Shareholder Transaction Expenses: | |
Shareholder Reinvestment Program Fees | None |
Privately Negotiated Transactions: | |
Sales Load (as a percentage of offering price) | 3.00% |
Annual Expenses (as a percentage of average net assets attributable to Common Shares): | |
Management and Administrative Fees1 | 1.50% |
Interest Expense on Borrowed Funds | 0.55% |
Other Operating Expenses2 | 0.15% |
Total Annual Expenses | 2.20% |
Fee Waivers/Reimbursements/Recoupment3 | None |
Net Annual Expenses4 | 2.20% |
1 | Pursuant to the investment advisory agreement with the Trust, the Adviser is paid a fee of 0.80% of the Trust's Managed Assets. Pursuant to its Administration Agreement with the Trust, the Administrator is paid a fee of 0.25% of the Trust's Managed Assets. See “Investment Management and Other Service Providers - The Administrator.” |
2 | Other Operating Expenses are estimated amounts for the current fiscal year and do not include the expenses of borrowing. |
3 | The Adviser is contractually obligated to limit expenses of the Trust, through July 1, 2014; the obligation does not extend to interest, taxes, brokerage commission, Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses, leverage expenses, other investment-related costs, and extraordinary expenses. The obligation will automatically renew for one-year terms unless it is terminated by the Trust or the Adviser upon written notice within 90 days of the end of the current term or upon termination of the management agreement and is subject to possible recoupment by the Adviser within three years. For more information regarding the Trust's expense limitation agreement, please see the SAI. |
4 | If the expenses of the Trust are calculated on the Managed Assets of the Trust (assuming that the Trust has used leverage by borrowing an amount equal to 30% of the Trust's Managed Assets), the Net Annual Expenses for the Trust would be lower than the expenses shown in the table. Such lower Net Annual Expense ratio would be 1.55%. |
1 Year | 3 Years | 5 Years | 10 Years | |||
You would pay the following expenses on a $1,000 investment, assuming a 5% annual return and borrowings by the Trust in an aggregate amount equal to 30% of its Managed Assets. | $ | 52 | 99 | 150 | 301 |
Per Share Operating Performance | Total Investment Return(1) | Ratios to average net assets | Supplemental data | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Net asset value, beginning of year or period | Net investment income (loss) | Net realized and unrealized gain (loss) | Distribution to Preferred Shareholders | Change in net asset value from Share offerings | Total from investment operations | Distributions to Common Shareholders from net investment income | Distributions from return of capital | Total distributions | Net asset value, end of year or period | Closing market price, end of year or period | Total Investment Return at net asset value(2) | Total Investment Return at closing market price(3) | Expenses, net of fee waivers and/or recoupments, if any(4) | Expenses (before interest and other fees related to revolving credit facility)(4) | Expenses, prior to fee waivers and/or recoupments, if any(4) | Net investment income (loss)(4) | Net assets, end of year or period | Portfolio Turnover | ||||||||||||||||||||
Year or period ended | ($) | ($) | ($) | ($) | ($) | ($) | ($) | ($) | ($) | ($) | ($) | (%) | (%) | (%) | (%) | (%) | (%) | ($000's) | % | |||||||||||||||||||
02-28-13 | 5.79 | 0.46 | 0.19 | — | — | 0.65 | (0.42) | — | (0.42) | 6.02 | 6.55 | 11.72 | 27.73 | 2.14 | 1.63 | 2.14 | 7.76 | 887,047 | 93 | |||||||||||||||||||
02-29-12 | 6.08 | 0.35 | (0.32) | (0.00)* | — | 0.03 | (0.32) | — | (0.32) | 5.79 | 5.51 | 0.81 | (3.11) | 2.20 | 1.67 | 2.20 | 6.07 | 851,278 | 81 | |||||||||||||||||||
02-28-11 | 5.72 | 0.30 | 0.38 | (0.00)* | — | 0.68 | (0.30) | (0.02) | (0.32) | 6.08 | 6.02 | 12.32 | 7.09 | 1.93 | 1.59 | 1.93 | 4.87 | 893,661 | 60 | |||||||||||||||||||
02-28-10 | 3.81 | 0.28 | 1.95 | (0.00)* | — | 2.23 | (0.32) | — | (0.32) | 5.72 | 5.94 | 60.70 | 81.66 | 1.93 | 1.77(6) | 1.99(6) | 5.56 | 830,785 | 38 | |||||||||||||||||||
