John Hancock Financial Opportunities Fund (NYSE:BTO) Short Interest Up 5.1% in December

John Hancock Financial Opportunities Fund (NYSE:BTO) saw a significant growth in short interest in December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totalling 20,500 shares, a growth of 5.1% from the November 30th total of 19,500 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 43,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 0.5 days.

Institutional Trading of John Hancock Financial Opportunities Fund

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of BTO. HighTower Advisors LLC acquired a new position in John Hancock Financial Opportunities Fund in the third quarter valued at $511,000. L.M. Kohn & Company increased its position in John Hancock Financial Opportunities Fund by 3.5% in the 3rd quarter. L.M. Kohn & Company now owns 12,691 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $421,000 after acquiring an additional 425 shares during the period. Cornerstone Advisors LLC raised its stake in John Hancock Financial Opportunities Fund by 132.9% during the 3rd quarter. Cornerstone Advisors LLC now owns 226,737 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $7,519,000 after acquiring an additional 129,371 shares during the last quarter. Shaker Financial Services LLC lifted its position in John Hancock Financial Opportunities Fund by 46.1% during the 3rd quarter. Shaker Financial Services LLC now owns 59,654 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,978,000 after acquiring an additional 18,814 shares during the period. Finally, Stephens Inc. AR grew its stake in shares of John Hancock Financial Opportunities Fund by 288.4% in the 3rd quarter. Stephens Inc. AR now owns 44,757 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,484,000 after purchasing an additional 33,233 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 19.55% of the company’s stock.

John Hancock Financial Opportunities Fund Stock Performance

NYSE:BTO opened at $35.32 on Friday. John Hancock Financial Opportunities Fund has a 52-week low of $26.11 and a 52-week high of $39.87. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $36.81 and its 200 day moving average price is $33.29.

John Hancock Financial Opportunities Fund Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, December 12th were issued a $0.65 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, December 12th. This represents a $2.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 7.36%.

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.