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

John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund (NYSE:PDT) was the target of a large decline in short interest in the month of November. As of November 30th, there was short interest totalling 22,800 shares, a decline of 18.0% from the November 15th total of 27,800 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 110,200 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 0.2 days.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV bought a new stake in shares of John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund during the 2nd quarter valued at $164,000. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. grew its position in shares of John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund by 7.3% during the 2nd quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. now owns 17,921 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $211,000 after acquiring an additional 1,221 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund during the 3rd quarter valued at $212,000. EP Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund during the 3rd quarter valued at $229,000. Finally, Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC bought a new position in John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund in the 3rd quarter worth $291,000. Institutional investors own 12.98% of the company’s stock.

John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund Trading Up 0.2 %

Shares of PDT stock traded up $0.02 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $12.61. 135,570 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 118,185. John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund has a 12 month low of $10.41 and a 12 month high of $13.55. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $13.01 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $12.53.

John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, December 12th will be given a dividend of $0.0825 per share. This represents a $0.99 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 7.85%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, December 12th.

About John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund

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.