odd-lot short sale ratio

Odd-Lot Short-Sale Ratio

The number of odd-lot short sales as a percentage of total short sales over a given period. Odd-lot short sales are 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 high odd-lot short sale ratio may be a sign that stock prices will, in fact, rise.

odd-lot short sale ratio

A measure calculated by dividing the odd-lot short sales by the total short sales occurring during a given period. Technical theory holds that a high odd-lot short sale ratio indicates a bullish market because small investors tend to do the wrong thing.