Abrdn Japan Equity Fund Inc (NYSE:JEQ) Sees Significant Growth in Short Interest

Abrdn Japan Equity Fund Inc (NYSE:JEQ) was the target of a significant growth in short interest during the month of March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totalling 63,900 shares, a growth of 23.6% from the March 15th total of 51,700 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 79,300 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 0.8 days. Currently, 1.0% of the company’s stock are sold short.

Abrdn Japan Equity Fund Price Performance

JEQ traded up $0.05 during trading on Friday, reaching $6.27. 544,884 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 58,279. Abrdn Japan Equity Fund has a fifty-two week low of $5.27 and a fifty-two week high of $6.77. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $6.16 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $5.96.

Abrdn Japan Equity Fund Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 21st were paid a $0.11 dividend. This represents a $0.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 7.02%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 21st.

Institutional Trading of Abrdn Japan Equity Fund

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Successful Portfolios LLC boosted its holdings in Abrdn Japan Equity Fund by 3.7% during the first quarter. Successful Portfolios LLC now owns 88,467 shares of the company’s stock valued at $575,000 after acquiring an additional 3,189 shares during the period. Saba Capital Management L.P. increased its stake in Abrdn Japan Equity Fund by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Saba Capital Management L.P. now owns 687,081 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,951,000 after acquiring an additional 6,394 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE boosted its stake in Abrdn Japan Equity Fund by 8.0% during the fourth quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 91,050 shares of the company’s stock worth $524,000 after buying an additional 6,724 shares in the last quarter. Blue Bell Private Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Abrdn Japan Equity Fund by 40.7% in the fourth quarter. Blue Bell Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 25,526 shares of the company’s stock valued at $147,000 after acquiring an additional 7,381 shares during the period. Finally, CSS LLC IL bought a new stake in shares of Abrdn Japan Equity Fund in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $60,000. 62.72% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Abrdn Japan Equity Fund

Abrdn Japan Equity Fund Inc is a close ended equity mutual fund launched and managed by Aberdeen Standard Investments (Asia) Limited. It invests in the public equity markets of Japan. The fund invests in stocks of companies operating across diversified sectors. It employs quantitative analysis to build its portfolio.