Most Shorted ASX Stocks: Why DRO, DMP and PLS Are Losing Investor Confidence

DRO, DMP and PLS are among the most shorted ASX stocks and has a different story behind the justification of it. Take a look at the companies to understand the reason behind losing investor confidence.

DroneShield Limited (ASX: DRO)

On 26 August 2026, published its June ending first half results with revenue increasing by 74% on pcp to $125.8 million and a recurring revenue of $11.5 million, a significant increment of 229% on pcp, reflecting increased product demand.

However, the underlying EBITDA tells a different story as it went from $8 million profit in pcp to a major loss of $12.4 million in this half and remains at the top in the list of most short sale stock with 15.37% stock selling short.

The company has a market capitalisation of approximately $1.61 billion and has a strong balance sheet with cash and term deposits of $180 million at the end of the half but it declined from $210 million in pcp.

Looking ahead, the company expects to achieve a revenue of $250-270 million with improved margins for the year but profitability is the part where company needs to focus on to gain investor confidence as the share price is trading near its 52-week low.

Domino's Pizza Enterprises Limited (ASX: DMP)

On 26 August 2026, published its June ending FY26 results, delivering a moderate growth with an underlying EBIT of $200.1 million but the network sales went down by 6.8% to $3.87 billion which includes store closures also.

Same-store sales went down by 4.1% during the year, which reflects slower demand but the franchise partner profitability increased by 11.3% to $105.7k EBITDA rolling 12 months per store, which is highest in last four years.

DMP is one of the most shorted stock in ASX with around 11.98% stocks being shorted, indicating a loss in investor confidence in company’s operations.

The company has a market capitalisation of approximately $1.91 billion and has reduced its net leverage to 1.86 with the help of reduction in debt. However, DMP remains a cautious investment until further improvement in its sales and profitability is visible clearly.

PLS Group Limited (ASX: PLS)

On 24 August 2026, published its June ending full year results for FY26, reflecting a strong growth as the revenue went up by 152% to $1.9 billion with a big jump in underlying EBITDA of 1067% to $1.13 billion.

EBITDA margin for the year improved to 59% and the company reported NPAT of $526 million, an increment of 369% compared to the previous year.

Despite these outstanding results, the company currently remains in the list to top shorted ASX stocks with a shorting of about 11.11% of its total shares which seems mostly due to cyclicality of the lithium business and a heavy capex guidance of $620-685 million.

PLS has a market capitalisation of around $15.9 billion with a strong balance sheet comprising a cash balance of approximately $2.3 billion as of June ending. However, the stock price has already surged by more than 20% since August, highlighting a cautious time to invest in the company.

(Source: Company Announcements)