John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund (NYSE:PDT) Short Interest Update

John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund (NYSE:PDT – Get Rating) saw a significant drop in short interest during the month of May. As of May 15th, there was short interest totalling 142,600 shares, a drop of 39.0% from the April 30th total of 233,800 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 108,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 1.3 days.

Institutional Trading of John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of PDT. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. increased its position in shares of John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund by 28.0% during the 1st quarter. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. now owns 143,583 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $1,779,000 after purchasing an additional 31,442 shares during the period. Mosaic Family Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund during the fourth quarter worth about $380,000. Advisor Resource Council acquired a new stake in John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund during the first quarter worth about $374,000. Advisor Group Holdings Inc. boosted its holdings in John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund by 12.1% during the fourth quarter. Advisor Group Holdings Inc. now owns 240,492 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $3,111,000 after purchasing an additional 25,891 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bridge Advisory LLC boosted its holdings in John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund by 5.8% during the first quarter. Bridge Advisory LLC now owns 431,283 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $5,344,000 after purchasing an additional 23,781 shares in the last quarter. 5.89% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:PDT opened at $11.10 on Friday. The business has a 50 day moving average of $12.18 and a two-hundred day moving average of $12.90. John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund has a 12-month low of $11.03 and a 12-month high of $16.30.

John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 31st. Investors of record on Thursday, May 11th will be paid a dividend of $0.0975 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 10th. This represents a $1.17 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 10.54%.

About John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund

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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.