John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund (NYSE:PDT) Short Interest Down 31.8% in January

John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund (NYSE:PDT) saw a large drop in short interest in the month of January. As of January 31st, there was short interest totalling 57,600 shares, a drop of 31.8% from the January 15th total of 84,400 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 118,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 0.5 days.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of PDT. Ausdal Financial Partners Inc. lifted its stake in John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. Ausdal Financial Partners Inc. now owns 57,932 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $738,000 after purchasing an additional 983 shares in the last quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC increased its holdings in shares of John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund by 112.3% in the fourth quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 1,923 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 1,017 shares during the last quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC lifted its position in shares of John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 222,209 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $2,831,000 after buying an additional 1,428 shares in the last quarter. Arlington Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund by 15.2% during the fourth quarter. Arlington Capital Management Inc. now owns 14,426 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $184,000 after buying an additional 1,906 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. grew its holdings in John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund by 3.7% during the 4th quarter. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. now owns 147,648 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $1,881,000 after buying an additional 5,328 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 12.98% of the company’s stock.

John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund Stock Down 0.1 %

NYSE PDT traded down $0.01 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $12.95. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 84,864 shares, compared to its average volume of 87,239. John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund has a 1 year low of $10.65 and a 1 year high of $13.55. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $12.69 and its 200-day moving average price is $12.88.

John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 13th will be issued a $0.0825 dividend. This represents a $0.99 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 7.64%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 13th.

John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund Company Profile

John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund is a closed ended equity mutual fund launched and managed by John Hancock Investment Management LLC. It is co-managed by John Hancock Asset Management. The fund invests in the public equity markets of the United States. It seeks to invest in stocks of companies operating across diversified sectors, with an emphasis on the utilities sector.