Flaherty & Crumrine Preferred Income Opportunity Fund Inc. (NYSE:PFO) Short Interest Up 175.0% in October

Flaherty & Crumrine Preferred Income Opportunity Fund Inc. (NYSE:PFO) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest during the month of October. As of October 15th, there was short interest totalling 35,200 shares, a growth of 175.0% from the September 30th total of 12,800 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 44,400 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 0.8 days.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Flaherty & Crumrine Preferred Income Opportunity Fund

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Private Advisor Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of Flaherty & Crumrine Preferred Income Opportunity Fund by 0.6% in the second quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 209,185 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,772,000 after buying an additional 1,219 shares during the last quarter. Matisse Capital boosted its position in Flaherty & Crumrine Preferred Income Opportunity Fund by 26.3% in the 2nd quarter. Matisse Capital now owns 177,623 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,504,000 after purchasing an additional 37,012 shares in the last quarter. Consolidated Portfolio Review Corp grew its stake in shares of Flaherty & Crumrine Preferred Income Opportunity Fund by 5.9% during the 1st quarter. Consolidated Portfolio Review Corp now owns 107,160 shares of the company’s stock worth $904,000 after purchasing an additional 5,997 shares during the period. Cetera Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Flaherty & Crumrine Preferred Income Opportunity Fund during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $187,000. Finally, Catalina Capital Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Flaherty & Crumrine Preferred Income Opportunity Fund in the 2nd quarter valued at $151,000. 12.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Flaherty & Crumrine Preferred Income Opportunity Fund Price Performance

Shares of PFO stock opened at $9.32 on Monday. Flaherty & Crumrine Preferred Income Opportunity Fund has a fifty-two week low of $6.90 and a fifty-two week high of $9.54. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $9.26 and its 200-day simple moving average is $8.69.

Flaherty & Crumrine Preferred Income Opportunity Fund Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 29th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 21st will be given a dividend of $0.0505 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 21st. This is an increase from Flaherty & Crumrine Preferred Income Opportunity Fund’s previous monthly dividend of $0.05. This represents a $0.61 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.50%.

Flaherty & Crumrine Preferred Income Opportunity Fund Company Profile

Flaherty & Crumrine Preferred Income Opportunity Fund Inc is a closed ended equity mutual fund launched and managed by Flaherty & Crumrine Incorporated. The fund invests in the public equity markets of the United States. It invests in stocks of companies operating in the financial services sector.