iShares Core 1-5 Year USD Bond ETF (NASDAQ:ISTB) Sees Large Volume Increase – Still a Buy?

iShares Core 1-5 Year USD Bond ETF (NASDAQ:ISTB) shares saw unusually-strong trading volume on Friday . Approximately 1,448,924 shares changed hands during trading, an increase of 159% from the previous session’s volume of 559,735 shares.The stock last traded at $48.7550 and had previously closed at $48.76.

iShares Core 1-5 Year USD Bond ETF Stock Up 0.0%

The company has a market cap of $4.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.99 and a beta of 0.11. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $48.77 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $48.74.

iShares Core 1-5 Year USD Bond ETF Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a monthly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 24th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 19th were given a dividend of $0.1699 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 19th. This represents a c) dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.2%. This is a boost from iShares Core 1-5 Year USD Bond ETF’s previous monthly dividend of $0.17.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On iShares Core 1-5 Year USD Bond ETF

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of ISTB. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. raised its stake in iShares Core 1-5 Year USD Bond ETF by 1.4% during the third quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 15,426 shares of the company’s stock worth $753,000 after buying an additional 208 shares during the last quarter. Spire Wealth Management grew its holdings in iShares Core 1-5 Year USD Bond ETF by 37.5% during the 4th quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 800 shares of the company’s stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 218 shares during the period. Bfsg LLC raised its position in shares of iShares Core 1-5 Year USD Bond ETF by 7.4% in the 3rd quarter. Bfsg LLC now owns 3,196 shares of the company’s stock worth $156,000 after acquiring an additional 219 shares in the last quarter. Leavell Investment Management Inc. raised its position in shares of iShares Core 1-5 Year USD Bond ETF by 1.6% in the 2nd quarter. Leavell Investment Management Inc. now owns 13,685 shares of the company’s stock worth $666,000 after acquiring an additional 222 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Silverlake Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of iShares Core 1-5 Year USD Bond ETF by 4.7% in the 3rd quarter. Silverlake Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,161 shares of the company’s stock valued at $252,000 after purchasing an additional 231 shares during the period.

About iShares Core 1-5 Year USD Bond ETF

The iShares Core 1-5 Year USD Bond ETF (ISTB) is an exchange-traded fund that mostly invests in broad credit fixed income. The fund tracks a broad USD-denominated bond index with 1-5 years remaining in maturities. ISTB was launched on Oct 18, 2012 and is managed by BlackRock.