Western Asset Emerging Markets Debt Fund Inc. (NYSE:EMD) Short Interest Up 60.1% in February

Western Asset Emerging Markets Debt Fund Inc. (NYSE:EMD) was the recipient of a significant increase in short interest in February. As of February 13th, there was short interest totaling 148,459 shares, an increase of 60.1% from the January 29th total of 92,757 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 242,142 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 0.6 days. Approximately 0.5% of the company’s shares are short sold. Approximately 0.5% of the company’s shares are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 242,142 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 0.6 days.

Institutional Trading of Western Asset Emerging Markets Debt Fund

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. NewEdge Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Western Asset Emerging Markets Debt Fund by 1.6% in the first quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 92,651 shares of the company’s stock valued at $916,000 after acquiring an additional 1,464 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Western Asset Emerging Markets Debt Fund by 2.2% during the 2nd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 47,194 shares of the company’s stock worth $474,000 after purchasing an additional 1,018 shares during the period. Gould Asset Management LLC CA grew its holdings in shares of Western Asset Emerging Markets Debt Fund by 7.8% during the 2nd quarter. Gould Asset Management LLC CA now owns 46,035 shares of the company’s stock worth $463,000 after purchasing an additional 3,350 shares during the period. Wedbush Securities Inc. increased its position in shares of Western Asset Emerging Markets Debt Fund by 4.6% during the 2nd quarter. Wedbush Securities Inc. now owns 22,725 shares of the company’s stock worth $228,000 after purchasing an additional 1,000 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Penserra Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Western Asset Emerging Markets Debt Fund by 3.0% during the 2nd quarter. Penserra Capital Management LLC now owns 517,743 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,203,000 after purchasing an additional 15,283 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 33.05% of the company’s stock.

Western Asset Emerging Markets Debt Fund Stock Up 0.5%

NYSE:EMD traded up $0.06 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $11.02. The company had a trading volume of 229,728 shares, compared to its average volume of 245,060. Western Asset Emerging Markets Debt Fund has a 1 year low of $8.56 and a 1 year high of $11.30. The company has a 50-day moving average of $10.92 and a 200 day moving average of $10.61.

Western Asset Emerging Markets Debt Fund Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 29th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 21st will be paid a dividend of $0.095 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 21st. This represents a c) dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 10.3%.

Western Asset Emerging Markets Debt Fund Company Profile

Western Asset Emerging Markets Debt Fund Inc (NYSE: EMD) is a closed-end management investment company launched in December 2004 and managed by Western Asset Management Company, a global fixed-income specialist. The fund seeks to provide a high level of current income by investing primarily in debt securities issued by sovereign, quasi-sovereign and corporate issuers in emerging markets. Its diversified approach combines top-down macroeconomic analysis with bottom-up credit research to identify attractive risk-adjusted opportunities across developing economies.

EMD’s portfolio spans a wide range of instruments, including sovereign government bonds, supranational obligations, corporate credits and other fixed-income securities.