Potential short squeeze plays gained steam in 2021 and have continued through 2022 with new traders looking for the next huge move.

A short squeeze can occur when a heavily shorted stock rises in value instead of falling. Short sellers could be looking to close out their position and can face a loss if they have to buy back the shares they initially borrowed at a higher price.

A squeeze can occur when short sellers are forced into buying to cover their position, which can cause shares to move up on many occasions.

Fintel Data, which requires a subscription, provides a look at several of the top shorted stocks and how likely a short squeeze is to occur.

Here’s a look at the top five short squeeze candidates for the week of Sept. 6.

FaZe Holdings: eSports and digital content company FaZe Holdings Inc (NASDAQ:FAZE) tops the week’s short squeeze leaderboard for the second straight week. The company went public via SPAC merger and saw high redemptions at the merger deadline that reduced the float size by 92%. The stock is now a low float, high short interest stock, which has led to several sharp increases in the company’s share price.

Fintel shows 99.4% of the float short and a cost to borrow of 1,058.1%. The short interest remains the same from last week and the cost to borrow rises from last week’s 678.1%, making one of the highest on record.

TDH Holdings: Pet food company TDH Holdings (NASDAQ:PETZ) remains second on the short squeeze leaderboard after last week’s reentry to the top five. Data shows 27.2% of the float short, in line with last week’s figure. The cost to borrow on shares is 57.4%, down from last week’s 61.7%.

Blue Apron Holdings: Meal kit company Blue Apron Holdings (NYSE:APRN) ranks third on the list, moving up one place from last week’s leaderboard. Data shows 36% of the float short and a cost to borrow of 28%, up from last week’s 25.8% cost to borrow.

Chicken Soup for the Soul Entertainment: Streaming company Chicken Soup for the Soul Entertainment (NASDAQ:CSSE) is no stranger to the short squeeze leaderboard with previous appearances in the top five. The company, which recently acquired Redbox, moves up 11 places to fourth on the leaderboard. Data shows 47.2% of the float short and a cost to borrow of 40.9%.

Kirkland’s Inc: Retailer Kirkland’s Inc (NASDAQ:KIRK) ranks fifth on the short squeeze leaderboard, moving up 22 positions from the previous week. Data shows 27.3% of the float short and a cost to borrow of 8.2%.

Related Link: Could FaZe Holdings And McDonald's Stock Owners Say I'm Loving It To Renewed Partnership 

Stocks To Watch: Outside of the top five short squeeze candidates, the leaderboard shows several stocks making big moves and/or showing high short interest and cost to borrow figures.

Getty Images (NYSE:GETY), which went public via SPAC, moves up 4,696 places to 11th on the leaderboard. The company has 88.1% of its float short and a cost to borrow of 965.4%.

Indonesia Energy (NYSE:INDO) moves up two positions to sixth place, falling just shy of the top five short squeeze candidates. The oil company has made frequent appearances on the leaderboard. Data shows 10.6% of the float short and a cost to borrow of 129.8%.

Biotechnology company Athersys Inc (NASDAQ:ATHX) ranks 14th on the leaderboard with short interest of 102.1% of the float and a cost to borrow of 19%.

Restaurant company Fat Brands Inc (NASDAQ:FAT) moves up 21 places to rank 21st on the leaderboard with 10.7% of the float short and a cost to borrow of 29%. 

SilverSun Technologies Inc (NASDAQ:SSNT), which was flagged as a stock to watch last week, has 9% of its float short and a cost to borrow of 226.8%.

Photo courtesy of Blue Apron.