which stocks dropped the most this week: top losers

A practical, methodology-first guide to answering which stocks dropped the most this week. Learn how we define ‘this week’, how percent declines are calculated, how to filter noise from microcaps, ...

2025-11-18 16:00:00

By Cyber Fusion

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Introduction

Asking which stocks dropped the most this week is a common way traders and investors scan for risk, news-driven volatility, or potential opportunities. This article explains how to interpret the question, the data and filters used to produce weekly‑loser lists, and provides dated market context and examples. It is written for beginners and experienced readers who want a transparent method for finding the largest one‑week percentage decliners across U.S. listings (NYSE, NASDAQ, AMEX, OTC) and who need practical monitoring tools. As of January 16, 2026, this guide uses public market headlines and authoritative screener sources to illustrate causes and patterns.

Note: the exact phrase which stocks dropped the most this week appears throughout this article so you can quickly match search intent and reproduce the ranking process yourself.

Definitions and scope

To answer which stocks dropped the most this week we must define terms clearly:

"This week": by default we use a one‑week period defined as the most recent five trading days (or the prior‑close to latest close covering the last calendar week if users prefer calendar days). If a provider reports seven‑day change instead, state that explicitly.
Metric: percentage change versus the close exactly one week earlier (percent change = (LastClose / Close7DaysAgo - 1) × 100). Adjusted closes that reflect stock splits and corporate actions are used wherever available.
Universe: U.S.-listed equities on NYSE, NASDAQ, AMEX and standard OTC tickers unless a reader requests exclusion of OTC/penny names. Crypto tokens are excluded from the primary scope here (but are discussed later under monitoring tools).
Filters: to avoid misleading results from ultra‑thin, manipulated or de‑listed names, we commonly apply minimums such as average daily volume ≥ 100k shares and market cap ≥ $50M when producing headline top‑loser tables.

This clear scope lets us answer which stocks dropped the most this week in a way that is comparable across providers and repeatable for users.

Sources and data methodology

Which stocks dropped the most this week depends on the data source and update frequency. Key public screeners and market‑mover pages used in weekly‑loser research include MarketBeat, StockAnalysis, TradingView, Investing.com, Morningstar, Yahoo Finance, Slickcharts, and specialist screeners such as WallStreetZen. These services differ by:

Update cadence: real‑time intraday vs. end‑of‑day (EOD) snapshots.
Price field: last trade, official close, or adjusted close (for splits/dividends).
Exchange coverage: some lists exclude OTC or require minimum liquidity.

Methodology checklist we follow when compiling a weekly losers ranking:

Record the last official close and the close five trading days prior (or the most recent same‑weekday close if markets were closed for holidays).
Use adjusted close prices where available to neutralize the mechanical impact of stock splits and consolidations.
Compute 1‑week percent change: (Close_now / Close_week_ago - 1) × 100. Example: a stock at $10 now vs. $20 a week earlier = (10/20 -1)×100 = -50%.
Apply filters: minimum average daily volume, minimal market cap, and exclude tickers on regulatory watchlists or with trading halts where a single replayed transaction can create misleading percent moves.
Cross‑check against multiple sources (MarketBeat, StockAnalysis, TradingView) and news feeds for the leading reasons behind large declines.

As of January 16, 2026, reputable screeners and data providers are our primary sources for ranking which stocks dropped the most this week; where we list specific company moves below we cite the named provider and date of the snapshot.

Calculation details

Precise formula:

Week‑over‑week % change = [(Last trade or official close) / (Close 5 trading days earlier) - 1] × 100.

Practical adjustments and examples:

Holidays: if a holiday interrupts the five‑day window, use the most recent prior trading close that preserves a five‑trading‑day comparison when available; some providers use a seven‑calendar‑day view—state the choice.
Splits and corporate actions: use adjusted closes. For example, a 2:1 forward split halves the historical prices — adjusted close prevents false +100% moves.
Illiquid tickers: drop results where average daily volume < 50k or where a single large block trade accounts for >50% of weekly volume.

These rules reduce false positives so that answers to which stocks dropped the most this week highlight true market moves, not artefacts.

Weekly summary — Top losers (by percentage)

The standard presentation for which stocks dropped the most this week is a ranked list ordered by 1‑week percent decline with columns for ticker, company name, 1‑week % change, last price, market cap and average daily volume. Because the exact weekly rankings change intraday, any table should display the snapshot date.

Important caveat: very large percentage declines are often concentrated in microcaps and penny stocks. To make lists more actionable for most readers we provide two views:

All‑universe top losers (no market‑cap filter): shows extreme short‑term moves including OTC names.
Filtered top losers (min market cap $50M & avg daily vol ≥100k): focuses on liquid names where a one‑week drop more likely reflects material news.

Below we provide illustrative examples drawn from market coverage and screener snapshots taken the week of January 12–16, 2026. These examples are dated and sourced so readers can verify details with the provider of their choice.

