First Trust Emerging Markets AlphaDEX Fund (NASDAQ:FEM) Short Interest Update

Key Points

• Short interest surged 126.9% to 74,415 shares as of July 15, up from 32,802 shares on June 30. Short interest represents 0.3% of FEM’s shares, with a 0.6-day short-interest ratio.
• FEM shares fell 1.7% to $30.54, while the fund’s market capitalization stood at approximately $733 million. The stock has traded between $24.69 and $35.61 over the past year.
• The fund increased its quarterly dividend to $0.1899 per share, equivalent to approximately $0.76 annually and a 2.5% yield.

First Trust Emerging Markets AlphaDEX Fund (NASDAQ:FEM - ) was the recipient of a large growth in short interest in the month of July. As of July 15th, there was short interest totaling 74,415 shares, a growth of 126.9% from the June 30th total of 32,802 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 125,117 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 0.6 days. Currently, 0.3% of the company's stock are sold short.

First Trust Emerging Markets AlphaDEX Fund Stock Down 1.7%

Shares of NASDAQ:FEM traded down $0.53 on Tuesday, hitting $30.54. 9,851 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 136,337. The company has a market cap of $732.96 million, a PE ratio of 9.20 and a beta of 0.60. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $31.96 and a 200-day simple moving average of $31.17. First Trust Emerging Markets AlphaDEX Fund has a 52 week low of $24.69 and a 52 week high of $35.61.

First Trust Emerging Markets AlphaDEX Fund Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Investors of record on Thursday, June 25th were given a dividend of $0.1899 per share. This represents a $0.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.5%. This is a boost from First Trust Emerging Markets AlphaDEX Fund's previous quarterly dividend of $0.03. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, June 25th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On First Trust Emerging Markets AlphaDEX Fund

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Signature Equity Partners LLC raised its position in shares of First Trust Emerging Markets AlphaDEX Fund by 64.0% during the 1st quarter. Signature Equity Partners LLC now owns 894 shares of the company's stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 349 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its position in First Trust Emerging Markets AlphaDEX Fund by 371.9% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 939 shares of the company's stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 740 shares during the last quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC bought a new position in shares of First Trust Emerging Markets AlphaDEX Fund in the 4th quarter valued at about $45,000. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of First Trust Emerging Markets AlphaDEX Fund by 26.8% in the 2nd quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 1,930 shares of the company's stock worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 408 shares during the period. Finally, Parallel Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of First Trust Emerging Markets AlphaDEX Fund in the 1st quarter worth about $59,000.

About First Trust Emerging Markets AlphaDEX Fund

The First Trust Emerging Markets AlphaDEX Fund (FEM) is an exchange-traded fund that is based on the NASDAQ AlphaDEX EM index. The fund tracks an index of emerging markets companies selected using a quantitative methodology and weighted in tiers. FEM was launched on Apr 18, 2011 and is managed by First Trust.

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