John Hancock Hedged Equity & Income Fund (NYSE:HEQ) Sees Large Growth in Short Interest

John Hancock Hedged Equity & Income Fund (NYSE:HEQ) was the target of a large increase in short interest in January. As of January 31st, there was short interest totalling 17,000 shares, an increase of 136.1% from the January 15th total of 7,200 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 35,300 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 0.5 days.

John Hancock Hedged Equity & Income Fund Trading Up 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE:HEQ traded up $0.02 on Thursday, hitting $10.62. 15,471 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 28,932. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $10.47 and its 200 day moving average is $10.68. John Hancock Hedged Equity & Income Fund has a 1-year low of $9.57 and a 1-year high of $11.12.

John Hancock Hedged Equity & Income Fund Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, December 12th were issued a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 9.42%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, December 12th.

Institutional Trading of John Hancock Hedged Equity & Income Fund

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Kovack Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of John Hancock Hedged Equity & Income Fund by 23.0% in the 3rd quarter. Kovack Advisors Inc. now owns 13,227 shares of the investment management company’s stock valued at $145,000 after purchasing an additional 2,471 shares during the last quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of John Hancock Hedged Equity & Income Fund by 12.9% in the 4th quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 17,357 shares of the investment management company’s stock valued at $177,000 after purchasing an additional 1,982 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of John Hancock Hedged Equity & Income Fund in the 4th quarter valued at about $224,000. Robinson Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of John Hancock Hedged Equity & Income Fund in the 4th quarter valued at about $309,000. Finally, Blue Bell Private Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of John Hancock Hedged Equity & Income Fund by 113.8% in the 4th quarter. Blue Bell Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 41,649 shares of the investment management company’s stock valued at $425,000 after purchasing an additional 22,171 shares during the last quarter.

John Hancock Hedged Equity & Income Fund Company Profile

John Hancock Hedged Equity & Income Fund is a closed-ended equity mutual fund launched and managed by John Hancock Investment Management LLC. The fund is co-managed by Wellington Management Company LLP. It invests in the public equity markets of the United States. The fund seeks to invest in stocks of companies operating across diversified sectors.