Novo shorts built into Wegovy’s label win, now clashing with FDA reaction rally.

GLP-1 Expansion: On August 18, the FDA approved Wegovy for a new indication in MASH, marking the first GLP-1 cleared for liver disease. GoodRx (GDRX) jumped 37% the same day on news of its Wegovy/Ozempic distribution partnership with Novo Nordisk (NVO). Novo gained ~4% on the combined FDA and GoodRx tailwinds, while Eli Lilly (LLY) and Hims & Hers Health (HIMS) slipped.

Novo Nordisk (NVO): Short positioning surged 220% YTD in share terms, with notional shorts climbing from $714M at the start of 2025 to a peak of $2.41B in early June, before easing back to $1.25B currently. The stock has fallen nearly 40% YTD to $53.75. Shares short rose 21% in August, building into earnings and Wegovy’s FDA approval.

GLP-1 Stock Short Interest Comparison: Eli Lilly (LLY) shorts increased 20% YTD to 7.35M shares ($5.0B notional) as the stock fell 10%. Novo Nordisk (NVO) saw a much larger percentage increase but remains lighter in absolute terms at $1.25B compared with $5B for Lilly. Novo briefly topped Lilly on a % of float basis in early June, at 0.98%, before Novo covering through late July. Hims & Hers Health (HIMS) is by far the most shorted GLP-1 related stock at 32% of float, equating to $3B, and stands out as a Battleground Stock with S3 Active Long Interest and Short Interest nearly balanced.

Short Interest in Real Time: S3 data shows a sharp build in Novo shorts in August—positioning not yet visible in public data— offering investors an early read on crowding and squeeze risk in liquid names.

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