Traders betting against airlines made $188 million in a single day after Warren Buffett said he sold all his shares
Warren Buffett’s comments on the “big four” airlines over the weekend fueled lucrative trades for those betting against the industry. In just one day, traders betting against airlines made $188 million in mark-to-market profits as the sector sank nearly 5% Monday on Buffett’s remarks, according to a Monday note from Ihor Dusaniwsky, the managing director of predictive analytics at S3 Partners, a financial analysis firm. The gains came after Buffett said on Saturday, during the Berkshire Hathaway annual shareholder meeting, that his company had sold all of its holdings in American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, United Airlines, and Southwest Airlines. So far in 2020, betting against the airline industry has been a lucrative trade – the entire sector is up $4.13 billion in net-of-financing mark-to-market profits, or 91%, on the year, according to S3 data. Short-sellers make profits when the stocks they bet against decline.
— source markets.businessinsider.com | May 5, 2020