15 European Stocks Being Targeted by Short Sellers

The following is a list of European stocks that have seen a sharp increase in short interest over the last three months.

To create the list, we started with a universe of about 100 European stocks. We then narrowed down the universe by only focusing on stocks that have seen a sharp increase in shares shorted between 8/31 - 11/30.

Short sellers seem to think these stocks are vulnerable, what do you think? Full analysis below.

Short trends data sourced from AOL Money, current short float data sourced from Finviz.

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1. Allied Irish Banks plc (AIB): Ireland. Foreign Money Center Banks Industry. Market cap of $722.6M. Shorted shares have increased from 1.09M to 16.09M. Short float at 2.54%, which implies a short ratio of 1.8 days. The stock has lost -64.35% over the last year.

2. The Governor and Company of The Bank of Ireland (IRE): Ireland. Foreign Regional Banks Industry. Market cap of $3.38B. Shorted shares have increased from 1.56M to 15.55M. Short float at 1.18%, which implies a short ratio of 1.21 days. The stock has lost -64.53% over the last year.

3. BT Group plc (BT): United Kingdom. Telecom Services Industry. Market cap of $22.54B. Shorted shares have increased from 92K to 449K. Short float at 0.06%, which implies a short ratio of 3.7 days. The stock has gained 37.81% over the last year.

4. Coca-Cola Hellenic Bottling Company S.A. (CCH): Greece. Beverages Industry. Market cap of $9.38B. Shorted shares have increased from 19K to 54K. Short float at 0.04%, which implies a short ratio of 4.4 days. The stock has gained 16.75% over the last year.

5. Altisource Portfolio Solutions S.A. (ASPS): Luxembourg. Mortgage Investment Industry. Market cap of $724.44M. Shorted shares have increased from 95K to 260K. Short float at 1.04%, which implies a short ratio of 1.43 days. The stock has gained 58.13% over the last year.

6. Vistaprint N.V. (VPRT): Netherlands. Business Services Industry. Market cap of $1.92B. Shorted shares have increased from 2.24M to 5.7M. Short float at 13.61%, which implies a short ratio of 9.54 days. The stock has lost -22.33% over the last year.

7. BHP Billiton plc (BBL): United Kingdom. Industrial Metals & Minerals Industry. Market cap of $216.79B. Shorted shares have increased from 353K to 832K. Short float at 0.03%, which implies a short ratio of 0.54 days. The stock has gained 30.12% over the last year.

8. Sanofi-Aventis (SNY): France. Drug Manufacturers Industry. Market cap of $84.02B. Shorted shares have increased from 2.5M to 4.96M. Short float at 0.23%, which implies a short ratio of 2.21 days. The stock has lost -13.18% over the last year.

9. ABB Ltd. (ABB): Switzerland. Industrial Electrical Equipment Industry. Market cap of $49.58B. Shorted shares have increased from 1.97M to 3.86M. Short float at 0.17%, which implies a short ratio of 1.48 days. The stock has gained 22.1% over the last year.

10. Ingersoll-Rand Plc (IR): Ireland. Diversified Machinery Industry. Market cap of $15.26B. Shorted shares have increased from 14.5M to 27.96M. Short float at 8.64%, which implies a short ratio of 6.06 days. The stock has gained 33.27% over the last year.

11. Tenaris SA (TS): Luxembourg. Steel & Iron Industry. Market cap of $28.66B. Shorted shares have increased from 3.73M to 6.95M. Short float at 2.99%, which implies a short ratio of 3.87 days. The stock has gained 22.6% over the last year.

12. Diana Shipping Inc. (DSX): Greece. Shipping Industry. Market cap of $1.04B. Shorted shares have increased from 499K to 926K. Short float at 1.37%, which implies a short ratio of 1.14 days. The stock has lost -15.23% over the last year.

13. National Bank of Greece SA (NBG): Greece. Money Center Banks Industry. Market cap of $5.03B. Shorted shares have increased from 3.74M to 6.89M. Short float at 0.23%, which implies a short ratio of 1.28 days. The stock has lost -65.09% over the last year.

14. National Grid plc (NGG): United Kingdom. Gas Utilities Industry. Market cap of $31.08B. Shorted shares have increased from 292K to 533K. Short float at 0.08%, which implies a short ratio of 0.75 days. The stock has lost -9.14% over the last year.

15. Smith & Nephew plc (SNN): United Kingdom. Medical Appliances & Equipment Industry. Market cap of $9.16B. Shorted shares have increased from 500K to 892K. Short float at 0.5%, which implies a short ratio of 8.23 days. The stock has gained 4.36% over the last year.

Disclosure: I have no positions in any stocks mentioned, and no plans to initiate any positions within the next 72 hours.