Virgin Galactic: the short position from Branson's flight to the 2026 high
FINRA's twice-monthly counts for the spaceflight company from the July 2021 Unity 22 flight, through the first commercial flight and the 2024 reverse split, to the highest reading in its record.
- Start
- 16.47% (15 Jan 2021)
- Peak
- 41.82% (30 Jun 2026)
- Low
- 7.05% (26 Feb 2021)
- End
- 23.80% (31 Aug 2026)
Figures are the short interest as a percentage of shares outstanding, from FINRA data, 134 points between 15 Jan 2021 and 31 Aug 2026.
What the data showed
Short interest stood at 16.47% of shares outstanding on 15 Jan 2021 and fell to its low of 7.05% on 26 Feb 2021. Over the following five years it rose to 41.82% on 30 Jun 2026, the highest reading in the company's record on this site, and stood at 23.80% on 31 Aug 2026.
Flights, a pause and a reverse split
On 11 July 2021 the Unity 22 flight carried the company's founder, Richard Branson, to space. The first commercial flight, Galactic 01, flew on 29 June 2023. The company then said it would wind down flights of the Unity spaceplane by mid-2024 to concentrate on its next Delta-class ships. A 1-for-20 reverse stock split took effect after the close on 14 June 2024.
Reading the line across a reverse split
A reverse split divides both the shares short and the shares outstanding by the same factor, so the percentage should not move on its own; but the SEC share count that the percentage is divided by arrives with the next filing, so this site pauses publication until it does. That is why no reading is charted for the 28 June 2024 settlement. FINRA's days-to-cover figure, which reached 12.73 days on 30 Nov 2022, is shown on the company page. This page records what was published and when; it does not say whether any position was right.
Full history and today's figure: Virgin Galactic Holdings, Inc.
About this page
US short interest data: FINRA (finra.org). FINRA® is a registered trademark of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, Inc. This site is not affiliated with or endorsed by FINRA or the SEC; displayed for personal reference, bulk redistribution is not permitted (see terms). The narrative describes what the published figures showed and widely reported public events around them; it is not a description of any company's prospects and is not investment advice.