Sears (SHLD) is expected to announce its earnings on Thursday. We have seen a slow and steady fall in the short base (percentage of shares outstanding on loan) over the last few weeks and it's currently at 10%. This represents 97% of the total shares available for borrowing.

This remains an expensive stock to borrow, which has seen the price jump 8% over the past week. It currently takes 9 days to buy back this stock.

Coach (COH) was one of the biggest decliners on the S&P 500 Tuesday. Around 14% of Coach's revenue is from sales through department stores like Saks (SKS), who are holding leaner inventories this year to help margins.

There has been a steady rise in the short base (percentage of shares outstanding on loan) in the past 3 weeks from 1.4% to 1.8%. This represents 5% of the total shares available for borrowing.

Alcoa (AA) was named last week as one of Brazil’s most sustainable companies and also a critical player in the future of Nasa’s Ares rocket. Alcoa saw lower than expected industrial production numbers due to auto production.

The short base (percentage of shares outstanding on loan from the total available lending pool) has been rising in past week from 4.8% to 5%, which represents 17% of the total shares available for borrowing. This remains a cheap stock to borrow with a small window to buy back the stock.

Saks (SKS) reported surprising results; much better than the market expected, sending its share price up 5%. The short side of the market will be sorely disappointed.

The short base (percentage of shares outstanding on loan) is currently at 31% representing 71% of the total shares available for borrowing. The cost to borrow remains low with about 9 days to buy back the stock.

It’s been a tough year for Caterpillar (CAT) and now industrial production numbers have been restrained due to a reduction in auto manufacturing and slow demand for business equipment.

The short base (percentage of shares outstanding on loan from the total available lending pool) has been dropping in the past week from 5.4% to 5%, which represents 23% of the total shares available for borrowing.

The short base in Salesforce (CRM) has been trending lower for some months and currently stands at 10.2%, representing about 30% of the shares available to borrow. Its results are seen by some as a bellwether for the health of the corporate sector. They are at the forefront of cloud computing with an investment in Financialforce.com.

For full report click here (pdf file).

The short base currently stands at 29%, up slightly over the past week having peaked at over 30% a few days ago. More than two thirds of the stock that is available is currently out on loan, although the stock is not expensive to short. Institutions appear to have been increasing their holdings.

For full report click here. (pdf file)

The FT reports increasing hedge fund interest in Cadbury (CBY), showing growing confidence that the hostile Kraft (KFT) bid will succeed. The short base in Kraft has risen to 3.8% from 3.5% a week ago; analyst and media comment has focused on the advantages to Kraft of acquiring Cadbury, but there are some potential pitfalls - the EC will give a competition ruling on 14th December.

FT Article here.

We have a stream of earnings announcements from solar companies. The charts here show trends in the short base for 9 of the most active stocks. Phoenix Solar, Solarworld (SRWRF.PK) and First Solar (FSLR) have shown the biggest increase in short base, Solarworld having hit a 3 month high of 21%. Energy Conversion (ENER) still has the highest short base which stands at 24.5%.

To download the whole article click here.

LBTYA

After Friday's announcement of the issuance of a new Convertible Bond by Liberty Global, it is interesting to note the depth of the stock borrow availability. As of c.o.b on the 12th Nov, our figures show there to be 23.07m shares available to borrow for (LBTYA) with a borrow score of 1 which is the cheapest category. To view the report with graphics click here.

Tesco (TSCDY.PK) has announced its first joint venture with Asian investors, HSBC Nan Fung China Real Estate Fund, Metro Holdings of Singapore and Nan Fung Group of Hong Kong, kicking off its plans to expand in China. The £100m investment will see the development of three new shopping malls.

The short base for Tesco is very low, but is seeing a steady rise to 0.3% from 0.2% over the past week. The short base represents 1.1% of the total shares available for borrowing, according to Data Explorers.

Iberia's (IBRLF.PK) merger with British Airways (BAIRY.PK) is now confirmed, with Iberia taking 45% of the combined entity. Both airlines are likely to keep their own branding and livery.

Iberia reported results Friday; the short base is 0.9% and has been dropping. The British Airways (BAIRY.PK) short position is over 16%. The market seems to have taken the news as being positive for both companies, with scope for major synergies. There are likely to be knock on effects for other airlines, as the merger is expected to impact the landscape for routes, slots and even airfares. However, the deal is conditional on agreement between British Airways and the BA pension fund trustees.

Ambac Financial (ABK) recently reported in a filing to the SEC that it may run out of liquidity before the second quarter of 2011. Short interest in Ambac stands at 12.9% of shares outstanding (+4.7% on the week) and active utilization has reached 75% (23% on the week).

To view the full report with graphics, click here.

Competition is heating up in the e-reader market. Amazon (AMZN), which has seen its short base gradually decline to currently 4%, is releasing Kindle for the PC, compatible with the new Windows 7 OS.

Barnes & Noble (BKS), which has recently seen its short base stabilize after a sharp move up two weeks ago and now sits at 29% (representing 96% of the shares available to borrow), is due to launch the Nook reader, complementing existing software for Mac, PC and iPhone. Barnes & Noble has also been discussed as a potential acquirer of Borders (BGP), which has decided to close bookstores in the U.S.. The short position in Borders currently stands at 4%, down from its recent peak of 4%.

The short base for MBIA is 9%, up from 6.6% a week ago. The monoline insurer reported disappointing earnings this week, and the shares dropped sharply with the market particularly concerned about the company's unrealized losses on its portfolio of insured credit derivatives.

To view the report with graphs click here.

Monday brings the long awaited release of 'Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2'. Gamestop will be opening its stores at midnight to meet demand and has seen record breaking pre-order levels. They are also bringing in new management, most recently ex Handango CTO Shawn Freeman.

The short base has been rising steadily over the past few months, currently standing at 16.6%. This is just over one third of the available inventory. Short sellers have made their views clear - but any change in sentiment may result in a rather crowded exit.

The Auto manufacturers are back on the market radar after the news that General Motors (MTLQQ.PK) will not be selling Opel after all. The news that German Government subsidies will be supporting a U.S. car company has been taken as a vote of confidence for some, but not all, of the other European car manufacturers. In these charts we show recent activity on the short side for 9 of the auto stocks.

For full report click here.