Short Stocks: Bets build against transportation, Motorola

NEW YORK, May 27 (Reuters) - Short interest on the Nasdaq
and the NYSE edged down in mid-May, the exchanges said in their
twice-monthly reports released on Wednesday, indicating
investors are continuing to move out of short position as the
stock market show signs of strength.

On the New York Stock Exchange, short interest fell 0.2
percent, while on the Nasdaq it fell 1.3 percent.

The following list shows stocks that saw increased interest
from short sellers, who bet that a certain stock's price will
fall, and key recent news events for those stocks. The data
reflect short trades with a settlement date of May 15.

For full story please see [ID:nN27647429]. For factbox
please see [ID:nN27274272] and [ID:nN27269710.]

Motorola Inc (MOT.N)

Short interest rose 21.5 percent in the company.

The cellphone maker's shares took a hit after it announced
its cash position fell about $1 billion in the last three
months after posting quarterly results at the end of April.
[ID:nN30323474].

Frustrated Motorola shareholders voted in early May to give
holders of 10 percent of its stock the power to call special
shareholder meetings, and complained about everything from
executive pay to the performance of the board at the
loss-making phone company. See [nN04435325].

About 67.82 million of the company's shares were held
short, or about 3 percent of its total shares outstanding.

CSX Corp (CSX.N)

Short interest in the company rose 276.7 percent.

Transportation stocks were among the biggest casualties in
late April and early May as investors fretted about the likely
impact of the possible swine flu outbreak on the economy.

About 21.63 million of the company's shares were held
short, or about 5.5 percent of its total shares outstanding.

JetBlue Airways Corp (JBLU.O)

Short interest in the company rose 27.3 percent.

The airline said traffic decreased 2.7 percent in April.
Shortly after, the Air Transport Association said U.S. airlines
forecast 7 percent drop in domestic travel this summer travel
and 6 percent drop in international travel due to a weak
economy. See [ID:nWEN9189] and [ID:nWNAB4537]

About 21.38 million of the company's shares were held
short, or about 7.5 percent of its total shares outstanding.

DryShips Inc (DRYS.O)

Short interest rose 41.8 percent in the company.

Greek dry bulk carrier DryShips Inc said it would offer
common stock in May, its third such offering since November,
and hopes to raise up to $475 million in an at-the-market
offering, sending its shares down 17 percent on May 8. See
[ID:nBNG381633]

About 12.5 million of the company's shares were held short,
or about 6.8 percent of its total shares outstanding.

Ford Motor Co (F.N)

Short interest rose 10.9 percent in the company.

The bankruptcy filing of Chrysler on April 30 further hurt
Ford's stock, while the company announced it would sell of 300
million common shares on May 11. [ID:nN11100156]

About 138 million of the company's shares were held short,
just over 4 percent of its total shares outstanding.
(Reporting by Edward Krudy and Rodrigo Campos; Editing by Gary
Hill)