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

John Hancock Financial Opportunities Fund (NYSE:BTO) was the target of a significant decline in short interest in February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 6,900 shares, a decline of 52.7% from the February 13th total of 14,600 shares. Approximately 0.0% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 47,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 0.1 days.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in John Hancock Financial Opportunities Fund during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $18,745,000. Cornerstone Advisors LLC raised its position in John Hancock Financial Opportunities Fund by 4.2% during the fourth quarter. Cornerstone Advisors LLC now owns 236,370 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $8,436,000 after purchasing an additional 9,633 shares in the last quarter. LPL Financial LLC increased its holdings in shares of John Hancock Financial Opportunities Fund by 66.8% during the fourth quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 185,773 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $6,630,000 after buying an additional 74,403 shares in the last quarter. FCA Corp TX increased its holdings in shares of John Hancock Financial Opportunities Fund by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. FCA Corp TX now owns 94,630 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,377,000 after buying an additional 638 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Stifel Financial Corp increased its holdings in shares of John Hancock Financial Opportunities Fund by 28.2% during the fourth quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 71,662 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,558,000 after buying an additional 15,744 shares in the last quarter. 19.55% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

John Hancock Financial Opportunities Fund Stock Up 0.9 %

BTO traded up $0.31 during trading on Friday, hitting $32.43. 38,286 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 51,575. John Hancock Financial Opportunities Fund has a twelve month low of $26.11 and a twelve month high of $39.87. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $35.93 and a 200 day moving average price of $35.37.

John Hancock Financial Opportunities Fund Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 13th will be given a dividend of $0.65 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 13th. This represents a $2.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 8.02%.

About John Hancock Financial Opportunities Fund

John Hancock Financial Opportunities 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 across the globe. It seeks to invest in the stocks of companies operating across the financial services sector.