price and volume watch the present.
Do squeeze candidates usually pay off?
Usually not — our frozen study across 200+ settlements found the typical highest-short-interest stock returned about zero over the following quarter, while roughly 6% produced +50% moves. Squeeze candidates are lottery-ticket distributions; the radar sizes the ticket, it does not promise the prize.

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Last updated: 2026-08-21