First Trust Senior Floating Rate Income Fund II (NYSE:FCT) Short Interest Up 24.5% in December

First Trust Senior Floating Rate Income Fund II (NYSE:FCT) saw a significant increase in short interest in the month of December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totalling 42,700 shares, an increase of 24.5% from the November 30th total of 34,300 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 112,100 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 0.4 days.

Insider Transactions at First Trust Senior Floating Rate Income Fund II

In other news, insider James A. Bowen sold 3,955 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $10.41, for a total value of $41,171.55. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in FCT. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of First Trust Senior Floating Rate Income Fund II by 11.5% during the second quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC now owns 11,150 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $112,000 after purchasing an additional 1,150 shares during the period. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC increased its stake in First Trust Senior Floating Rate Income Fund II by 17.4% in the 2nd quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 305,460 shares of the investment management company’s stock valued at $3,079,000 after buying an additional 45,163 shares during the last quarter. GraniteShares Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of First Trust Senior Floating Rate Income Fund II by 14.3% in the 2nd quarter. GraniteShares Advisors LLC now owns 195,530 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $1,971,000 after buying an additional 24,390 shares during the last quarter. Wolverine Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of First Trust Senior Floating Rate Income Fund II in the second quarter valued at approximately $79,000. Finally, Shaker Financial Services LLC increased its position in shares of First Trust Senior Floating Rate Income Fund II by 9.8% during the second quarter. Shaker Financial Services LLC now owns 65,165 shares of the investment management company’s stock valued at $657,000 after acquiring an additional 5,822 shares during the last quarter.

First Trust Senior Floating Rate Income Fund II Stock Performance

FCT stock opened at $10.47 on Tuesday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $10.36 and its 200 day simple moving average is $10.30. First Trust Senior Floating Rate Income Fund II has a 12-month low of $9.70 and a 12-month high of $10.93.

First Trust Senior Floating Rate Income Fund II Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, January 2nd will be paid a dividend of $0.097 per share. This represents a $1.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 11.12%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, January 2nd.

About First Trust Senior Floating Rate Income Fund II

First Trust Senior Floating Rate Income Fund II is a closed-ended fixed income mutual fund launched and managed by First Trust Advisors L.P. The fund invests in the fixed income markets of the United States. It seeks to invest in a portfolio of senior secured floating rate corporate loans. The fund benchmarks the performance of its portfolio against the S&P/LSTA Leveraged Loan Index.