First Trust NASDAQ 100 Technology Index Fund (NASDAQ:QTEC) Short Interest Up 34.0% in March

First Trust NASDAQ 100 Technology Index Fund (NASDAQ:QTEC - Get Free Report) saw a large growth in short interest in the month of March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totalling 888,800 shares, a growth of 34.0% from the March 15th total of 663,500 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 257,600 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 3.5 days. Currently, 4.4% of the company's shares are short sold.

First Trust NASDAQ 100 Technology Index Fund Price Performance

Shares of QTEC stock traded up $7.82 on Thursday, reaching $174.30. 158,535 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 323,322. The company has a 50-day moving average of $178.03 and a 200-day moving average of $189.57. First Trust NASDAQ 100 Technology Index Fund has a one year low of $143.80 and a one year high of $211.25. The company has a market cap of $2.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.16 and a beta of 1.17.

First Trust NASDAQ 100 Technology Index Fund Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 27th were issued a dividend of $0.0083 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 27th. This represents a $0.03 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.02%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On First Trust NASDAQ 100 Technology Index Fund

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Virtu Financial LLC bought a new stake in First Trust NASDAQ 100 Technology Index Fund during the third quarter worth $15,358,000. Tudor Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of First Trust NASDAQ 100 Technology Index Fund during the third quarter valued at about $1,069,000. Sanctuary Advisors LLC boosted its position in First Trust NASDAQ 100 Technology Index Fund by 37.4% during the 3rd quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 2,800 shares of the company's stock valued at $551,000 after buying an additional 762 shares during the period. World Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new position in First Trust NASDAQ 100 Technology Index Fund during the 3rd quarter valued at $3,986,000. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new stake in First Trust NASDAQ 100 Technology Index Fund during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $91,000.

About First Trust NASDAQ 100 Technology Index Fund

The First Trust NASDAQ-100-Technology Sector Index Fund (QTEC) is an exchange-traded fund that is based on the NASDAQ-100 Technology Sector index. The fund tracks an equal-weighted index of the largest Nasdaq-listed US technology stocks. QTEC was launched on Apr 19, 2006 and is managed by First Trust.