Short Interest in First Trust Emerging Markets Small Cap AlphaDEX Fund (NASDAQ:FEMS) Drops By 33.2%

Key Points

• Short interest in the First Trust Emerging Markets Small Cap AlphaDEX Fund (FEMS) fell by 33.2% in July, reducing the total to 18,900 shares.
• The fund has recently increased its quarterly dividend to $0.5218, resulting in an annualized yield of 4.9%.
• Institutional investors have noticeably increased their holdings, with some firms growing their stakes by over 100% in the second quarter.

First Trust Emerging Markets Small Cap AlphaDEX Fund (NASDAQ:FEMS - ) was the target of a large decline in short interest in the month of July. As of July 31st, there was short interest totaling 18,900 shares, adeclineof33.2% from the July 15th total of 28,300 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 26,800 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 0.7 days. Approximately0.3% of the company's stock are sold short. Approximately0.3% of the company's stock are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 26,800 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 0.7 days.

First Trust Emerging Markets Small Cap AlphaDEX Fund Stock Performance

Shares of FEMS opened at $42.94 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $41.21 and a 200 day simple moving average of $38.84. First Trust Emerging Markets Small Cap AlphaDEX Fund has a 52-week low of $32.31 and a 52-week high of $43.28. The firm has a market capitalization of $274.82 million, a PE ratio of 8.10 and a beta of 0.92.

First Trust Emerging Markets Small Cap AlphaDEX Fund Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 30th. Investors of record on Thursday, June 26th were given a $0.5218 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, June 26th. This represents a $2.09 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.9%. This is a boost from First Trust Emerging Markets Small Cap AlphaDEX Fund's previous quarterly dividend of $0.09.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On First Trust Emerging Markets Small Cap AlphaDEX Fund

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of First Trust Emerging Markets Small Cap AlphaDEX Fund by 100.0% during the second quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 1,066 shares of the exchange traded fund's stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 533 shares in the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of First Trust Emerging Markets Small Cap AlphaDEX Fund by 21.8% during the second quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 31,172 shares of the exchange traded fund's stock worth $1,266,000 after buying an additional 5,576 shares in the last quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of First Trust Emerging Markets Small Cap AlphaDEX Fund by 2.5% during the second quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 30,783 shares of the exchange traded fund's stock worth $1,250,000 after buying an additional 739 shares in the last quarter. Richmond Investment Services LLC grew its holdings in shares of First Trust Emerging Markets Small Cap AlphaDEX Fund by 100.3% during the second quarter. Richmond Investment Services LLC now owns 10,864 shares of the exchange traded fund's stock worth $441,000 after buying an additional 5,440 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of First Trust Emerging Markets Small Cap AlphaDEX Fund by 7.6% during the second quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 83,237 shares of the exchange traded fund's stock worth $3,380,000 after buying an additional 5,914 shares in the last quarter.

First Trust Emerging Markets Small Cap AlphaDEX Fund Company Profile

The First Trust Emerging Markets Small Cap AlphaDEX Fund (FEMS) is an exchange-traded fund that is based on the NASDAQ AlphaDEX EM Small Cap index. The fund aims to outperform other index funds by selecting small-cap emerging markets securities using quantitative metrics. FEMS was launched on Feb 15, 2012 and is managed by First Trust.

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