Notable examples from the week (illustrative, dated snapshots)

As of January 14–15, 2026, market news and screeners highlighted large moves among bank and airline stocks amid earnings and policy headlines, and single‑name volatility across sectors. The listings below illustrate typical reasons behind large weekly drops and their magnitude. All percentages are week‑over‑week moves reported by major market reporters and screeners on the dates shown.

Bank of America (BAC): down about 5% for the week (source: Yahoo Finance, January 14, 2026). Banks broadly underperformed mid‑week on policy‑related headlines and investor caution around regulatory and credit‑cost risks. This example shows how sector news can produce coordinated weekly decliners.
Wells Fargo (WFC): down about 5% over the week (source: Yahoo Finance, January 14, 2026). Similar drivers to BAC; illustrates how major financials can become top weekly losers even when fundamentals are not uniformly weak.
Citigroup (C): down more than 4% that week (source: Yahoo Finance, January 14, 2026), with its earnings print and a large one‑time Russia‑unit loss affecting sentiment.
Delta Air Lines (DAL): declined roughly 5% intraday premarket after Q4 results and guidance that disappointed certain expectations (source: Yahoo Finance, January 13, 2026). Airline examples show how guidance — not just headline earnings beats — causes sharp weekly declines.
Select small cap / microcap names: multiple OTC and small‑cap tickers often sit at the top of unfiltered weekly‑loser lists; these moves reflect low liquidity, news, or trading halts and require extra scrutiny (sources: StockAnalysis weekly losers and TradingView movers, snapshot January 16, 2026).

Why these examples matter: they show the difference between market‑wide sector spells (banks falling together) and idiosyncratic declines (company guidance, one‑time charges, or regulatory developments). When answering which stocks dropped the most this week, always pair percent moves with the causal news item.

Distribution by market cap and sector

When you ask which stocks dropped the most this week, the answer typically clusters into two patterns:

Microcap and penny‑stock concentration: raw top‑percent declines almost always include multiple sub‑$50M market cap names. Thin liquidity magnifies intraday moves, and regulatory risk (suspicious filings, halt events) is more frequent.
Sectoral clusters among liquid names: in the sample week of Jan 12–16, 2026, financials and airlines showed concentrated weakness tied to earnings‑cycle headlines. Conversely, chip gear and AI‑sensitive names rallied after a strong TSMC outlook, highlighting how sector trends influence which stocks dropped the most this week.

Sector patterns to watch:

Financials: sensitive to credit, regulatory or policy headlines; a bank policy overhang can make multiple large‑cap names appear among the week’s biggest decliners.
Consumer & travel (airlines): guidance or macro softening can produce sharp weekly declines.
Small biotech: binary news (trial failure or FDA delay) can produce outsized weekly drops among small caps.
Microcaps and OTC: greatest raw percent volatility, often noise.

Thus, answering which stocks dropped the most this week means reporting not only the tickers but also the market‑cap and sector context so readers can judge the move’s quality.

Common causes of large weekly declines

Understanding why a stock made your weekly‑loser list helps separate one‑off reactions from trend reversals. Frequent drivers include:

Earnings misses or weak guidance: even a revenue beat can be offset by downbeat forward guidance, turning a stock into a top weekly loser.
Policy or regulatory headlines: proposals affecting a whole industry (for example, a proposed credit‑card APR cap affecting lenders) can create multi‑name weekly declines.
Corporate actions and surprises: asset writedowns, large one‑time charges, or restatements often trigger big declines.
Liquidity squeezes and trading halts: halted names can gap lower when trading resumes, creating extreme weekly percent moves.
Insider or institutional selling: large block sales can pressure a thinly traded ticker.
Macro shocks: commodity moves, geopolitical events, or sudden rate‑expectation changes can push sectors into weekly declines.

In practice you should cross‑reference the percent move with news and filings to avoid mistaking volatility for fundamental deterioration.

Distinguishing one‑off collapses from sustained declines

Not every weekly loser is the start of a prolonged downtrend. Evaluate the following to decide which weekly drops matter:

Volume confirmation: does the weekly decline come with higher‑than‑average volume? High volume with a large decline suggests conviction selling.
Multi‑timeframe trend: check daily, weekly and monthly charts. A gap down inside a long uptrend may be a temporary shock; a gap that breaks long‑term support is more serious.
Fundamental checks: read the company’s earnings release, 8‑K filings, and management commentary for durable issues.
Option and derivatives flows: unusually heavy put activity or option implied‑volatility spikes can signal market concerns beyond a single news headline.

These checks reduce the risk of treating a headline drop as a buy signal without context.

How to monitor weekly losers (tools and screens)

If you regularly need to know which stocks dropped the most this week, use a combination of screeners, news alerts and watchlists. Recommended tools (names only; no external links) include MarketBeat, StockAnalysis, TradingView, Investing.com, Morningstar, Yahoo Finance and WallStreetZen. Bitget’s market tools can be used to monitor derivatives and tokenized assets if you track tokenized stock products, and Bitget Wallet is recommended for Web3 custody when monitoring tokenized exposure.

