First Trust Global Tactical Commodity Strategy Fund (NASDAQ:FTGC) Sees Large Increase in Short Interest

Key Points

• Short interest surged 707.3% to 964,856 shares as of October 15, up from 119,512 shares at the end of September. Shorted shares represent about 0.9% of FTGC’s outstanding shares, with a 1.7-day days-to-cover ratio.
• FTGC shares opened at $30.59, near the top of their 12-month range of $22.70 to $31.71. The fund’s 50-day and 200-day moving averages were $30.91 and $28.47, respectively.
• The fund’s quarterly dividend fell to $0.1317 per share from $0.1691, equating to an annualized payout of about $0.53 and a 1.7% yield. Several institutional investors increased their FTGC holdings, including Royal Bank of Canada and Sunbelt Securities.

First Trust Global Tactical Commodity Strategy Fund (NASDAQ:FTGC - ) was the recipient of a large growth in short interest in the month of October. As of October 15th, there was short interest totaling 964,856 shares, a growth of 707.3% from the September 30th total of 119,512 shares. Approximately 0.9% of the company's shares are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 568,620 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 1.7 days.

First Trust Global Tactical Commodity Strategy Fund Stock Performance

Shares of First Trust Global Tactical Commodity Strategy Fund stock opened at $30.59 on Tuesday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $30.91 and a 200 day moving average of $28.47. First Trust Global Tactical Commodity Strategy Fund has a 12 month low of $22.70 and a 12 month high of $31.71.

First Trust Global Tactical Commodity Strategy Fund Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, September 24th were given a dividend of $0.1317 per share. This is a drop from First Trust Global Tactical Commodity Strategy Fund's previous quarterly dividend of $0.1691. This represents a $0.53 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, September 24th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On First Trust Global Tactical Commodity Strategy Fund

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in FTGC. Royal Bank of Canada raised its stake in shares of First Trust Global Tactical Commodity Strategy Fund by 10.4% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 1,567,531 shares of the company's stock valued at $45,003,000 after acquiring an additional 148,098 shares in the last quarter. Centaurus Financial Inc. increased its holdings in First Trust Global Tactical Commodity Strategy Fund by 16.8% during the 1st quarter. Centaurus Financial Inc. now owns 12,013 shares of the company's stock worth $345,000 after purchasing an additional 1,728 shares during the period. Western Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in First Trust Global Tactical Commodity Strategy Fund by 1.5% during the 1st quarter. Western Wealth Management LLC now owns 70,567 shares of the company's stock worth $2,026,000 after purchasing an additional 1,068 shares during the period. Concorde Asset Management LLC raised its position in First Trust Global Tactical Commodity Strategy Fund by 5.4% in the 1st quarter. Concorde Asset Management LLC now owns 28,922 shares of the company's stock valued at $830,000 after purchasing an additional 1,490 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sunbelt Securities Inc. raised its position in First Trust Global Tactical Commodity Strategy Fund by 272.2% in the 1st quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 10,078 shares of the company's stock valued at $289,000 after purchasing an additional 7,370 shares in the last quarter.

About First Trust Global Tactical Commodity Strategy Fund

The First Trust Global Tactical Commodity Strategy Fund (FTGC) is an exchange-traded fund that is based on the Benchmark for FTGC Fund index. The fund is an actively managed fund that, through a subsidiary, provides broad exposure to commodities through futures contracts. The fund is structured as a 1940 Act open-ended fund. FTGC was launched on Oct 23, 2013 and is managed by First Trust.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.