Top Short-Squeeze Candidates Today: September 9, 2026 — 7-Factor Leaderboard
IRD leads Tapeboard's September 9, 2026 squeeze leaderboard with a 44.5 composite score, on a day dominated by FINRA threshold-list names with elevated days-to-cover rather than extreme borrow fees.
TL;DR: As of market close on September 9, 2026, IRD leads Tapeboard's 7-factor squeeze leaderboard with a score of 44.5/100, driven by 13.4 days to cover and +19.9% five-day price momentum.
Tapeboard's daily squeeze scan ranked 25 stocks by composite score on September 9, 2026, combining seven factors: short interest as a percentage of float, annualized borrow fee, float utilization, the FINRA Consolidated NMS short-volume ratio, days to cover, five-day price momentum, and week-over-week borrow-fee change — each z-scored against a live ~500-stock universe. The dominant pattern today is threshold-list concentration with elevated days-to-cover: 24 of the 25 ranked names sit on the FINRA threshold, and the top of the board is led by a name with no reported fee or short-interest print at all, carried instead by covering-time and momentum. This is a composite short squeeze ranking — not a raw short-interest league table.
Today's September 9, 2026 Squeeze Score Leaderboard
| Rank | Symbol | Squeeze Score | SI % Float | Borrow Fee | Days to Cover | Mom 5d | T |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | IRD | 44.5 | — | — | 13.4 | +19.9% | |
| 2 | RGC | 41.4 | 1.8% | 241.6% | 4.7 | — | T |
| 3 | WB | 38.6 | 19.2% | 1.3% | 22.0 | — | T |
| 4 | SVRA | 38.6 | 29.6% | 2.4% | 27.1 | +1.2% | T |
| 5 | TROW | 38.1 | 11.9% | 0.4% | 14.4 | — | T |
| 6 | CRMD | 37.8 | 22.3% | 0.6% | 14.3 | — | T |
| 7 | VIR | 37.1 | 15.2% | 0.3% | 13.6 | — | T |
| 8 | FATE | 37.0 | 8.0% | — | 4.1 | — | T |
| 9 | GRBK | 36.7 | 5.9% | 0.3% | 9.0 | — | T |
| 10 | OCGN | 35.7 | 32.1% | 2.2% | 23.9 | -19.9% | T |
| 11 | CCS | 35.3 | 9.0% | — | 6.8 | — | T |
| 12 | PCRX | 35.0 | 21.6% | 0.4% | 8.1 | — | T |
| 13 | KOD | 34.2 | 26.2% | 0.3% | 17.5 | — | T |
| 14 | NCNO | 34.2 | 18.2% | 0.4% | 9.9 | — | T |
| 15 | WAL | 33.9 | 5.1% | — | 6.1 | — | T |
*Source: Tapeboard composite squeeze model, September 9, 2026. Seven factors z-scored vs a ~500-stock universe. Short interest per FINRA settlement schedule; borrow fees from stock-loan availability; short-volume from FINRA Consolidated NMS. Not investment advice.*
What Drove Today's Rankings
The dominant signal across the top 10 is days-to-cover paired with threshold-list status: eight of the top 10 carry double-digit or near-double-digit days-to-cover readings, from IRD at 13.4 to SVRA at 27.1, and every name except IRD is on the FINRA threshold list. The outlier is RGC, which ranks second almost entirely on a 241.6% annualized borrow fee — by far the highest fee on the board — despite only 1.8% of its float sold short. On the weights: because short interest and borrow fee together account for 60% of the composite, a single extreme print like RGC's fee can offset near-zero readings elsewhere, while names like IRD with null components are reweighted across the remaining factors.
Top 5 Names
1. IRD — Squeeze Score 44.5/100
IRD's primary driver is its 13.4 days-to-cover reading combined with +19.9% five-day price momentum, the strongest momentum print on today's board. Short interest and borrow fee are null for IRD, so the score reweighted across the remaining factors. It is the only top-15 name not on the FINRA threshold list, meaning its rank rests on covering time and price action rather than short-volume concentration.
2. RGC — Squeeze Score 41.4/100
RGC's rank is driven by a 241.6% annualized borrow fee, the highest in today's dataset by a wide margin. Its borrow fee also rose 2.4 percentage points over the last five trading days, compounding the fee component. Short interest is just 1.8% of float and days-to-cover is 4.7, so the composite leans heavily on the fee factor. RGC is on the FINRA threshold list.
3. WB — Squeeze Score 38.6/100
WB's primary driver is its 22.0 days-to-cover reading, the third-highest on the board, against 19.2% of float sold short. Its borrow fee is a modest 1.3%, up 0.09 percentage points over five days, so the score is carried by covering time and short-interest components rather than loan cost. WB is on the FINRA threshold list.
4. SVRA — Squeeze Score 38.6/100
SVRA combines the highest days-to-cover on the board at 27.1 with 29.6% of float sold short, the second-highest short-interest reading in the top 15. Its borrow fee is 2.4%, down 0.37 percentage points over five days, and five-day momentum is +1.2%. SVRA is on the FINRA threshold list, adding a short-volume component to its composite.
5. TROW — Squeeze Score 38.1/100
TROW is the large-cap outlier of the top five, with an 11.9% short-interest reading and 14.4 days to cover at a $109.29 share price. Its borrow fee is just 0.4%, the lowest in the top five, so the score is carried by days-to-cover and short interest rather than loan cost. Fee-change and momentum components are null, so those factors reweighted across the remaining inputs. TROW is on the FINRA threshold list.
Factor Breakdown: How the Score Is Built
The composite weights five core components: 35% short interest as a percentage of float (FINRA), 25% borrow fee, 20% float utilization, 15% days to cover, and 5% five-day price momentum. Each factor is z-scored against a ~500-stock universe so extreme prints register proportionally. Full detail is in the methodology.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are the top short-squeeze candidates today?
By composite squeeze score on September 9, 2026: IRD leads at 44.5/100 with 13.4 days to cover (SI and fee not reported), followed by RGC at 41.4/100 with 1.8% SI and a 241.6% borrow fee, and WB at 38.6/100 with 19.2% SI and a 1.3% borrow fee.
How does Tapeboard calculate its squeeze score?
Each of seven factors — short interest, borrow fee, float utilization, short-volume ratio, days to cover, momentum, and fee change — is z-scored against a ~500-stock universe, then combined under fixed weights (35% SI, 25% fee, 20% utilization, 15% days-to-cover, 5% momentum). Missing components are reweighted across the remaining factors.
When does short-interest data update?
Short interest lags roughly two weeks per the FINRA settlement schedule, so the SI component reflects the most recent published settlement. Borrow fees update on a next-day basis from stock-loan availability.
Data and Methodology
- Squeeze score: Tapeboard composite, recomputed nightly.
- Short interest: FINRA, ~2-week settlement lag.
- Borrow fee: stock-loan availability, daily.
- Short-volume threshold: FINRA Consolidated NMS, daily.
- Momentum: End-of-day.
See today's highest borrow fees for the full hard-to-borrow ranking, or the live squeeze leaderboard for tomorrow's update.
This post is for educational and informational purposes only and is not investment advice. Short selling carries unlimited downside risk. A quantitative composite does not predict price, and past squeezes are not indicative of future moves. Editor: Marcus Reilly.