JPMorgan reveals risky short ideas across multiple sectors for 2025

In early January 2025, JPMorgan released its outlook on several stocks, recommending investors avoid specific companies due to anticipated losses. The firm noted that major stock market averages faced difficulties over the past weeks, primarily due to climbing Treasury yields and a strengthening dollar. This context has led to broader investor pessimism, particularly affecting Big Tech stocks that have been instrumental in previous market growth. Claudia Hueston, co-head of Americas research at JPMorgan, gathered insights from top-ranked equity analysts to highlight the most convincing short ideas for the year ahead. One significant mention on JPMorgan's list includes the vaccine manufacturer Novavax. The Maryland company experienced stock valuation issues after projecting its 2024 revenue to be below analysts’ expectations. This decline was marked by a drop of as much as 10% in share prices following its announcement. Analyst Eric Joseph elaborated on concerns surrounding Novavax's progress in its phase 3 Covid-19 and flu program, citing uncertainties regarding execution timelines and regulatory outlooks as contributors to the stock's volatility. Airbnb also caught the eye of JPMorgan, with analyst Doug Anmuth providing a neutral rating amid mixed market sentiment and hefty short interests. Though the company recorded a slight revenue beat in its recent quarter, it fell short on earnings, prompting airline shares to decline further due to challenges related to its core markets, increased marketing costs, and structural changes within its business model. These issues raise significant near-term risk for Airbnb as it seeks to innovate while core growth appears to diminish. Intel, the semiconductor giant, was another company under scrutiny, having lost around 60% of its value in 2024—marking its most significant decline in over five decades. Analyst Harlan Sur highlighted challenges faced by Intel, including abrupt management shifts and setbacks in essential business operations. With its inability to advance effectively in the competitive landscape of artificial intelligence chip production, Intel's shares continued to slide in 2025, indicating turbulence ahead. Other companies like SiriusXM and D.R. Horton also faced negative evaluations by JPMorgan, further illustrating the cautious sentiment prevailing in the market as the year begins.