John Hancock Financial Opportunities Fund (NYSE:BTO) Short Interest Update

Key Points

• Short interest plunged 84.5% in August to 947 shares as of August 31, down from 6,127 shares on August 15. Short interest represented 0.0% of shares outstanding, with a 0.0-day short-interest ratio.
• BTO shares recently traded at $38.90, below the 50-day moving average of $40.13 but above the 200-day average of $37.78. The fund announced a quarterly dividend of $0.65 per share, equating to a 6.7% annualized yield.
• Several institutional investors increased their holdings, including Raymond James, Ameriprise Financial, Bank of America, and Osaic Holdings. Institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 19.55% of the fund.

John Hancock Financial Opportunities Fund (NYSE:BTO - Get Free Report) saw a large decline in short interest in the month of August. As of August 31st, there was short interest totaling 947 shares, a decline of 84.5% from the August 15th total of 6,127 shares. Currently, 0.0% of the company's shares are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 33,538 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 0.0 days.

John Hancock Financial Opportunities Fund Price Performance

Shares of BTO stock traded down $0.57 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $38.90. The stock had a trading volume of 34,654 shares, compared to its average volume of 47,875. John Hancock Financial Opportunities Fund has a 12-month low of $32.01 and a 12-month high of $42.00. The firm's 50-day moving average is $40.13 and its two-hundred day moving average is $37.78.

John Hancock Financial Opportunities Fund Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 11th will be given a dividend of $0.65 per share. This represents a $2.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 11th.

Institutional Trading of John Hancock Financial Opportunities Fund

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Raymond James Financial Inc. raised its position in shares of John Hancock Financial Opportunities Fund by 5.3% in the 2nd quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. now owns 558,810 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $19,793,000 after purchasing an additional 28,231 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its holdings in John Hancock Financial Opportunities Fund by 2.5% during the second quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 22,951 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $813,000 after acquiring an additional 552 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE lifted its stake in shares of John Hancock Financial Opportunities Fund by 24.9% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 41,345 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,464,000 after purchasing an additional 8,240 shares during the period. Osaic Holdings Inc. grew its position in shares of John Hancock Financial Opportunities Fund by 39.2% during the 2nd quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 17,188 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $609,000 after acquiring an additional 4,839 shares during the period. Finally, Private Advisor Group LLC increased its stake in shares of John Hancock Financial Opportunities Fund by 5.8% in the 3rd quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 21,336 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $768,000 after purchasing an additional 1,174 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 19.55% of the company's stock.

John Hancock Financial Opportunities Fund Company Profile

John Hancock Financial Opportunities Fund NYSE: BTO is a closed-end management investment company sponsored by John Hancock Investment Management, a division of Manulife Investment Management. Since its inception in August 2004, the fund has sought to deliver total return through a combination of current income and capital appreciation. As a publicly traded fund, it offers investors access to a diversified portfolio of financial services companies that might otherwise require direct equity investments or specialized mandates.

The fund primarily invests in common stocks, preferred stocks and convertible securities issued by companies in the banking, insurance, brokerage and specialty finance sectors.

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