First Trust Specialty Finance and Financial Opportunities Fund (NYSE:FGB) Short Interest Update

First Trust Specialty Finance and Financial Opportunities Fund (NYSE:FGB – Get Rating) was the target of a large growth in short interest during the month of March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 28,000 shares, a growth of 66.7% from the February 28th total of 16,800 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 59,900 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 0.5 days.

FGB traded up $0.02 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $4.14. The stock had a trading volume of 7,636 shares, compared to its average volume of 55,466. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $4.03 and a 200-day moving average price of $4.06. First Trust Specialty Finance and Financial Opportunities Fund has a one year low of $3.66 and a one year high of $4.39.

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 28th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 23rd were given a dividend of $0.083 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 22nd. This represents a $0.33 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 8.02%.

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. LPL Financial LLC raised its holdings in shares of First Trust Specialty Finance and Financial Opportunities Fund by 10.8% during the 4th quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 275,310 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $1,126,000 after buying an additional 26,759 shares in the last quarter. Nova R Wealth Inc. acquired a new position in First Trust Specialty Finance and Financial Opportunities Fund in the 4th quarter worth about $638,000. Royal Bank of Canada increased its stake in shares of First Trust Specialty Finance and Financial Opportunities Fund by 9.6% in the second quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 132,382 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $535,000 after buying an additional 11,541 shares during the period. Shaker Financial Services LLC increased its stake in shares of First Trust Specialty Finance and Financial Opportunities Fund by 91.0% in the third quarter. Shaker Financial Services LLC now owns 116,118 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $461,000 after buying an additional 55,337 shares during the period. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted its position in shares of First Trust Specialty Finance and Financial Opportunities Fund by 5.5% during the 3rd quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 112,907 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $449,000 after purchasing an additional 5,866 shares in the last quarter.

About First Trust Specialty Finance and Financial Opportunities Fund (Get Rating)

First Trust Specialty Finance and Financial Opportunities Fund is a closed-ended equity mutual fund launched and managed by First Trust Advisors L.P. It is co-managed by Confluence Investment Management LLC. The fund invests in the public equity markets of the United States. It seeks to invest in stocks of companies operating in the specialty finance and other financial sectors.

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