02-28-09 | 6.11 | 0.46 | (2.29) | (0.06) | — | (1.89) | (0.41) | — | (0.47) | 3.81 | 3.50 | (31.93)(5) | (32.03)(5) | 3.01 | 1.95 | 3.01 | 7.86 | 552,840 | 10 | |||||||||||||||||||
02-29-08 | 7.65 | 0.75 | (1.57) | (0.16) | — | (0.98) | (0.56) | — | (0.72) | 6.11 | 5.64 | (13.28) | (17.25) | 4.36 | 2.20 | 4.36 | 10.35 | 886,976 | 60 | |||||||||||||||||||
02-28-07 | 7.59 | 0.71 | 0.06 | (0.16) | — | 0.61 | (0.55) | — | (0.71) | 7.65 | 7.40 | 8.85 | 13.84 | 4.62 | 2.21 | 4.62 | 9.42 | 1,109,539 | 60 | |||||||||||||||||||
02-28-06 | 7.47 | 0.57 | 0.12 | (0.11) | — | 0.58 | (0.46) | — | (0.57) | 7.59 | 7.02 | 8.53 | (0.82) | 4.27 | 2.33 | 4.27 | 7.71 | 1,100,671 | 81 | |||||||||||||||||||
02-28-05 | 7.34 | 0.45 | 0.16 | (0.05) | — | 0.56 | (0.43) | — | (0.48) | 7.47 | 7.56 | 7.70 | 2.04 | 3.17 | 2.29 | 3.18 | 6.04 | 1,082,748 | 93 | |||||||||||||||||||
02-29-04 | 6.73 | 0.46 | 0.61 | (0.04) | — | 1.03 | (0.42) | — | (0.46) | 7.34 | 7.84 | 15.72 | 28.77 | 2.40 | 2.11 | 2.40 | 6.68 | 1,010,325 | 87 |
Ratios to average to average net assets plus borrowings | Supplemental data | |||||||||||||||||||||
Expenses (before interest and other fees related to revolving credit facility) | Expenses, prior to fee waivers and/or recoupments, if any | Expenses, net of fee waivers and/or recoupments, if any | Net investment income (loss) | Preferred Shares - Aggregate amount outstanding | Liquidation and market value per share of Preferred Shares | Asset coverage inclusive of Preferred Shares and debt per share(a) | Borrowings at end of period | Asset coverage per $1,000 of debt(a) | Average borrowings | Common shares outstanding at end of year or period | ||||||||||||
Year or period ended | (%) | (%) | (%) | (%) | ($000's) | ($) | ($) | ($000's) | ($) | ($000's) | ($000's) | |||||||||||
02-28-13 | 1.17 | 1.53 | 1.53 | 5.55 | — | — | 3 | 370,600 | 3,394 | 345,145 | 147,427 | |||||||||||
02-29-12 | 1.24 | 1.64 | 1.64 | 4.51 | — | — | 3 | 364,000 | 3,339 | 293,444 | 147,116 | |||||||||||
02-28-11 | 1.39 | 1.68 | 1.68 | 4.26 | 100,000 | 25,000 | 102,850 | 187,000 | 6,314 | 122,641 | 146,954 | |||||||||||
02-28-10 | 1.67(1) | 1.87(1) | 1.81 | 5.23 | 200,000 | 25,000 | 98,400 | 83,000 | 13,419 | 46,416 | 145,210 | |||||||||||
02-28-09 | 1.54 | 2.37 | 2.37 | 6.21 | 225,000 | 25,000 | 70,175 | 81,000 | 10,603 | 227,891 | 145,178 | |||||||||||
02-29-08 | 1.60 | 3.17 | 3.17 | 7.53 | 450,000 | 25,000 | 53,125 | 338,000 | 4,956 | 391,475 | 145,094 | |||||||||||
02-28-07 | 1.56 | 3.25 | 3.25 | 6.63 | 450,000 | 25,000 | 62,925 | 281,000 | 6,550 | 459,982 | 145,033 | |||||||||||
02-28-06 | 1.58 | 2.90 | 2.90 | 5.24 | 450,000 | 25,000 | 55,050 | 465,000 | 4,335 | 509,178 | 145,033 | |||||||||||
02-28-05 | 1.63 | 2.27 | 2.26 | 4.32 | 450,000 | 25,000 | 53,600 | 496,000 | 4,090 | 414,889 | 145,033 | |||||||||||
02-29-04 | 1.84 | 2.09 | 2.09 | 5.82 | 450,000 | 25,000 | 62,425 | 225,000 | 7,490 | 143,194 | 137,638 |
Price($) | NAV($) | Premium/(Discount) To NAV(%) | Reported NYSE Volume | ||||
Calendar Quarter Ended | High | Low | High | Low | High | Low | |
March 31, 2010 | 6.28 | 5.27 | 5.84 | 5.60 | 7.53 | (6.39) | 50,473,000 |
June 30, 2010 | 6.34 | 5.24 | 5.92 | 5.62 | 8.19 | (7.91) | 33,575,600 |
September 30, 2010 | 5.74 | 5.39 | 5.77 | 5.59 | 0.00 | (4.74) | 23,315,100 |
December 31, 2010 | 6.05 | 5.50 | 5.92 | 5.78 | 2.54 | (6.62) | 26,994,200 |
March 31, 2011 | 6.16 | 5.77 | 6.08 | 5.90 | 1.99 | (3.02) | 32,819,000 |
June 30, 2011 | 6.27 | 6.03 | 6.07 | 5.94 | 4.04 | (0.50) | 25,844,000 |
September 30, 2011 | 6.22 | 5.00 | 5.96 | 5.43 | 4.54 | (9.65) | 32,516,300 |
December 30, 2011 | 5.38 | 4.86 | 5.68 | 5.40 | (4.95) | (10.38) | 34,066,600 |
March 30, 2012 | 5.79 | 5.14 | 5.83 | 5.59 | (0.52) | (8.21) | 31,419,500 |
June 30, 2012 | 5.83 | 5.43 | 5.88 | 5.71 | (0.17) | (5.40) | 33,720,800 |
September 30, 2012 | 6.20 | 5.68 | 5.95 | 5.77 | 4.20 | (2.22) | 35,701,000 |
December 31, 2012 | 6.34 | 5.84 | 5.96 | 5.90 | 6.55 | (1.18) | 29,910,900 |
March 31, 2013 | 6.79 | 6.27 | 6.06 | 5.93 | 12.83 | 4.49 | 35,043,000 |
