First Trust Developed Markets ex-US AlphaDEX Fund (NASDAQ:FDT) Sees Large Growth in Short Interest

Key Points

• Short interest surged 142.7% to 42,240 shares as of April 15, representing about 0.3% of the stock and a days-to-cover ratio of 0.4 based on average volume.
• Shares traded at $93.14 (one-year range $60.10–$97.51) with a market cap of $1.15 billion and a PE of 9.95, and the fund paid a quarterly dividend of $0.3264 on March 31 (annualized $1.31, yield ~1.4%).
• Institutional buying increased notably, led by Janney Montgomery Scott which raised its stake by 547.3% to 256,428 shares (an addition of 216,814 shares), while several other firms also added or initiated positions.

First Trust Developed Markets ex-US AlphaDEX Fund (NASDAQ:FDT - ) was the target of a large increase in short interest in April. As of April 15th, there was short interest totaling 42,240 shares, an increase of 142.7% from the March 31st total of 17,407 shares. Currently, 0.3% of the company's stock are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 111,522 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 0.4 days.

First Trust Developed Markets ex-US AlphaDEX Fund Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:FDT traded up $0.81 on Friday, hitting $93.14. 90,468 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 135,052. The firm's 50-day moving average is $90.85 and its 200 day moving average is $84.20. The company has a market capitalization of $1.15 billion, a PE ratio of 9.95 and a beta of 0.85. First Trust Developed Markets ex-US AlphaDEX Fund has a 1-year low of $60.10 and a 1-year high of $97.51.

First Trust Developed Markets ex-US AlphaDEX Fund Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 26th were given a dividend of $0.3264 per share. This represents a $1.31 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 26th.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in FDT. Flagstar Advisors Inc. boosted its position in shares of First Trust Developed Markets ex-US AlphaDEX Fund by 2.2% in the 1st quarter. Flagstar Advisors Inc. now owns 11,525 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,002,000 after purchasing an additional 253 shares during the period. Patriot Financial Group Insurance Agency LLC purchased a new stake in First Trust Developed Markets ex-US AlphaDEX Fund during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $308,000. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC raised its stake in First Trust Developed Markets ex-US AlphaDEX Fund by 547.3% during the 1st quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 256,428 shares of the company's stock valued at $22,291,000 after acquiring an additional 216,814 shares during the last quarter. Sequent Planning LLC raised its stake in First Trust Developed Markets ex-US AlphaDEX Fund by 24.1% during the 1st quarter. Sequent Planning LLC now owns 3,512 shares of the company's stock valued at $305,000 after acquiring an additional 683 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Topsail Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in First Trust Developed Markets ex-US AlphaDEX Fund by 55.8% during the 1st quarter. Topsail Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,117 shares of the company's stock valued at $97,000 after acquiring an additional 400 shares during the last quarter.

About First Trust Developed Markets ex-US AlphaDEX Fund

The First Trust Developed Markets Ex-US AlphaDEX Fund (FDT) is an exchange-traded fund that is based on the NASDAQ AlphaDEX DM Ex-US index. The fund tracks an index of international, developed-market stocks, selected by growth and value factors and equal-weighted in tiers. FDT was launched on Apr 18, 2011 and is managed by First Trust.

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