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

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

John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund Stock Performance

Shares of PDT traded down $0.01 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 12-month low of $10.65 and a 12-month high of $13.55. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $12.69 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $12.88.

John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund Announces Dividend

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Guggenheim Capital LLC grew its holdings in John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund by 9.0% during the fourth quarter. Guggenheim Capital LLC now owns 632,437 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $8,057,000 after purchasing an additional 52,065 shares during the period. Walleye Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $535,000. Cohen & Steers Inc. increased its holdings in John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund by 23.2% in the 4th quarter. Cohen & Steers Inc. now owns 773,593 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $9,856,000 after acquiring an additional 145,500 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund in the 4th quarter worth approximately $425,000. Finally, Invesco Ltd. raised its stake in John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund by 31.6% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 628,792 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $8,011,000 after acquiring an additional 150,909 shares during the period. 12.98% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.