1. | Senior Loans. Under normal market conditions, at least 80% of the Trust's net assets (plus borrowings for investment purposes) will be invested in Senior Loans. This investment policy may be changed without shareholder approval so long as the Trust provides its shareholders with at least 60 days' prior notice of any changes in this investment policy. Under normal market conditions, the Trust invests at least 80% of its assets in Senior Loans made to corporations or other business entities organized under U.S. or Canadian law and that are domiciled in the United States and in U.S. territories and possessions or Canada. |
The Senior Loans in which the Trust invests either hold the most senior position in the capital structure of the borrower, hold an equal ranking with other senior debt, or have characteristics (such as a senior position secured by liens on a borrower's assets) that the Adviser or Sub-Adviser believes justify treatment as senior debt. These Senior Loans are typically below investment-grade credit quality. Investments rated below investment-grade (or of similar quality if unrated) are commonly known as high-yielding, high risk investments or as “junk” investments. | |
The Trust typically makes its investments in Senior Loans by purchasing a portion of the overall loan, i.e., the Trust becomes one of a number of lenders investing in the loan. The Trust may also make its investments in Senior Loans through the use of derivative instruments such as participations, credit-linked notes, credit default swaps, and total return swaps as long as the reference obligation for any such instrument is a Senior Loan. Investments through the use of such derivative instruments involve counterparty risk, i.e., the risk that the party from which such instrument is purchased will not perform as agreed. The Trust seeks to minimize such counterparty risk by purchasing such investments only from large, well established and highly rated counterparties. | |
2. | Other Investments. Under normal market conditions, the Trust may invest up to 20% of its total assets, measured at the time of investment, in a combination of one or more of the following types of investments (“Other Investments”): |
• | loans to borrowers organized or located in countries outside the United States and outside U.S. territories and possessions or Canada; |
• | unsecured floating rate loans, notes, and other debt instruments; |
• | floating rate subordinated loans; |
• | tranches of floating rate asset-backed securities, including structured notes; |
• | short-term debt securities; and |
• | equity securities incidental to investments in loans. |
3. | Cash and Short-Term Instruments. Under normal market conditions, the Trust may invest in cash and/or short-term instruments. During periods when, in the opinion of the Adviser or Sub-Adviser, a temporary defensive posture in the market is appropriate, the Trust may hold up to 100% of its assets in cash and/or short-term instruments. |
4. | Other Investment Strategies. The Trust may lend its portfolio securities, on a short-term or long-term basis, in an amount equal to up to 33 1⁄3% of its total assets. |
1. | Industry Concentration. The Trust may invest in any industry. The Trust may not invest more than 25% of its total assets, measured at the time of investment, in any single industry. |
2. | Borrower Diversification. The Trust is diversified, as such term is defined in the 1940 Act. A diversified fund may not, as to 75% of its total assets, invest more than 5% of its total assets in any one issuer and may not purchase more than 10% of the outstanding voting securities of any one issuer (other than securities issues or guaranteed by the U. S. government or any of its agencies or instrumentalities, or other investment companies). The Trust will consider the borrower on a loan, including a loan participation, to be the issuer of such loan. With respect to no more than 25% of its total assets, the Trust may make investments that are not subject to the foregoing restrictions. |
