Having a “long” position in a security means that you own the security. Investors maintain “long” security positions in the expectation that the stock will rise in value in the future. The opposite of a “long” position is a “short” position. A "short" position is generally the sale of a stock you do not own.

What is a short in trading?

Shorting, or short-selling, is when an investor borrows shares and immediately sells them, hoping he or she can scoop them up later at a lower price, return them to the lender and pocket the difference. But shorting is much riskier than buying stocks, or what's known as taking a long position.

What does it mean to be in a short position?

The Short Position is a technique used when an investor anticipates that the value of a stock will decrease in the short term, perhaps in the next few days or weeks. ... The intent is to borrow the stock for sale at a high price, then buy them back later at a lower price to and return them to the stockbroker.