John Hancock Preferred Income Fund (NYSE:HPI) Sees Large Growth in Short Interest

John Hancock Preferred Income Fund (NYSE:HPI) was the target of a significant increase in short interest in December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 17,800 shares, an increase of 9.9% from the December 15th total of 16,200 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 48,700 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 0.4 days.

John Hancock Preferred Income Fund Price Performance

John Hancock Preferred Income Fund stock traded down $0.08 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $17.17. 25,616 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 52,420. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $17.06 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $17.51. John Hancock Preferred Income Fund has a 52-week low of $15.26 and a 52-week high of $19.43.

John Hancock Preferred Income Fund Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 30th will be issued a $0.1235 dividend. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 8.63%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 30th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On John Hancock Preferred Income Fund

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. US Bancorp DE purchased a new position in shares of John Hancock Preferred Income Fund in the 3rd quarter worth about $95,000. Merit Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of John Hancock Preferred Income Fund in the 4th quarter worth about $175,000. SAM Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of John Hancock Preferred Income Fund by 3.4% in the 3rd quarter. SAM Advisors LLC now owns 26,937 shares of the company’s stock worth $510,000 after purchasing an additional 886 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fiera Capital Corp boosted its holdings in shares of John Hancock Preferred Income Fund by 1.5% in the 3rd quarter. Fiera Capital Corp now owns 78,586 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,489,000 after purchasing an additional 1,170 shares in the last quarter.

John Hancock Preferred Income Fund Company Profile

John Hancock Preferred Income Fund is a closed ended balanced 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 and fixed income markets of the United States. It seeks to invest in securities of companies operating across diversified sectors.