Core Insights - The income market has seen significant price increases, with only local emerging market debt showing negative returns year-to-date [2] - A countercyclical value-based approach has led to the reduction of risk exposure in income portfolios, resulting in the exit from high-performing assets like Gladstone Capital [4] - The closed-end fund (CEF) sector presents opportunities for attractive yields without chasing overpriced assets, with specific funds highlighted for their potential [8] Group 1: Market Performance - The income assets and broader financial market have experienced substantial growth, with a year-to-date return of 20% in some sectors [2] - Local emerging market debt is the only sector in the red year-to-date, indicating a divergence in performance across income sectors [2] Group 2: Investment Strategy - The company has adopted a countercyclical value-based allocation strategy, reducing risk exposure when compensation for risk is low [4] - Exited positions include Gladstone Capital, which was trading at a nearly 30% premium to NAV, indicating it is fully priced [4] - The Nuveen Preferred and Income Term Fund was also exited due to limited room for further outperformance as its discount approaches zero [5] Group 3: CEF Sector Insights - The Flaherty suite of CEFs is recommended for investors seeking exposure to preferreds, with the Flaherty & Crumrine Preferred Income Opportunity Fund trading at a 12% discount and a 6.7% yield [8] - The limited duration CEF sector has diverged from the loan CEF sector, presenting inefficiencies that could be exploited [7] - The PGIM Short Duration High Yield Opportunities Fund is noted for its double-digit discount and decent entry point, with a nearly 60% allocation rated BB and above [10] Group 4: Specific Fund Recommendations - Bain Capital Specialty Finance is highlighted for its 6% discount and 10.8% yield, with a favorable NAV profile despite past dilution [12] - The Nuveen Municipal Credit Fund is attractive due to its high-quality profile, wide discounts, and potential for tighter discounts as leverage costs fall [14] - Blue Owl Capital Corporation III is noted for its high-quality portfolio and a 10.9% dividend yield, trading at a 4% discount [16]

Core Insights - The Bexil Investment Trust has achieved a total return of 93.90% over the past ten years, which is significantly lower than the S&P 500 Index's return of 183.86% but better than its price performance alone [3][22] - The fund currently offers a yield of 7.70%, which is attractive compared to the S&P 500 Index's yield of 1.30%, but it ranks in the bottom half among its peers [3][19] - The fund's unique portfolio consists primarily of common stocks, with a focus on basic materials and financial firms, differing from the technology-heavy holdings of many other funds [12][20] Fund Performance - The Bexil Investment Trust's share price has declined by 19.82% over the past decade, indicating underperformance relative to most of its peers [8][9] - Despite the share price decline, the fund has managed to cover its distributions through net realized gains and net investment income, reporting a total investment income of $5,585,129 against distributions of $12,788,431 for the year ending December 31, 2023 [17][18] - The fund's net asset value has increased by 7.94% since the last financial report, suggesting it is currently covering its distributions effectively [18] Portfolio Composition - The fund's portfolio is heavily weighted towards common stocks (108.34%), with minimal allocations to corporate bonds (0.04%), master limited partnerships (0.44%), and preferred stocks (1.25%) [11] - The largest holdings include companies from diverse sectors such as steel production, banking, and retail, which may provide diversification benefits compared to more common technology-focused funds [12][13] - Some of the fund's largest positions do not pay dividends, which could limit income generation, but others, like U.S. Bancorp, offer reasonable yields [27][28] Leverage and Valuation - The Bexil Investment Trust employs a low leverage ratio of 10.00%, which is below the preferred maximum of one-third of assets, indicating a conservative approach to leveraging [15][29] - Shares are currently trading at a 36.26% discount to net asset value, which is consistent with the average discount over the past year and suggests an attractive valuation [19][20]

Fixed-income CEF sector discounts are now firmly on the expensive side, in aggregate, while equity CEF sector discounts are still somewhat cheap. MEDIAN SECTOR DISCOUNTS 0.0% -2.0% -4.0% -6.0% -8.0% -10.0% -12.0% -14.0% 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 Systematic Income Anticipated Tender Offer Dates for the Funds While BlackRock's nominees for BIGZ have the following, lower, vote tallies. Systematic Income CEF Tool Market Action Systematic Income BlackRock's message was that Saba's pr ...

getty Gabelli Dividend & Income Trust (GDV) Notice that many of these stocks don't come close to meeting our yield requirements. But GDV comes a lot closer, delivering a nearly 6% yield currently—and it pays us monthly, too! MainStay CBRE Global Infrastructure Megatrends Term Fund (MEGI) Another term fund with a wildly different aim is the BlackRock Health Sciences Trust II (BMEZ). Unlike some of the other CEFs mentioned here, BMEZ's sky-high yield doesn't come from leverage—it comes from the fund's ability ...

