First Trust Nasdaq Food & Beverage ETF (NASDAQ:FTXG) Sees Significant Decrease in Short Interest
by Doug Wharley · The Cerbat GemFirst Trust Nasdaq Food & Beverage ETF (NASDAQ:FTXG – Get Free Report) saw a significant decline in short interest in December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totaling 17,675 shares, a decline of 19.0% from the November 30th total of 21,812 shares. Currently, 2.1% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 14,237 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 1.2 days. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 14,237 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 1.2 days. Currently, 2.1% of the shares of the stock are short sold.
First Trust Nasdaq Food & Beverage ETF Stock Performance
Shares of NASDAQ:FTXG traded down $0.14 on Thursday, reaching $20.94. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 22,900 shares, compared to its average volume of 28,947. The company has a market cap of $17.80 million, a P/E ratio of 15.14 and a beta of 0.42. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $21.28 and a 200 day simple moving average of $21.86. First Trust Nasdaq Food & Beverage ETF has a 52-week low of $20.55 and a 52-week high of $24.66.
First Trust Nasdaq Food & Beverage ETF Increases Dividend
The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 12th were paid a $0.195 dividend. This is an increase from First Trust Nasdaq Food & Beverage ETF’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.16. This represents a $0.78 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 12th.
Hedge Funds Weigh In On First Trust Nasdaq Food & Beverage ETF
Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Citadel Advisors LLC grew its holdings in First Trust Nasdaq Food & Beverage ETF by 2.6% during the 3rd quarter. Citadel Advisors LLC now owns 35,284 shares of the company’s stock valued at $756,000 after purchasing an additional 885 shares during the last quarter. UBS Group AG purchased a new position in shares of First Trust Nasdaq Food & Beverage ETF during the third quarter valued at approximately $1,000,000. Wakefield Asset Management LLLP grew its stake in shares of First Trust Nasdaq Food & Beverage ETF by 3.7% during the third quarter. Wakefield Asset Management LLLP now owns 42,790 shares of the company’s stock valued at $917,000 after buying an additional 1,511 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of First Trust Nasdaq Food & Beverage ETF during the second quarter valued at approximately $147,000. Finally, Journey Advisory Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of First Trust Nasdaq Food & Beverage ETF in the second quarter worth approximately $2,587,000.
First Trust Nasdaq Food & Beverage ETF Company Profile
The First Trust Nasdaq Food & Beverage ETF (FTXG) is an exchange-traded fund that is based on the Nasdaq US Smart Food & Beverage index. The fund follows a liquidity-selected, multi-factor-weighted index of US food & beverage companies. FTXG was launched on Sep 20, 2016 and is managed by First Trust.