John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund (NYSE:PDT) Short Interest Up 72.3% in December

John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund (NYSE:PDT) was the recipient of a significant increase in short interest during the month of December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 62,200 shares, an increase of 72.3% from the December 15th total of 36,100 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 123,400 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 0.5 days.

John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund Trading Up 1.8 %

PDT traded up $0.23 on Wednesday, reaching $12.72. 119,757 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 107,306. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $12.75 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $12.72. John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund has a one year low of $10.41 and a one year high of $13.55.

John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 31st. Investors of record on Monday, January 13th will be issued a $0.0825 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, January 13th. This represents a $0.99 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 7.78%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV bought a new position in shares of John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund during the 2nd quarter worth $164,000. HighTower Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund in the third quarter worth about $212,000. EP Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund during the 3rd quarter worth about $229,000. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. increased its position in 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 purchasing an additional 1,221 shares during the period. Finally, Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC bought a new stake in shares of John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund in the 3rd quarter valued at about $291,000. Institutional investors own 12.98% of the company’s stock.

John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund Company Profile

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.