John Hancock Preferred Income Fund (NYSE:HPI) Short Interest Down 47.3% in February

John Hancock Preferred Income Fund (NYSE:HPI) was the target of a large decrease in short interest during the month of February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 49,300 shares, a decrease of 47.3% from the February 13th total of 93,600 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 47,500 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 1.0 days.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On John Hancock Preferred Income Fund

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. US Bancorp DE acquired a new position in John Hancock Preferred Income Fund in the 3rd quarter valued at $95,000. SAM Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of John Hancock Preferred Income Fund by 3.4% in the third quarter. SAM Advisors LLC now owns 26,937 shares of the company’s stock worth $510,000 after purchasing an additional 886 shares during the period. Merit Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in John Hancock Preferred Income Fund in the fourth quarter valued at about $175,000. Tandem Financial LLC bought a new stake in John Hancock Preferred Income Fund during the fourth quarter worth about $40,000. Finally, TSP Capital Management Group LLC grew its stake in John Hancock Preferred Income Fund by 2.5% during the fourth quarter. TSP Capital Management Group LLC now owns 130,215 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,165,000 after buying an additional 3,200 shares in the last quarter.

John Hancock Preferred Income Fund Stock Performance

NYSE:HPI traded down $0.05 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $16.45. 54,634 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 43,307. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $17.12 and its 200 day simple moving average is $17.54. John Hancock Preferred Income Fund has a fifty-two week low of $15.26 and a fifty-two week high of $19.43.

John Hancock Preferred Income Fund Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 13th will be given a $0.1235 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 13th. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 9.01%.

John Hancock Preferred Income Fund Company Profile

John Hancock Preferred Income Fund is a closed ended balanced 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 and fixed income markets of the United States. It seeks to invest in securities of companies operating across diversified sectors.