Hell no, been short FMG (properly, not via CFD etc) on Monday is...

Hell no, been short FMG (properly, not via CFD etc) on Monday is financial suicide. This is because FMG will drop by it's dividend amount (give or take) but not by the franking component.

The shorter needs to compensate the person who has lent them the stock for both the dividend and franking credits.

As franking credits are not priced in by the market, and FMG's franking credits are substantial, this is a significant outright loss for the short seller.

If shorting via CFDs etc you can probably get an edge as stocks tend to fall by slightly more than the dividend amount, but you don't profit from the dividend drop itself as what you gain on your short from the dividend drop you have to pay to the CFD provider as a dividend. With CFD type shorts, you don't pay any compensation for franking credits.