what are weak shorts 
weak shorts refer to traders or investors who hold a short position in a stock or other financial asset who will exit at the first indication of price strength weak shorts are typically investors with limited financial capacity precluding them from taking absorbing too much risk on a short position a weak short will generally have a tight stop loss order in place on the short position to cap the loss on the short trade weak shorts are conceptually similar to weak longs though the latter employ long positions understanding weak shortsweak shorts are more likely to be carried by retail traders rather than institutional investors since the retail trader s financial capacity is limited that said even institutional investors may find themselves in the weak short camp if they are financially stretched and cannot afford to commit more to trade the presence of weak shorts may intensify volatility in stock because weak shorts will be inclined to exit their short positions if the stock shows signs of strengthening such short covering may drive the stock price up rapidly forcing other traders with short positions to close them for fear of a short squeeze if the stock begins to weaken and is vulnerable the weak shorts may reinstate their short positions weak shorts may be constrained by the availability of capital but may still have a high degree of conviction in their short strategy heavy shorting accentuates the stock s weakness driving its price down quickly a trading pattern that leads to stock volatility for a retail trader that is day trading or swing trading a weak short is a positive by exiting early when a stock no longer looks weak the trader limits their risk and saves their capital for the short trades that are acting weak but are profitable stocks or other financial assets that have a substantial weak short presence will often be more volatile than those with less of a weak short presence 