Most Shorted Stocks Today: August 21, 2026 — Top 25 Squeeze Candidates
On August 21, 2026, RGC tops the most shorted stocks leaderboard with a squeeze score of 43.2 and a 245.9% borrow fee, while high short-interest names like INDI (33.5% of float) and OCGN (31.8%) cluster on the FINRA threshold list.
Regencell Bioscience (RGC) leads the most shorted stocks board on August 21, 2026 with a squeeze score of 43.2, driven by an extreme 245.9% annualized borrow fee and 4.05 days to cover at a $5.31 share price. The broader pattern today splits into two camps: fee-driven small caps like RGC and NXTC (95.7% borrow fee) where short interest is modest but locate supply is expensive, and high-SI names like INDI (33.5% of float short), OCGN (31.8%), SVRA (28.3%), and BEAM (26.6%) where the bet against the stock is large but borrow remains cheap. All but one of today's top 25 sit on the FINRA threshold list, signaling sustained heavy short-side volume across the board.
August 21, 2026 Top 25 Short Squeeze Candidates
| Rank | Symbol | Squeeze Score | SI % Float | Borrow Fee | Days to Cover | T |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | RGC | 43.2 | 1.6% | 245.9% | 4.05 | T |
| 7 | SHOT | 28.4 | 0.3% | — | 2.00 | T |
| 9 | SVRA | 26.4 | 28.3% | 0.4% | 20.13 | T |
| 10 | IDYA | 24.9 | 11.6% | 0.3% | 13.19 | T |
| 12 | WB | 24.7 | 19.6% | 1.3% | 21.09 | T |
| 13 | EH | 24.7 | 16.4% | 1.4% | 11.97 | T |
| 14 | PCRX | 24.3 | 21.4% | 0.4% | 13.39 | T |
| 15 | NXTC | 24.1 | 6.3% | 95.7% | 1.00 | |
| 16 | BEAM | 24.0 | 26.6% | 0.3% | 11.31 | T |
| 18 | IMUX | 23.6 | 12.1% | 0.8% | 10.13 | T |
| 20 | CHGG | 23.4 | 6.8% | 0.4% | 5.40 | T |
| 21 | EDIT | 23.2 | 20.3% | 0.5% | 18.19 | T |
| 22 | INDO | 23.2 | 5.8% | — | 1.83 | T |
| 23 | TRIP | 23.1 | 25.5% | 0.4% | 11.72 | T |
| 25 | BDX | 22.9 | 3.7% | — | 5.73 | T |
| 26 | FINV | 22.8 | 4.2% | 0.4% | 13.87 | T |
| 27 | INDI | 22.8 | 33.5% | 0.8% | 16.62 | T |
| 28 | RCEL | 22.7 | 8.6% | 9.5% | 11.10 | T |
| 29 | TGTX | 22.7 | 21.7% | 0.3% | 13.62 | T |
| 30 | PINS | 22.4 | 10.6% | — | 4.96 | T |
| 31 | GERN | 22.4 | 14.3% | 0.3% | 9.90 | T |
| 33 | OCGN | 22.3 | 31.8% | 3.0% | 21.55 | T |
| 34 | CHPT | 22.3 | 22.0% | 4.5% | 13.07 | T |
| 35 | TROW | 22.1 | 12.1% | 0.3% | 12.38 | T |
| 36 | ALXO | 22.1 | 8.1% | 0.3% | 13.28 | T |
Top 5 Names to Watch
3. RGC — Squeeze Score 43.2
RGC is the standout of the day by a wide margin, and the driver is cost, not size. Short interest is only 1.6% of float, but the annualized borrow fee is 245.9% — the highest on the board by an order of magnitude — meaning shorts are paying roughly two and a half times the position value per year just to stay short. This is the classic high-fee tight-float setup: the position is small, but the carry is punishing. With 4.05 days to cover and a threshold flag confirming sustained short-side volume, any further tightening in borrow availability forces a decision — pay the fee or cover. Five-day momentum is -2.8%, so shorts are currently winning on price, which makes the fee burden the pressure point to watch.
7. SHOT — Squeeze Score 28.4
SHOT ranks second despite a minimal 0.3% short interest and no reported borrow fee in today's IBKR data. Its score is carried by the threshold flag and a short 2.0 days-to-cover reading at a $9.83 price. This is a threshold-flagged liquidity setup rather than a high-SI or high-fee one: the short volume is persistent relative to total volume, but the absolute position is small and could be absorbed quickly. If short volume stays above the 50% mark while the position builds, the score has room to climb; if volume normalizes, this name drops off the board.
9. SVRA — Squeeze Score 26.4
SVRA is the purest high-SI setup in today's top five: 28.3% of the float is sold short, it would take 20.13 days of average volume to cover, and the borrow fee is a negligible 0.4%. The position is large and cheap to hold — a crowded, patient short. Five-day momentum of +3.9% at $5.58 means the trade is starting to move against shorts. In this structure the catalyst is mechanical: a sustained price advance forces mark-to-market losses on a position that needs twenty days to unwind, and covering itself becomes the fuel.
10. IDYA — Squeeze Score 24.9
IDYA combines 11.6% short interest with 13.19 days to cover and a 0.3% borrow fee at $39.67 — a mid-SI, low-fee, threshold-flagged profile. The days to cover figure is the number that matters here: nearly two weeks of volume stands between shorts and the exit. A positive catalyst that lifts volume and price simultaneously would compress that exit window and force competition for shares.
12. WB — Squeeze Score 24.7
WB shows 19.6% of float short, a 1.3% borrow fee, and the longest cover window in the top five at 21.09 days. Five-day momentum of -8.3% at $7.06 says shorts are pressing and winning for now. This is a high-SI, threshold-flagged grind: the squeeze case requires a reversal sharp enough to trap a position that needs three weeks to exit against a borrow cost that, while low, is not zero.
Stocks Flagged on the FINRA Threshold List
The T column marks the FINRA threshold flag: symbols where more than 50% of recent volume on the FINRA Consolidated NMS daily short-volume file was short-side, sustained within the last seven trading days. Twenty-four of today's 25 names carry the flag — NXTC is the lone exception despite its 95.7% borrow fee. See /methodology/short-squeeze-score for the full breakdown.
How the Squeeze Score Is Built
The Tapeboard short squeeze score blends five inputs: 35% SI% of float (FINRA), 25% borrow fee (IBKR), 20% float utilization, 15% days to cover, and 5% five-day momentum (Schwab), with corporate data cross-checked against SEC filings. Full methodology: /methodology/short-squeeze-score.
Check the live leaderboard tomorrow for the August 22 update.