First Trust Emerging Markets AlphaDEX Fund (NASDAQ:FEM) Shares Shorted: Short Interest Down 54.2% in September

Key Points

• Short interest plunged 54.2% in September to 62,848 shares, representing about 0.3% of FEM’s outstanding shares and only 0.8 days of average trading volume.
• FEM traded at $32.34, with a market capitalization of approximately $803.5 million, a 52-week range of $25.85 to $35.61, and a beta of 0.61.
• The fund raised its quarterly dividend to $0.2849 per share, up from $0.1899, implying an annualized dividend of $1.14 and a 3.5% yield; several institutional investors also increased their holdings.

First Trust Emerging Markets AlphaDEX Fund (NASDAQ:FEM - ) was the target of a large decrease in short interest in September. As of September 15th, there was short interest totaling 62,848 shares, a decrease of 54.2% from the August 31st total of 137,270 shares. Approximately 0.3% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 80,694 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 0.8 days.

First Trust Emerging Markets AlphaDEX Fund Price Performance

FEM stock traded down $0.27 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $32.34. 26,358 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 124,814. First Trust Emerging Markets AlphaDEX Fund has a 52-week low of $25.85 and a 52-week high of $35.61. The company has a market capitalization of $803.52 million, a P/E ratio of 9.20 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $32.41 and a 200-day moving average price of $31.98.

First Trust Emerging Markets AlphaDEX Fund Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, September 24th will be issued a $0.2849 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, September 24th. This is an increase from First Trust Emerging Markets AlphaDEX Fund's previous quarterly dividend of $0.1899. This represents a $1.14 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.5%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On First Trust Emerging Markets AlphaDEX Fund

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. First Trust Advisors LP grew its stake in shares of First Trust Emerging Markets AlphaDEX Fund by 2,581.4% during the first quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 758,297 shares of the company's stock valued at $22,714,000 after buying an additional 730,017 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE lifted its position in shares of First Trust Emerging Markets AlphaDEX Fund by 24.4% in the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 1,303,530 shares of the company's stock worth $39,045,000 after purchasing an additional 255,989 shares during the period. Greenup Street Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of First Trust Emerging Markets AlphaDEX Fund during the first quarter valued at approximately $4,099,000. Gateway Wealth Partners LLC grew its holdings in First Trust Emerging Markets AlphaDEX Fund by 193.4% in the first quarter. Gateway Wealth Partners LLC now owns 155,246 shares of the company's stock worth $4,650,000 after purchasing an additional 102,342 shares during the period. Finally, Assetmark Inc. increased its position in First Trust Emerging Markets AlphaDEX Fund by 41.2% during the 1st quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 321,004 shares of the company's stock valued at $9,615,000 after buying an additional 93,615 shares in the last quarter.

First Trust Emerging Markets AlphaDEX Fund Company Profile

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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