1. | Limitations on currencies. The Trust's investments must be denominated in U.S. dollars, provided that the Trust may invest up to 15% of its total assets in investments denominated in the OECD currencies (including the euro), other than the U.S. dollar. The Trust will engage in currency exchange transactions to seek to hedge, as closely as practicable, 100% of the economic impact to the Trust arising from foreign currency fluctuations. |
2. | Maturity. Although the Trust has no restrictions on portfolio maturity, under normal market conditions, at least 80% of the Trust's total assets will be invested in assets with remaining maturities of one to ten years. The maximum maturity on any loan in which the Trust can invest is ten years. |
3. | Limitations on Other Investments. The Trust may also invest up to 20% of its total assets, measured at the time of investment, in Other Investments. The following additional limitations apply to Other Investments: |
• | Unsecured Debt Instruments. The Trust may not invest in unsecured floating rate loans, notes, and other debt instruments, in an aggregate amount that exceeds 20% of the Trust's total assets, measured at the time of investment. |
• | Equities. The Trust may acquire equity securities only as an incident to the purchase or ownership of a loan or in connection with a reorganization of a borrower or its debt. |
• | Subordinated Loans. The Trust may not invest in floating rate subordinated loans, whether or not secured, in an aggregated amount that exceeds 5% of its total assets, measured at the time of investment. |
4. | Investment Quality; Credit Analysis. Loans in which the Trust invests generally are rated below investment-grade credit quality or are unrated. In acquiring a loan, the Adviser or Sub-Adviser will consider some or all of the following factors concerning the borrower: ability to service debt from internally generated funds; adequacy of liquidity and working capital; appropriateness of capital structure; leverage consistent with industry norms; historical experience of achieving business and financial projections; the quality and experience of management; and adequacy of collateral coverage. The Adviser or Sub-Adviser performs its own independent credit analysis of each borrower. In so doing, the Adviser or Sub-Adviser may utilize information and credit analyses from agents that originate or administer loans, other lenders investing in a loan, and other sources. The Adviser or Sub-Adviser also may communicate directly with management of the borrowers. These analyses continue on a periodic basis for any Senior Loan held by the Trust. See “Risk Factors and Special Considerations - Credit Risk on Senior Loans.” |
5. | Use of Leverage. The Trust may borrow money and issue Preferred Shares to the fullest extent permitted by the 1940 Act. See “Investment Objective and Policies - Policy on Borrowing” and “Investment Objective and Policies - Policy on Issuance of Preferred Shares.” |
6. | Short-term Instruments. Short-term instruments in which the Trust invests may include: (i) commercial paper rated A-1 by Standard and Poor's Ratings Services (“S&P”) or P-1 by Moody's Investors Service, Inc. (“Moody's”), or of comparable quality as determined by the Adviser or Sub-Adviser; (ii) certificates of deposit, bankers' acceptances, and other bank deposits and obligations; and (iii) securities issued or guaranteed by the U.S. government, its agencies, or instrumentalities. |
Annual Expenses Without Borrowings (as a percentage of net assets attributable to Common Shares) | |
Management and Administrative Fees (as a percentage of Managed Assets)1 | 1.05% |
Other Operating Expenses2 | 0.15% |
Total Annual Expenses | 1.20% |
Fee Waivers/Reimbursements/Recoupment3 | None |
Net Annual Expenses | 1.20% |
1 | Pursuant to the investment advisory agreement with the Trust, the Adviser is paid a fee of 0.80% of the Trust's Managed Assets. Pursuant to its administration agreement with the Trust, the Administrator is paid a fee of 0.25% of the Trust's Managed Assets. See “Investment Management and Other Service Providers - The Administrator.” |
