First Trust Dividend Strength ETF (NASDAQ:FTDS) Short Interest Update

First Trust Dividend Strength ETF (NASDAQ:FTDS) was the target of a large increase in short interest in July. As of July 31st, there was short interest totaling 8,283 shares, an increase of 134.6% from the July 15th total of 3,530 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 2,008 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 4.1 days. Approximately 1.4% of the shares of the stock are short sold.

First Trust Dividend Strength ETF Stock Up 0.1%

Shares of NASDAQ:FTDS traded up $0.08 during trading on Friday, reaching $66.47. 457 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,099. First Trust Dividend Strength ETF has a fifty-two week low of $53.43 and a fifty-two week high of $66.47. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $62.70 and a 200-day simple moving average of $61.45. The firm has a market cap of $39.88 million, a PE ratio of 14.53 and a beta of 0.82.

First Trust Dividend Strength ETF Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, June 25th were given a dividend of $0.1928 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, June 25th. This represents a $0.77 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.2%.

Institutional Trading of First Trust Dividend Strength ETF

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Key Client Fiduciary Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of First Trust Dividend Strength ETF during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $230,000. CreativeOne Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in First Trust Dividend Strength ETF in the 3rd quarter valued at $543,000. Susquehanna International Group LLP increased its holdings in First Trust Dividend Strength ETF by 41.0% in the 3rd quarter. Susquehanna International Group LLP now owns 13,222 shares of the company’s stock worth $735,000 after acquiring an additional 3,844 shares in the last quarter. LPL Financial LLC increased its holdings in First Trust Dividend Strength ETF by 5.7% in the 4th quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 138,676 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,834,000 after acquiring an additional 7,495 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. acquired a new position in First Trust Dividend Strength ETF during the fourth quarter worth $169,000.

About First Trust Dividend Strength ETF

The First Trust Dividend Strength ETF (FTDS) is an exchange-traded fund that is based on the The Dividend Strength index. The fund tracks an index of approximately 50 US stocks or REITs considered to be well-capitalized and have a history of increasing their dividends. Holdings are selected based on fundamental criteria and equally-weighted within the portfolio. FTDS was launched on Dec 6, 2006 and is managed by First Trust.