Virtus Total Return Fund Inc. (NYSE:ZTR) Short Interest Up 201.9% in July

Virtus Total Return Fund Inc. (NYSE:ZTR) saw a significant growth in short interest during the month of July. As of July 15th, there was short interest totaling 209,690 shares, a growth of 201.9% from the June 30th total of 69,453 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 188,033 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.1 days. Currently, 0.4% of the company’s stock are sold short.

Virtus Total Return Fund Price Performance

ZTR traded down $0.01 during trading on Monday, hitting $6.79. The stock had a trading volume of 93,913 shares, compared to its average volume of 186,655. Virtus Total Return Fund has a twelve month low of $6.14 and a twelve month high of $7.11. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $6.76 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $6.72.

Virtus Total Return Fund Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 28th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 13th will be paid a dividend of $0.055 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 13th. This represents a c) dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 9.7%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Virtus Total Return Fund

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of ZTR. Saba Capital Management L.P. purchased a new position in shares of Virtus Total Return Fund during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $7,512,000. Advisors Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Virtus Total Return Fund during the 4th quarter valued at about $822,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC grew its position in shares of Virtus Total Return Fund by 99.8% in the first quarter. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC now owns 226,800 shares of the investment management company’s stock valued at $1,501,000 after purchasing an additional 113,300 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE increased its stake in shares of Virtus Total Return Fund by 33.9% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 338,441 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $2,108,000 after acquiring an additional 85,767 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Oxford Asset Management LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Virtus Total Return Fund in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $415,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 47.14% of the company’s stock.

About Virtus Total Return Fund

Virtus Total Return Fund, Inc (NYSE: ZTR) is a closed-end management investment company that seeks to provide investors with high total return with moderate income. The fund, which began operations in 2005, trades on the New York Stock Exchange and is sponsored by Virtus Investment Partners. ZTR offers investors access to a diversified mix of fixed-income and equity opportunities within a single vehicle.

To pursue its stated objective, the fund typically allocates across a broad range of asset classes, including corporate debt securities, high-yield bonds, convertible securities, preferred stocks, common stocks and real estate investment trusts (REITs).