Short Interest in John Hancock Financial Opportunities Fund (NYSE:BTO) Declines By 31.2%

John Hancock Financial Opportunities Fund (NYSE:BTO) was the target of a large drop in short interest in the month of October. As of October 15th, there was short interest totalling 6,400 shares, a drop of 31.2% from the September 30th total of 9,300 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 50,100 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 0.1 days.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Aurora Investment Counsel increased its stake in shares of John Hancock Financial Opportunities Fund by 0.5% in the 2nd quarter. Aurora Investment Counsel now owns 89,279 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,501,000 after purchasing an additional 429 shares in the last quarter. Wedbush Securities Inc. increased its position in shares of John Hancock Financial Opportunities Fund by 8.7% in the second quarter. Wedbush Securities Inc. now owns 8,738 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $245,000 after buying an additional 700 shares in the last quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. raised its stake in shares of John Hancock Financial Opportunities Fund by 3.3% during the 1st quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 26,337 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $779,000 after buying an additional 831 shares during the period. Private Advisor Group LLC lifted its position in shares of John Hancock Financial Opportunities Fund by 7.8% during the 3rd quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 13,978 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $464,000 after buying an additional 1,015 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Commonwealth Equity Services LLC grew its stake in John Hancock Financial Opportunities Fund by 5.7% in the 2nd quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 19,817 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $555,000 after acquiring an additional 1,068 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 19.55% of the company’s stock.

John Hancock Financial Opportunities Fund Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:BTO traded down $0.35 during trading on Friday, hitting $33.38. 29,652 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 54,021. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $32.91 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $30.26. John Hancock Financial Opportunities Fund has a 52-week low of $22.96 and a 52-week high of $34.85.

John Hancock Financial Opportunities Fund Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 13th were issued a $0.65 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 13th. This represents a $2.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 7.79%.

John Hancock Financial Opportunities Fund Company Profile

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.