Virtus Equity & Convertible Income Fund (NYSE:NIE) Shares Shorted: Short Interest Up 172.9% in October

Virtus Equity & Convertible Income Fund (NYSE:NIE) was the recipient of a large growth in short interest during the month of October. As of October 15th, there was short interest totaling 71,053 shares, a growth of 172.9% from the September 30th total of 26,034 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 102,335 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 0.7 days.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Virtus Equity & Convertible Income Fund

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Silverlake Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Virtus Equity & Convertible Income Fund in the 2nd quarter valued at about $219,000. Bay Colony Advisory Group Inc d b a Bay Colony Advisors boosted its stake in shares of Virtus Equity & Convertible Income Fund by 9.3% during the 2nd quarter. Bay Colony Advisory Group Inc d b a Bay Colony Advisors now owns 9,362 shares of the company’s stock worth $251,000 after purchasing an additional 794 shares during the last quarter. OxenFree Capital LLC boosted its stake in shares of Virtus Equity & Convertible Income Fund by 11.6% during the 2nd quarter. OxenFree Capital LLC now owns 72,798 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,912,000 after purchasing an additional 7,574 shares during the last quarter. Royal Bank of Canada grew its holdings in shares of Virtus Equity & Convertible Income Fund by 0.7% during the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 575,167 shares of the company’s stock worth $13,435,000 after buying an additional 4,007 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cetera Investment Advisers grew its holdings in shares of Virtus Equity & Convertible Income Fund by 21.0% during the first quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 30,176 shares of the company’s stock worth $705,000 after buying an additional 5,228 shares in the last quarter.

Virtus Equity & Convertible Income Fund Stock Performance

Shares of Virtus Equity & Convertible Income Fund stock opened at $24.09 on Friday. Virtus Equity & Convertible Income Fund has a 1 year low of $22.78 and a 1 year high of $27.24. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $25.34 and a 200 day moving average price of $25.61.

Virtus Equity & Convertible Income Fund Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 29th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 14th were given a dividend of $0.58 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 14th. This represents a $2.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 9.6%.

Virtus Equity & Convertible Income Fund Company Profile

Virtus Equity & Convertible Income Fund is a closed-end investment fund listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol NIE. The fund seeks to provide investors with current income and long-term capital appreciation through a managed portfolio of equity securities and convertible securities.

The fund invests in common stocks and other equity-related securities, as well as convertible bonds and preferred securities. Convertible investments may provide income while also offering the potential to participate in the appreciation of the underlying company’s common stock.