Practical monitoring tips:

Set a weekly‑change screener: timeframe = 1 week; sort by % change ascending.
Add liquidity filters: average daily volume ≥ 100k; market cap ≥ $50M for the liquid view.
Add a news‑filter column: show the latest company press release / SEC filing headline so you can see the reason behind the drop.
Create alerts: price threshold alerts, % drop alerts (e.g., −10% intraday) and volume spikes.

Example screener settings (recommended)

Timeframe: 1 week (5 trading days)
Percent change: <= −20% (to capture meaningful declines)
Market cap: >= $50M (for liquid list) or no filter (for full universe)
Average daily volume (30d): >= 100k shares
Exclude: tickers flagged as halted or in regulatory review

These settings balance signal vs. noise and make the question which stocks dropped the most this week yield names that are verifiable and actionable for further research.

Risk warnings and investor cautions

Answering which stocks dropped the most this week is informational, not investment advice. Important cautions:

High weekly percent declines often indicate high risk, especially among microcaps and OTC names that are easier to manipulate.
Percent decline alone is not a buy or sell signal; always pair with filings, management commentary and volume confirmation.
Avoid chasing extreme weekly losers without understanding liquidity — placing market orders in a thin stock can cause outsized slippage.
Use a reputable exchange and wallet: for tokenized exposure or crypto monitoring, prefer Bitget and Bitget Wallet for custody and trading services.

Stay objective: report moves and reasons, do not speculate on outcomes or provide investment recommendations.

Frequently asked questions (FAQ)

Q: Does the largest percent drop mean the best buying opportunity? A: No. A large percent drop can reflect permanent impairment, fraud, or imminent delisting. Always read filings and confirm the cause.

Q: How do stock splits affect weekly percent change? A: Use adjusted close prices. Adjusted data corrects historical prices for splits, preventing false percentage moves.

Q: Are crypto tokens included when people ask which stocks dropped the most this week? A: Usually not. The query typically refers to equities; if you mean tokens or tokenized stocks, clarify. For token monitoring, Bitget Wallet and Bitget market feeds are convenient places to view token price moves.

Q: How is "week" defined across providers? A: Some providers use five trading days (common), others use seven calendar days. Always check the provider’s timeframe in the header of the screener.

Practical example: interpreting a sample weekly‑loser event (bank sector, Jan 12–14, 2026)

As of January 14, 2026, major U.S. banks showed coordinated weekly weakness amid an earnings cadence and policy headlines. Examples from that week: Bank of America and Wells Fargo each fell ~5% for the week; Citigroup fell >4% and JPMorgan retraced about 1% after reporting. (Sources: Yahoo Finance market coverage and earnings updates, January 13–14, 2026.)

Interpreting the moves:

Catalyst: earnings season and sector‑level headlines (including a widely‑reported proposal to cap credit‑card interest rates) created uncertainty for bank profitability and risk appetite.
Breadth check: multiple large‑cap banks fell together, indicating a sector rotation or policy overhang rather than a lawsuit or fraud affecting a single issuer.
Next steps: check each bank’s earnings release, read management Q&A for guidance changes, and monitor trading volume for confirmation.

This stepwise approach helps convert the raw ranking of which stocks dropped the most this week into actionable context for research.

How Bitget can help you monitor and react

For users tracking price moves across asset types, Bitget provides market screens, advanced alerts and custody options. If you monitor tokenized stocks or want a consolidated view of equities and digital assets, Bitget’s platform and Bitget Wallet let you set alerts, build watchlists, and keep custody of on‑chain exposures. Use these tools to replicate the filters suggested earlier and to receive instant notifications when a tracked ticker becomes among which stocks dropped the most this week.

Call to action: explore Bitget market tools and Bitget Wallet to centralize alerts and watchlists for both traditional and tokenized instruments.

References and data sources (selected, dated)

MarketBeat — weekly losers and market‑mover pages (snapshot methodology referenced, Jan 16, 2026)
StockAnalysis — "Top Stock Losers In The Past Week" lists (snapshot Jan 16, 2026)
TradingView — Biggest Stock Losers screener (real‑time movers, snapshot Jan 16, 2026)
Yahoo Finance — earnings and market coverage on bank and airline moves (reporting Jan 13–14, 2026)
Investing.com, Morningstar, WallStreetZen and Slickcharts — used for cross‑checks on sector and index movers (various snapshots Jan 12–16, 2026)

As of January 16, 2026, the examples, figures and sector patterns in this article reflect market reports and screener snapshots cited above.

Final checklist — how you can reproduce the answer to "which stocks dropped the most this week"

Choose your universe (U.S. listings, exclude OTC if you want liquid names).
Select timeframe: 5 trading days (or 7 calendar days if preferred).
Pull adjusted close prices for both endpoints and compute % change.
Apply liquidity and market‑cap filters to avoid microcap noise.
Cross‑check top decliners against news and SEC filings to find the cause.
Set alerts and save the screener query to get weekly snapshots automatically.

Further exploration: if you want, specify the exchange scope (e.g., exclude OTC), choose N (top 10 / top 25) and I will generate a dated sample table from screeners using those filters.