United States Oil Fund (USO) Short Interest Ratio & Short Volume

Short interest is the volume of United States Oil Fund shares that have been sold short but have not yet been covered or closed out. As of May 31st, investors have sold 3,690,000 shares of USO short. 22.89% of United States Oil Fund's shares are currently sold short. Learn More on United States Oil Fund's current short interest.

The short interest ratio, also known as the "days to cover ratio", is calculated by dividing the number of shares of a stock sold short divided by its average trading volume. A short interest ratio ranging between 1 and 4 generally indicates strong positive sentiment about a stock and a lack of short sellers. A short interest ratio of 10 or greater indicates strong pessimism about a stock. USO shares currently have a short interest ratio of 1.0. Learn More on United States Oil Fund's short interest ratio.

As of the most recent reporting period, the following institutional investors, funds, and major shareholders have reported short positions of United States Oil Fund: Quaker Wealth Management LLC, Jane Street Group LLC, Goldman Sachs Group Inc., Parallax Volatility Advisers L.P., OnyxPoint Global Management LP, PEAK6 LLC, Jane Street Group LLC, Walleye Capital LLC, FNY Investment Advisers LLC, and IMC Chicago LLC. These positions are disclosed in Form 13F filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Companies that have a short interest as a percentage of float below 10% indicates positive investor sentiment and few short sellers. Stocks with a short interest percentage above 10% is considered high, suggesting some investors are pessimistic about the stock. Companies with a short interest percentage of 20% or more indicates widespread negative sentiment. 22.89% of United States Oil Fund's floating shares are currently sold short.

United States Oil Fund saw a decrease in short interest in the month of May. As of May 31st, there was short interest totaling 3,690,000 shares, a decrease of 21.5% from the previous total of 4,700,000 shares. Changes in short volume can be used to identify positive and negative investor sentiment. Investors that short sell a stock are betting that its price will decline in the future. An increase in short sale volume suggests bearish (negative) sentiment among investors. A decrease on short sale volume suggests bullish (positive) sentiment.

22.89% of United States Oil Fund's shares are currently sold short. Here is how the short interest of companies compare to United States Oil Fund: ProShares Ultra Bloomberg Crude Oil (6.31%), Invesco DB Oil Fund (2.88%), ProShares UltraShort Bloomberg Crude Oil (10.82%), United States Brent Oil Fund LP (8.89%), United States 12 Month Oil Fund LP (0.90%), and Defiance Oil Enhanced Options Income ETF (0.84%).

As of the most recent reporting period, the following stocks had the largest short interest positions: SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust ($64.96 billion), Invesco QQQ ($27.88 billion), iShares Russell 2000 ETF ($19.94 billion), iShares 20+ Year Treasury Bond ETF ($9.69 billion), MicroStrategy Incorporated ($8.58 billion), SPDR S&P Biotech ETF ($5.72 billion), Invesco S&P 500 Equal Weight ETF ($5.45 billion), iShares iBoxx $ Investment Grade Corporate Bond ETF ($4.70 billion), Charter Communications, Inc. ($4.54 billion), and Industrial Select Sector SPDR Fund ($4.49 billion). View all of the most shorted stocks.

Short selling USO is an investing strategy that aims to generate trading profit from United States Oil Fund as its price is falling. USO shares are trading up $0.28 today. To short a stock, an investor borrows shares, sells them and buys the shares back on the public market later to return it to the lender. Short sellers are betting that a stock will decline in price. If the stock does drop after selling, the short seller buys it back at a lower price and returns it to the lender. The difference between the sell price and the buy price is the trader's profit.

A short squeeze for United States Oil Fund occurs when it has a large amount of short interest and its stock increases in price. This forces short sellers to cover their short interest positions by buying actual shares of USO, which in turn drives the price of the stock up even further.

Short interest is typically published by a stock exchange once per month. However, NASDAQ publishes a report for U.S. stocks, including USO, twice per month. The most recent reporting period available is May, 31 2025.