John Hancock Hedged Equity & Income Fund (NYSE:HEQ) Sees Large Increase in Short Interest

John Hancock Hedged Equity & Income Fund (NYSE:HEQ) was the target of a large growth in short interest in December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totalling 18,500 shares, a growth of 40.2% from the November 30th total of 13,200 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 24,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 0.8 days.

John Hancock Hedged Equity & Income Fund Stock Performance

Shares of HEQ stock traded down $0.09 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $10.25. 44,873 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 32,564. John Hancock Hedged Equity & Income Fund has a 12-month low of $9.57 and a 12-month high of $11.12. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $10.77 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $10.66.

John Hancock Hedged Equity & Income Fund Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, December 12th will be paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 9.76%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, December 12th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On John Hancock Hedged Equity & Income Fund

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC increased its stake in shares of John Hancock Hedged Equity & Income Fund by 1.7% during the 2nd quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 138,969 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $1,444,000 after purchasing an additional 2,358 shares in the last quarter. Logan Stone Capital LLC grew its holdings in shares of John Hancock Hedged Equity & Income Fund by 8.5% during the second quarter. Logan Stone Capital LLC now owns 68,435 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $711,000 after buying an additional 5,335 shares in the last quarter. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in shares of John Hancock Hedged Equity & Income Fund by 9.1% during the second quarter. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 48,914 shares of the investment management company’s stock valued at $508,000 after buying an additional 4,078 shares during the period. Finally, Kovack Advisors Inc. grew its stake in John Hancock Hedged Equity & Income Fund by 23.0% in the 3rd quarter. Kovack Advisors Inc. now owns 13,227 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $145,000 after acquiring an additional 2,471 shares during the period.

About John Hancock Hedged Equity & Income Fund

John Hancock Hedged Equity & Income Fund is a closed-ended equity mutual fund launched and managed by John Hancock Investment Management LLC. The fund is co-managed by Wellington Management Company LLP. It invests in the public equity markets of the United States. The fund seeks to invest in stocks of companies operating across diversified sectors.