First Trust Nasdaq Oil & Gas ETF (NASDAQ:FTXN) Sees Large Drop in Short Interest

First Trust Nasdaq Oil & Gas ETF (NASDAQ:FTXN) saw a large decline in short interest in the month of March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 3,700 shares, a decline of 77.6% from the February 28th total of 16,500 shares. Approximately 0.1% of the company’s shares are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 44,200 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 0.1 days.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On First Trust Nasdaq Oil & Gas ETF

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in FTXN. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of First Trust Nasdaq Oil & Gas ETF during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $3,655,000. LPL Financial LLC increased its holdings in shares of First Trust Nasdaq Oil & Gas ETF by 13.3% during the 4th quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 506,608 shares of the company’s stock worth $14,565,000 after buying an additional 59,471 shares during the last quarter. Sigma Planning Corp purchased a new stake in First Trust Nasdaq Oil & Gas ETF in the 4th quarter valued at about $1,152,000. Marshall Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in First Trust Nasdaq Oil & Gas ETF in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,036,000. Finally, Cetera Investment Advisers grew its holdings in shares of First Trust Nasdaq Oil & Gas ETF by 31.5% in the fourth quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 133,693 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,844,000 after purchasing an additional 32,029 shares in the last quarter.

First Trust Nasdaq Oil & Gas ETF Stock Down 0.6 %

NASDAQ:FTXN traded down $0.19 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $29.93. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 22,536 shares, compared to its average volume of 46,035. The firm has a market capitalization of $163.12 million, a PE ratio of 12.12 and a beta of 1.44. First Trust Nasdaq Oil & Gas ETF has a 1 year low of $27.24 and a 1 year high of $33.72. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $29.76 and a 200-day moving average of $29.84.

First Trust Nasdaq Oil & Gas ETF Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Thursday, March 27th will be given a dividend of $0.1747 per share. This represents a $0.70 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.33%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 27th.

About First Trust Nasdaq Oil & Gas ETF

The First Trust Nasdaq Oil & Gas ETF (FTXN) is an exchange-traded fund that is based on the NASDAQ US Smart Oil & Gas index. The fund tracks an index composed of 50 US oil and gas companies. Holdings are selected by liquidity and weighted based on volatility, value and growth factors. FTXN was launched on Sep 20, 2016 and is managed by First Trust.