2 | Other Operating Expenses are estimated amounts for the current fiscal year and do not include the expenses of borrowing. |
3 | The Adviser is contractually obligated to limit expenses of the Trust, through July 1, 2014; the obligation does not extend to interest, taxes, brokerage commission, Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses, leverage expenses, other investment-related costs, and extraordinary expenses. The obligation will automatically renew for one-year terms unless it is terminated by the Trust or the Adviser upon written notice within 90 days of the end of the current term or upon termination of the management agreement and is subject to possible recoupment by the Adviser within three years. For more information regarding the Trust's expense limitation agreement, please see the SAI. |
Assumed Portfolio Return, net of expenses1 | (10)% | (5)% | 0% | 5% | 10% |
Corresponding Return to Common Shareholders2 | (14.84)% | (7.70)% | (0.55)% | 6.59% | 13.73% |
1 | The Assumed Portfolio Return is required by regulation of the SEC and is not a prediction of, and does not represent, the projected or actual performance of the Trust. |
2 | In order to compute the Corresponding Return to Common Shareholders, the Assumed Portfolio Return is multiplied by the total value of the Trust's assets at the beginning of the Trust's fiscal year to obtain an assumed return to the Trust. From this amount, all interest accrued during the year is subtracted to determine the return available to shareholders. The return available to shareholders is then divided by the total value of the Trust's net assets attributable to Common Shares as of the beginning of the fiscal year to determine the Corresponding Return to Common Shareholders. |
• | the characteristics of and fundamental analytical data relating to the loan, including the cost, size, current interest rate, period until the next interest rate reset, maturity and base lending rate of the loan, the terms and conditions of the loan and any related agreements, and the position of the loan in the borrower's debt structure; |
• | the nature, adequacy, and value of the collateral, including the Trust's rights, remedies, and interests with respect to the collateral; |
• | the creditworthiness of the borrower and the cash flow coverage of outstanding principal and interest, based on an evaluation of its financial condition, financial statements and information about the borrower's business, cash flows, capital structure, and future prospects; |
• | information relating to the market for the loan, including price quotations for, and trading in, the loan and interests in similar loans and the market environment and investor attitudes toward the loan and interests in similar loans; |
• | the reputation and financial condition of the agent of the loan and any intermediate participants in the loans; |
• | the borrower's management; and |
• | the general economic and market conditions affecting the fair value of the loan. |
Title of Class | Number Authorized | Number Held By the Trust for its Own Account | Number Outstanding |
Common Shares | unlimited | 0 | 147,584,779.295 |
TABLE OF CONTENTS | |
Page | |
Change of Name | 3 |
Investment Objective | 3 |
Investment Restrictions | 3 |
Additional Information About Investments and Investment Techniques | 5 |
Management of the Trust | 14 |
Code of Ethics | 29 |
Proxy Voting Procedures | 30 |
Control Persons and Principal Holders of Securities | 30 |
Investment Management and Other Service Providers | 31 |
Adviser | 31 |
Sub-Adviser | 33 |
Administrator | 37 |
Distributor | 37 |
Shareholder Reinvestment Program | 38 |
Portfolio Transactions | 40 |
Portfolio Turnover Rate | 43 |
Net Asset Value | 44 |
Federal Taxation | 44 |
Advertising and Performance Data | 50 |
General Information | 51 |
Custodian | 51 |
Legal Counsel | 51 |
Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm | 51 |
Financial Statements | 51 |
Appendix A | A-1 |
1940 Act File No. | 811-05410 |