Liberty All-Star Equity Fund (NYSE:USA) Short Interest Up 1,097.9% in March

Liberty All-Star Equity Fund (NYSE:USA) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest in the month of March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 224,000 shares, an increase of 1,097.9% from the February 29th total of 18,700 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 872,800 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 0.3 days.

Liberty All-Star Equity Fund Trading Up 0.3 %

NYSE:USA traded up $0.02 on Thursday, hitting $7.15. The stock had a trading volume of 281,770 shares, compared to its average volume of 866,498. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $6.72 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $6.33. Liberty All-Star Equity Fund has a 1 year low of $5.62 and a 1 year high of $7.16.

Liberty All-Star Equity Fund Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 4th. Investors of record on Friday, January 19th were issued a dividend of $0.17 per share. This is a boost from Liberty All-Star Equity Fund’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, January 18th. This represents a $0.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 9.51%.

Insider Activity

In other Liberty All-Star Equity Fund news, insider Edmund J. Burke bought 4,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 26th. The shares were bought at an average price of $7.09 per share, for a total transaction of $28,360.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 6,500 shares in the company, valued at $46,085. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Liberty All-Star Equity Fund

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Morgan Stanley lifted its stake in Liberty All-Star Equity Fund by 0.8% during the third quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 3,687,922 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $21,833,000 after purchasing an additional 28,639 shares during the last quarter. LPL Financial LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Liberty All-Star Equity Fund by 7.7% in the 3rd quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 2,326,700 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $13,774,000 after acquiring an additional 166,860 shares during the last quarter. Royal Bank of Canada lifted its holdings in Liberty All-Star Equity Fund by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 1,676,272 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $10,695,000 after buying an additional 4,555 shares during the period. Bensler LLC grew its position in shares of Liberty All-Star Equity Fund by 7.9% in the 4th quarter. Bensler LLC now owns 1,399,707 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $8,930,000 after buying an additional 102,438 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its holdings in Liberty All-Star Equity Fund by 11.9% in the third quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 1,015,557 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $6,014,000 after acquiring an additional 108,094 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 9.95% of the company’s stock.

About Liberty All-Star Equity Fund

Liberty All Star Equity Fund is a closed-ended equity mutual fund launched and managed by ALPS Advisers, Inc The fund is co-managed by Aristotle Capital Management, LLC, Pzena Investment Management, LLC, Delaware Investments Fund Advisers, Sustainable Growth Advisers, LP, and TCW Investment Management Company.