First Trust Nasdaq Oil & Gas ETF (NASDAQ:FTXN) Sees Significant Growth in Short Interest

First Trust Nasdaq Oil & Gas ETF (NASDAQ:FTXN) was the target of a large increase in short interest in August. As of August 14th, there was short interest totaling 49,911 shares, an increase of 994.8% from the July 30th total of 4,559 shares. Approximately 1.1% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 61,305 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 0.8 days.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On First Trust Nasdaq Oil & Gas ETF

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of FTXN. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of First Trust Nasdaq Oil & Gas ETF during the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in First Trust Nasdaq Oil & Gas ETF during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Parallel Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in First Trust Nasdaq Oil & Gas ETF during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,000. NBC Securities Inc. lifted its stake in shares of First Trust Nasdaq Oil & Gas ETF by 20.3% in the 4th quarter. NBC Securities Inc. now owns 2,229 shares of the company’s stock valued at $62,000 after purchasing an additional 376 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Geneos Wealth Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of First Trust Nasdaq Oil & Gas ETF by 2,540.0% in the 1st quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 2,640 shares of the company’s stock worth $102,000 after purchasing an additional 2,540 shares during the period.

First Trust Nasdaq Oil & Gas ETF Price Performance

Shares of First Trust Nasdaq Oil & Gas ETF stock traded down $0.68 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $39.26. 50,237 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 555,815. First Trust Nasdaq Oil & Gas ETF has a 52-week low of $26.46 and a 52-week high of $40.86. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $36.30 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $36.08. The company has a market capitalization of $170.78 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.81 and a beta of 0.47.

First Trust Nasdaq Oil & Gas ETF Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, June 25th were given a dividend of $0.1168 per share. This represents a $0.47 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, June 25th.

First Trust Nasdaq Oil & Gas ETF Company Profile

The First Trust Nasdaq Oil & Gas ETF (FTXN) is an exchange-traded fund that is based on the NASDAQ US Smart Oil & Gas index. The fund tracks an index composed of 50 US oil and gas companies. Holdings are selected by liquidity and weighted based on volatility, value and growth factors. FTXN was launched on Sep 20, 2016 and is managed by First Trust.