Special Opportunities Fund, Inc. (NYSE:SPE) Sees Significant Decline in Short Interest

Special Opportunities Fund, Inc. (NYSE:SPE) was the recipient of a large decrease in short interest during the month of March. As of March 13th, there was short interest totaling 39,936 shares, a decrease of 18.0% from the February 26th total of 48,688 shares. Approximately 0.4% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 64,153 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 0.6 days.

Special Opportunities Fund Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE SPE traded up $0.09 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $13.85. 11,741 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 47,324. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $14.57 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $15.02. Special Opportunities Fund has a 52-week low of $12.72 and a 52-week high of $15.98.

Special Opportunities Fund Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a monthly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 17th were paid a dividend of $0.1087 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 17th. This represents a c) annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 9.4%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Special Opportunities Fund

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. First Manhattan CO. LLC. boosted its stake in shares of Special Opportunities Fund by 27.0% in the 4th quarter. First Manhattan CO. LLC. now owns 40,010 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $620,000 after purchasing an additional 8,500 shares in the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers raised its position in Special Opportunities Fund by 19.4% in the 4th quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 38,001 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $558,000 after purchasing an additional 6,175 shares during the period. NBC Securities Inc. lifted its stake in Special Opportunities Fund by 21.8% in the fourth quarter. NBC Securities Inc. now owns 19,770 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $290,000 after purchasing an additional 3,539 shares during the last quarter. Scotia Capital Inc. lifted its stake in Special Opportunities Fund by 1.2% in the third quarter. Scotia Capital Inc. now owns 107,016 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $1,659,000 after purchasing an additional 1,270 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MAI Capital Management boosted its position in Special Opportunities Fund by 38.6% during the third quarter. MAI Capital Management now owns 5,203 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $81,000 after buying an additional 1,450 shares during the period. 35.60% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Special Opportunities Fund Company Profile

Special Opportunities Fund (NYSE: SPE) is a closed-end management investment company that seeks to deliver attractive total return by investing across corporate capital structures. The fund primarily allocates capital to debt and equity securities of both public and private issuers, with a focus on special situations, distressed credits and event-driven opportunities.

The fund’s flexible, multi-asset strategy allows portfolio managers to shift allocations among high-yield bonds, leveraged loans, convertible securities, preferred stock and equity positions.