John Hancock Income Securities Trust (NYSE:JHS) Short Interest Update

John Hancock Income Securities Trust (NYSE:JHS) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest during the month of December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 2,500 shares, an increase of 66.7% from the December 15th total of 1,500 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 13,100 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 0.2 days.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On John Hancock Income Securities Trust

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in JHS. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in John Hancock Income Securities Trust by 11.2% during the fourth quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. now owns 194,969 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,183,000 after buying an additional 19,675 shares during the last quarter. Huntington National Bank lifted its holdings in John Hancock Income Securities Trust by 135.2% during the third quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 5,470 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $64,000 after purchasing an additional 3,144 shares during the last quarter. Fiera Capital Corp increased its stake in shares of John Hancock Income Securities Trust by 2.7% in the third quarter. Fiera Capital Corp now owns 70,009 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $814,000 after purchasing an additional 1,836 shares in the last quarter. Shaker Financial Services LLC increased its stake in shares of John Hancock Income Securities Trust by 33.0% in the third quarter. Shaker Financial Services LLC now owns 57,330 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $666,000 after purchasing an additional 14,217 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Petra Financial Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of John Hancock Income Securities Trust in the third quarter valued at approximately $129,000.

John Hancock Income Securities Trust Price Performance

Shares of NYSE JHS traded up $0.05 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $11.22. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,110 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,437. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $11.37 and a 200-day moving average price of $11.43. John Hancock Income Securities Trust has a 12-month low of $10.68 and a 12-month high of $11.87.

John Hancock Income Securities Trust Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, December 12th were given a $0.2017 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, December 12th. This represents a $0.81 annualized dividend and a yield of 7.19%.

About John Hancock Income Securities Trust

John Hancock Income Securities Trust is a closed ended fixed income 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 fixed income markets of United States. It invests primarily in corporate and government bonds with average maturity of 7.57 years.