Short position holders do not legally need to close out but you...

Short position holders do not legally need to close out but you are correct in so far as market dynamics and fees and charges will usually force closure at some date. Sometimes though a better indicator of sentiment can be found in the tracking the history of days to cover ratio rather than total percentage itself. In our case though with STX both have expanded proportionately over many months indicative of the current SP sentiment. I personally would not be losing too much sleep over what Hancock Prospecting may or may not be doing with short selling though as they may in fact be both borrower and lender, however, unfortunately current reporting timelines create issue with transparency in that respect which - for me at least, is a bigger issue than if Hancock Prospecting are engaged in the practice itself. My opinion only of course! GLTAH and enjoy the rest of your day.