As of the close of business on Friday, 6/2, we captured the Top 10 Highest Short Interest % stocks within the Consumer Defensive sector.

The average short interest for stocks within the Consumer Defensive sector stands at 2.53%. Therefore, the below stocks are showing a more pessimistic outlook than their peers within the respective sector.

• Big Lots Inc (NYSE:BIG) 50.4%
• Beyond Meat Inc (NASDAQ:BYND) 43.09%
• Freshpet Inc (NASDAQ:FRPT) 21.4%
• Appharvest Inc (NASDAQ:APPH) 13.66%
• B & G Foods Inc (NYSE:BGS) 12.83%
• Sprouts Fmrs Mkt I (NASDAQ:SFM) 12.39%
• Tattooed Chef Inc (NASDAQ:TTCF) 11.13%
• Celsius Holdings I (NASDAQ:CELH) 10.85%
• The Beauty Health (NASDAQ:SKIN) 10.53%
• Ollies Bargain Out (NASDAQ:OLLI) 9.3%

Short Interest is the percentage of a stocks' outstanding shares being sold short, which is utilized as a gauge for stock price sentiment. When short interest increases, this is generally considered a negative "bear" market indicator, whereas when short interest decreases, this is generally considered a positive "bull" market indicator.

Disclaimer: The Short Interest Indicator is produced by Tidal Markets, in partnership with Benzinga Insights. The data represented is exclusive to short interest data amalgamated daily by Tidal Markets LLC and its underlying proprietary sources. The information contained herein should not be compared to, contrasted, or evaluated against other short interest data providers. ANY INFORMATION CONTAINED HEREIN DOES NOT CONSTITUTE OR IMPLY INVESTMENT ADVICE