Odd-Lot Short Sales (redirected from Oddlot Short Sales)

Odd-Lot Short Sales

Short sales in quantities of fewer than 100 shares each. Generally speaking, one engages in short sales because one expects the price of a stock to fall. Likewise, most odd lotters are small investors. Because many investors consider small investors poorly informed and therefore wrong most of the time, they believe a large number of odd lot short sales may be a sign that stock prices will in fact rise.

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odd-lot short sales

The number of shares sold short in less than round lots. Because investors trading odd lots are viewed by many market analysts as unsophisticated, many odd-lot short sales are interpreted as bullish. The number of shares sold short in odd lots is sometimes used to construct an index to gauge small investor speculative activity. The index is calculated by dividing odd-lot short sales by total odd-lot sales. A rising index, indicative of increased speculation by less sophisticated investors, is a bearish sign.