John Hancock Financial Opportunities Fund (NYSE:BTO) Short Interest Update

John Hancock Financial Opportunities Fund (NYSE:BTO) saw a significant growth in short interest in the month of March. As of March 13th, there was short interest totaling 3,596 shares, a growth of 156.7% from the February 26th total of 1,401 shares. Approximately 0.0% of the company’s shares are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 52,840 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 0.1 days.

John Hancock Financial Opportunities Fund Trading Down 1.3%

Shares of NYSE BTO traded down $0.43 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $33.85. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 36,148 shares, compared to its average volume of 56,803. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $36.49 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $35.60. John Hancock Financial Opportunities Fund has a 1 year low of $27.73 and a 1 year high of $39.85.

John Hancock Financial Opportunities Fund Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 12th will be given a $0.65 dividend. This represents a $2.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 7.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 12th.

Institutional Trading of John Hancock Financial Opportunities Fund

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Osaic Holdings Inc. grew its stake in John Hancock Financial Opportunities Fund by 39.2% during the 2nd quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 17,188 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $609,000 after purchasing an additional 4,839 shares in the last quarter. Landscape Capital Management L.L.C. purchased a new position in shares of John Hancock Financial Opportunities Fund in the 4th quarter valued at about $391,000. XTX Topco Ltd purchased a new position in shares of John Hancock Financial Opportunities Fund in the 4th quarter valued at about $272,000. Centaurus Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of John Hancock Financial Opportunities Fund during the third quarter worth about $102,000. Finally, HighTower Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of John Hancock Financial Opportunities Fund by 60.6% during the fourth quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 26,169 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $918,000 after buying an additional 9,875 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 19.55% of the company’s stock.

John Hancock Financial Opportunities Fund Company Profile

John Hancock Financial Opportunities Fund (NYSE: BTO) is a closed-end management investment company sponsored by John Hancock Investment Management, a division of Manulife Investment Management. Since its inception in August 2004, the fund has sought to deliver total return through a combination of current income and capital appreciation. As a publicly traded fund, it offers investors access to a diversified portfolio of financial services companies that might otherwise require direct equity investments or specialized mandates.

The fund primarily invests in common stocks, preferred stocks and convertible securities issued by companies in the banking, insurance, brokerage and specialty finance sectors.