BlackRock Income Trust, Inc. (NYSE:BKT) Short Interest Up 105.6% in December

BlackRock Income Trust, Inc. (NYSE:BKT) saw a large growth in short interest in December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totalling 44,000 shares, a growth of 105.6% from the November 30th total of 21,400 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 62,200 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 0.7 days.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On BlackRock Income Trust

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in BKT. Arkadios Wealth Advisors increased its stake in BlackRock Income Trust by 4.2% during the third quarter. Arkadios Wealth Advisors now owns 43,779 shares of the company’s stock worth $544,000 after acquiring an additional 1,780 shares during the last quarter. Canal Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in BlackRock Income Trust by 13.6% during the 3rd quarter. Canal Capital Management LLC now owns 21,964 shares of the company’s stock valued at $273,000 after purchasing an additional 2,632 shares during the period. Melfa Wealth Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of BlackRock Income Trust by 1.3% during the third quarter. Melfa Wealth Management Inc. now owns 374,393 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,654,000 after acquiring an additional 4,896 shares during the period. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans boosted its position in shares of BlackRock Income Trust by 34.3% during the 3rd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 66,493 shares of the company’s stock valued at $826,000 after purchasing an additional 17,000 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James & Associates grew its holdings in shares of BlackRock Income Trust by 4.8% in the 3rd quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 414,630 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,154,000 after acquiring an additional 19,061 shares during the last quarter. 39.43% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

BlackRock Income Trust Trading Up 0.1 %

Shares of NYSE BKT traded up $0.01 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $11.47. The company had a trading volume of 51,716 shares, compared to its average volume of 62,671. BlackRock Income Trust has a 52-week low of $11.06 and a 52-week high of $12.67. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $11.83 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $12.08.

BlackRock Income Trust Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a monthly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 23rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 16th were issued a $0.0882 dividend. This represents a $1.06 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 9.23%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 16th.

BlackRock Income Trust Company Profile

BlackRock Income Trust, Inc is a closed ended fixed income mutual fund launched by BlackRock, Inc The fund is managed by BlackRock Advisors, LLC. It invests in the fixed income markets of the United States. The fund invests in securities of companies that operate across diversified sectors. It invests in securities such as U.S.