Most Shorted Stocks Today: August 24, 2026 — Top 25 Squeeze Candidates
The most shorted stocks on August 24, 2026 are led by RGC with a squeeze score of 85.2 and an extreme 258.0% borrow fee, on a board where every top-25 name sits on the FINRA threshold list.
On August 24, 2026, RGC tops the Tapeboard squeeze leaderboard with a score of 85.2, driven by an extraordinary 258.0% annualized borrow fee despite modest short interest of 1.6% of float. The broader pattern today is a board split between high-fee, tight-borrow names like RGC and high-SI names like BIAF (61.4% of float short), with every one of the top 25 candidates flagged on the FINRA threshold list.
August 24, 2026 Top 25 Short Squeeze Candidates
| Rank | Symbol | Squeeze Score | SI % Float | Borrow Fee | Days to Cover | T |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | RGC | 85.2 | 1.6% | 258.0% | 4.1 | T |
| 4 | BIAF | 61.1 | 61.4% | — | 1.5 | T |
| 7 | PAAS | 51.6 | 1.4% | — | 1.6 | T |
| 10 | WB | 46.3 | 19.6% | 1.4% | 21.1 | T |
| 11 | ALXO | 45.8 | 8.1% | 0.4% | 13.3 | T |
| 12 | SVRA | 45.4 | 28.3% | 0.4% | 20.1 | T |
| 13 | OCGN | 43.3 | 31.8% | 1.3% | 21.6 | T |
| 15 | KOD | 42.7 | 26.0% | 0.4% | 20.6 | T |
| 17 | CSIQ | 42.1 | 35.8% | 1.1% | 7.5 | T |
| 19 | GRBK | 41.6 | 5.5% | 0.4% | 7.6 | T |
| 22 | EH | 41.2 | 16.4% | 1.0% | 12.0 | T |
| 24 | ROOT | 40.6 | 16.5% | 0.4% | 10.4 | T |
| 25 | RCEL | 40.5 | 8.6% | 9.4% | 11.1 | T |
| 26 | JKS | 40.5 | 9.4% | 0.4% | 4.5 | T |
| 27 | BEAM | 40.4 | 26.6% | 0.3% | 11.3 | T |
| 28 | KRYS | 40.3 | 13.7% | 0.3% | 4.2 | T |
| 29 | LXRX | 40.2 | 12.5% | 0.4% | 12.5 | T |
| 30 | VIR | 40.1 | 14.8% | 0.3% | 12.2 | T |
| 31 | CCS | 40.0 | 7.2% | 0.4% | 5.7 | T |
| 32 | SHLS | 39.7 | 11.1% | — | 3.4 | T |
| 33 | TRIP | 39.7 | 25.5% | 0.4% | 11.7 | T |
| 34 | TGTX | 39.6 | 21.7% | 0.3% | 13.6 | T |
| 35 | VRDN | 39.6 | 19.7% | 0.3% | 11.3 | T |
| 36 | TROW | 39.4 | 12.1% | 0.3% | 12.4 | T |
| 37 | LCID | 39.4 | 34.1% | 16.3% | 2.9 | T |
Top 5 Short Squeeze Setups on August 24, 2026
2. RGC — Squeeze Score 85.2
RGC is the clearest short squeeze candidate on the board, and it gets there almost entirely through cost. The borrow fee is 258.0% annualized — by far the highest fee in today's data — while short interest is only 1.6% of float and days to cover sits at 4.1. This is a classic high-fee, tight-borrow setup: shorts are paying a punishing carry just to stay in the position, and the stock is down 1.1% over five days at $5.29, meaning the trade hasn't been working recently either. If borrow availability tightens further or a positive catalyst forces covering, the fee pressure alone can trigger a feedback loop of buy-ins. Traders tracking this kind of fee-driven setup benefit from journaling each entry against the borrow cost — see our TradeZella comparison for how Tapeboard handles that workflow.
4. BIAF — Squeeze Score 61.1
BIAF is the opposite profile: a pure high-SI setup. Short interest is 61.4% of float — the highest on today's leaderboard — with float utilization at the same 61.4%, meaning nearly two-thirds of the tradable float is already held short. Days to cover is just 1.5, and no borrow fee is reported in today's data (—), so the squeeze case here is mechanical rather than cost-driven: with the float this consumed, any sustained buying at $5.80 forces shorts to compete for a shrinking pool of shares. The stock is down 1.0% over five days, so the pressure hasn't started; the setup triggers if volume arrives.
7. PAAS — Squeeze Score 51.6
PAAS scores 51.6 on a thin-float-pressure profile: short interest is 1.4% of float with days to cover at 1.6, and no borrow fee is reported in today's data. At $53.82, this is not a high-fee or high-SI name — it ranks because it sits on the threshold list, indicating sustained heavy short-side volume relative to total volume. The squeeze path here is the weakest of the top five on mechanics alone; it would require a genuine demand shock to matter, since the existing short base is small and cheap to maintain.
10. WB — Squeeze Score 46.3
WB is the high-days-to-cover setup on today's board: 21.1 days to cover against 19.6% of float short, with a modest 1.4% borrow fee. The stock is down 7.4% over five days at $7.03, so shorts are currently winning — but that 21.1-day figure means the position cannot exit quickly if sentiment turns. This is a slow-fuse squeeze candidate: the fee won't force anyone out, but any reversal catalyst would leave a large short base needing three-plus weeks of average volume to unwind.
11. ALXO — Squeeze Score 45.8
ALXO combines 8.1% of float short with 13.3 days to cover and a negligible 0.4% borrow fee at $1.99. Like WB, this is a duration-based setup rather than a cost-based one: the position is cheap to hold but slow to exit. A positive catalyst that forces covering into a thin order book is the trigger; without one, shorts can sit comfortably at these fee levels.
Stocks Flagged on the FINRA Threshold List
The T column marks symbols on the FINRA threshold — names 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. All 25 names on today's board carry the flag, an unusual concentration that signals broad, persistent short pressure rather than isolated positioning. See /methodology/short-squeeze-score for the full scoring breakdown.
How the Squeeze Score Is Built
The score blends five inputs: 35% SI % of float (FINRA), 25% borrow fee (IBKR), 20% float utilization, 15% days to cover, and 5% five-day price momentum (Schwab), with filings context from the SEC. That weighting explains today's ordering — RGC's 258.0% fee dominates the fee component, while BIAF's 61.4% SI dominates the interest component. Full details at /methodology/short-squeeze-score.
Tomorrow's Update
The board refreshes daily — check the live leaderboard for the August 25 update.