Short Interest in First Trust NASDAQ 100 Equal Weighted Index Fund (NASDAQ:QQEW) Drops By 47.5%

First Trust NASDAQ 100 Equal Weighted Index Fund (NASDAQ:QQEW) was the target of a large decline in short interest in the month of March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 62,600 shares, a decline of 47.5% from the February 28th total of 119,200 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 76,200 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 0.8 days. Approximately 0.4% of the company’s stock are sold short.

First Trust NASDAQ 100 Equal Weighted Index Fund Stock Performance

NASDAQ QQEW traded down $2.73 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $121.13. 50,173 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 79,157. First Trust NASDAQ 100 Equal Weighted Index Fund has a one year low of $113.15 and a one year high of $136.19. The company’s 50-day moving average is $128.71 and its two-hundred day moving average is $127.74. The company has a market capitalization of $1.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.58 and a beta of 1.05.

First Trust NASDAQ 100 Equal Weighted Index Fund Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Thursday, March 27th will be issued a dividend of $0.1529 per share. This represents a $0.61 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.50%. This is a positive change from First Trust NASDAQ 100 Equal Weighted Index Fund’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.13. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 27th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On First Trust NASDAQ 100 Equal Weighted Index Fund

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in QQEW. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of First Trust NASDAQ 100 Equal Weighted Index Fund in the 4th quarter valued at about $119,160,000. Independent Advisor Alliance bought a new position in shares of First Trust NASDAQ 100 Equal Weighted Index Fund during the fourth quarter worth about $17,108,000. JP Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in First Trust NASDAQ 100 Equal Weighted Index Fund in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $15,063,000. LPL Financial LLC lifted its stake in First Trust NASDAQ 100 Equal Weighted Index Fund by 12.2% in the 4th quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 856,301 shares of the company’s stock valued at $107,003,000 after acquiring an additional 92,847 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Virtus Wealth Solutions LLC bought a new stake in First Trust NASDAQ 100 Equal Weighted Index Fund in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $11,223,000.

About First Trust NASDAQ 100 Equal Weighted Index Fund

The First Trust NASDAQ-100 Equal Weighted Index Fund (QQEW) is an exchange-traded fund that is based on the NASDAQ-100 Equally Weighted index. The fund tracks an equal-weighted version of the NASDAQ 100. QQEW was launched on Apr 19, 2006 and is managed by First Trust.