By Saqib Iqbal Ahmed
NEW YORK, July 16 (Reuters) - Short sellers targeting SpaceX shares are sitting on an estimated $8.7 billion in paper profit since the rockets-to-AI firm's initial public offering last month, as its stock slipped below the IPO price, according to data and analytics firm Ortex Technologies.
Short sellers, who borrow shares to sell them and later buy them back at a lower price for a profit, have pressed their bearish bets on SpaceX as the company's shares slipped toward its IPO price of $135
from a post-IPO high of $225.64.
SpaceX shares have been volatile, experiencing brief bouts of strength before slipping back. On Wednesday, the stock dropped below its initial public offering price for the first time before recovering to close just above that level.
"SpaceX has been a rollercoaster for the short sellers, and it has ended up firmly in their favor," Ortex co-founder Peter Hillerberg said. "Rather than take profits, the bears kept adding the whole way down."
Almost half of SpaceX's tradable shares, about 49% of the free float, are now out on loan, according to Ortex.
"We believe most of that is short selling," Hillerberg said.
SpaceX did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
SpaceX's lofty valuation makes it a target for short sellers skeptical of its rich price tag, but strong retail and institutional interest as well as CEO Elon Musk's history of public battles against short sellers make bearish bets against the company a risky proposition.
The weakness in SpaceX shares reflects in part investor concern over debt-funded AI spending.
The stock's sizable short position could inject further volatility into the shares, with every dollar SpaceX shares move worth more than $300 million to the short side, Ortex estimates. That means the stock could swing hard in either direction.
SpaceX shares were up about 1% to $136.28 on Thursday.
(Reporting by Saqib Iqbal Ahmed; Editing by Mark Porter)
