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

John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund (NYSE:PDT) saw a large growth in short interest in July. As of July 15th, there was short interest totaling 45,904 shares, a growth of 769.2% from the June 30th total of 5,281 shares. Currently, 0.1% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 111,216 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 0.4 days.

Institutional Trading of John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. SHP Wealth Management purchased a new stake in John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund during the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. Advisory Services Network LLC purchased a new position in shares of John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund in the third quarter worth about $35,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. raised its stake in shares of John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund by 43.2% in the third quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 2,864 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 864 shares during the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund by 36.4% during the third quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 3,328 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $44,000 after purchasing an additional 889 shares during the period. Finally, Ameriflex Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund by 324.6% during the fourth quarter. Ameriflex Group Inc. now owns 4,246 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $54,000 after purchasing an additional 3,246 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 12.98% of the company’s stock.

John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund Price Performance

NYSE:PDT opened at $12.90 on Friday. John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund has a twelve month low of $12.53 and a twelve month high of $13.65. The company’s 50 day moving average is $12.86 and its two-hundred day moving average is $13.03.

John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 31st. Investors of record on Monday, July 13th will be paid a $0.0883 dividend. This is a positive change from John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund’s previous monthly dividend of $0.08. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 13th. This represents a c) dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 8.2%.

About John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund

The John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund (NYSE:PDT) is a publicly traded, closed-end management investment company designed to deliver high current income and potential capital growth. The fund’s core strategy centers on dividend-paying and income-producing securities, combining equity and fixed-income instruments to achieve a balanced risk-return profile.

Managed by John Hancock Investment Management (US) LLC, a subsidiary of Manulife Financial Corporation, the fund primarily allocates assets to dividend-paying common stocks and preferred stocks of U.S.