First Trust Senior Loan ETF (NASDAQ:FTSL) Short Interest Up 85.9% in May

First Trust Senior Loan ETF (NASDAQ:FTSL) saw a large growth in short interest during the month of May. As of May 29th, there was short interest totaling 163,146 shares, a growth of 85.9% from the May 14th total of 87,765 shares. Currently, 0.3% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 229,495 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 0.7 days.

First Trust Senior Loan ETF Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:FTSL traded down $0.01 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $44.97. The company had a trading volume of 225,874 shares, compared to its average volume of 318,433. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $45.03 and its 200 day moving average price is $45.32. First Trust Senior Loan ETF has a 52-week low of $44.37 and a 52-week high of $46.19.

First Trust Senior Loan ETF Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a monthly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 29th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 21st were given a dividend of $0.235 per share. This represents a c) dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.3%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 21st.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On First Trust Senior Loan ETF

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Cozad Asset Management Inc. boosted its position in First Trust Senior Loan ETF by 2.0% during the third quarter. Cozad Asset Management Inc. now owns 11,957 shares of the company’s stock worth $548,000 after purchasing an additional 233 shares during the period. Helium Advisors LLC boosted its position in First Trust Senior Loan ETF by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. Helium Advisors LLC now owns 15,360 shares of the company’s stock worth $705,000 after purchasing an additional 238 shares during the period. Integrated Advisors Network LLC boosted its position in First Trust Senior Loan ETF by 0.4% during the third quarter. Integrated Advisors Network LLC now owns 69,505 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,186,000 after purchasing an additional 251 shares during the period. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC boosted its position in First Trust Senior Loan ETF by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 40,887 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,876,000 after purchasing an additional 253 shares during the period. Finally, Strategic Blueprint LLC boosted its position in First Trust Senior Loan ETF by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Strategic Blueprint LLC now owns 17,428 shares of the company’s stock worth $800,000 after purchasing an additional 262 shares during the period.

First Trust Senior Loan ETF Company Profile

The First Trust Senior Loan Fund (FTSL) is an exchange-traded fund that is based on the S&P\u002FLSTA U.S. Leveraged Loan 100 index. The fund holds senior floating rate bank loans from firms around the globe. The actively managed fund can hold up to 20% of assets in non-senior loans, including high-yield bonds and equities. FTSL was launched on May 1, 2013 and is managed by First Trust.