John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund (NYSE:PDT) Sees Significant Growth in Short Interest

John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund (NYSE:PDT - Get Free Report) saw a large increase in short interest in May. As of May 31st, there was short interest totalling 74,000 shares, an increase of 141.8% from the May 15th total of 30,600 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 124,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 0.6 days. Approximately 0.2% of the company's shares are short sold.

John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund Price Performance

NYSE:PDT traded down $0.13 on Tuesday, reaching $12.91. The stock had a trading volume of 85,189 shares, compared to its average volume of 116,333. The firm's fifty day moving average is $12.69 and its two-hundred day moving average is $12.72. John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund has a 12-month low of $11.18 and a 12-month high of $13.55.

John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, June 12th will be issued a dividend of $0.0825 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, June 12th. This represents a $0.99 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 7.67%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Cohen & Steers Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund by 23.2% during 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 during the period. Invesco Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund by 6.7% during the 1st quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 671,026 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $8,777,000 after acquiring an additional 42,234 shares during the period. Guggenheim Capital LLC lifted its holdings in shares of John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund by 9.0% during the 4th quarter. Guggenheim Capital LLC now owns 632,437 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $8,057,000 after acquiring an additional 52,065 shares during the period. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund by 3.4% during the 1st quarter. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC now owns 488,573 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $6,391,000 after acquiring an additional 16,005 shares during the period. Finally, LPL Financial LLC lifted its holdings in shares of John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund by 71.1% during the 4th quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 402,034 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $5,122,000 after acquiring an additional 167,125 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.