Core Viewpoint - The closed-end fund (CEF) market is experiencing mixed performance, with discounts generally widening, but most sectors showing positive returns month-to-date, particularly municipal funds due to a significant drop in long-term Treasury yields [15]. Market Action - Fixed-income sector discounts are trading tighter than equity counterparts, indicating a shift in investor preference towards fixed-income assets [4]. - The credit CEF swirlogram suggests that valuations are inching towards the unattractive quadrant, with tight underlying credit spreads and increasing discounts [7]. - The funds have seen a bounce of 4-5% as discounts tightened, with historical data showing that certain funds traded at significant discounts which have mostly disappeared at the start of 2024 [8]. Sector Discounts - Loan CEFs are trading at very tight discounts, while municipal CEF discounts have tightened slightly but remain near double-digit levels on average [18]. - Limited duration CEF discounts have also tightened slightly, indicating a disconnect from loan CEFs, which have historically moved in sync [18]. Investment Vehicles - Investors interested in Saba's activism have three investment vehicles available: the SABA CEF ETF (CEFS) and two CEFs (BRW and SABA) [10]. - The SABA CEF ETF is characterized as a more pure-play activist CEF portfolio, while the two CEFs resemble traditional fixed-income/multi-sector funds [12]. Recent Developments - Saba and Invesco have entered into a standstill agreement regarding two state municipal CEFs (VPV and VTN), with Invesco planning a tender offer for 25% of the funds' common shares at 99% of NAV, set to go live at the end of October [21]. - Following the tender offer, it will be observed whether Saba will increase its share purchases if discounts widen again [22].

Market Action - CEF discounts have tightened and are now close to their long-term average levels [3] - Blackstone increased the distribution of their loan CEF BGB by 9% to $0.101, showing significant variability in its distribution history [5][6] - CLO CEFs experienced a positive month in May, with all fund NAVs rising and several funds trading at double-digit premiums [6] Market Themes - A number of managers are actively working to tighten discounts, contributing to the strength of discounts in the market [8] - The CEF market showed mixed performance, with Muni sectors outperforming due to a decline in Treasury yields following soft inflation data [11] Market Commentary - Proxy advisers are involved in the ongoing Saba and BlackRock conflict, with ISS supporting Saba's efforts to change board members while also recommending BlackRock nominees for other funds [12] - Glass Lewis recommended reelecting all of BlackRock's board nominees, stating that Saba has not made a compelling case for its proposed changes [12] - The competition between Saba and BlackRock is seen as beneficial for the CEF market, prompting BlackRock to implement shareholder-friendly actions [12]

For income-seeking investors, closed-end funds (CEFs) offer relatively high distributions and the potential to buy these shares at a discount to the fund's NAV. But these are lesser known fund structures. So many advisors and investors unfamiliar with CEFs may opt to invest in them through a familiar wrapper like ETFs. The universe of ETFs of CEFs is small. But one ETF - the Invesco CEF Income Composite ETF (PCEF) - has significantly more assets and a longer history than the rest. This is a look at PCEF ove ...

Systematic Income Takeaways With market valuations back to expensive levels, CEF investors may be thinking about other opportunities besides the beta provided by their portfolios to boost returns in their portfolios. We highlight four alpha strategies CEF investors can use in their portfolios. In the current environment, we see most alpha potential in interval funds, leaning against investor flows as well as relative value opportunities. Editor's Note: This article covers one or more microcap stocks. Please ...

Core Insights - The article discusses the recent changes in PIMCO's taxable closed-end fund (CEF) portfolios, highlighting a significant portfolio reshuffle aimed at derisking and adjusting to market conditions [7][9][24]. Coverage Update - Average taxable coverage has rebounded, with PDO showing a notable uplift, while the rest of the taxable suite remains relatively stable, averaging 63% outside of PDO and 73% for the fiscal year to date [2][18]. Portfolio Reshuffle - A $593 million transfer to the PIMCO Short-Term Floating NAV Portfolio III was made for cash management, effectively derisking the fund, which has net assets of $4.9 billion [7]. - The portfolio saw a sizable drop in holdings across loans, asset-backed securities (ABS), and short-term instruments, indicating a strategic shift away from these asset types [5][21]. - The allocation to floating-rate assets was reduced, while the bond allocation slightly increased, reflecting expectations of falling short-term rates [8][9]. Interest Rate Swaps - The interest rate swap position increased significantly, with the market value swinging from -$47 million to +$182 million, achieved by adjusting the coupons on several swaps [9]. - These changes may not immediately impact net income, as many swaps are forward-starting, indicating a potential preparation for a lower-rate environment [9]. Fund Performance - The average PIMCO taxable CEF premium remains elevated at a low double-digit level, with specific funds like PCM experiencing a premium deflation from over 40% to below 25% [10][11]. - The Dynamic Income Strategy Fund (PDX) and the Global ShocksPLUS & Income Fund (PGP) are highlighted as attractive options within the taxable suite, with PDX trading at a 12% discount [31][33].

Welcome to another installment of our CEF Market Weekly Review, where we discuss closed-end fund ("CEF") market activity from both the bottom-up - highlighting individual fund news and events - as well as the top-down - providing an overview of the broader market. We also try to provide some historical context as well as the relevant themes that look to be driving markets or that investors ought to be mindful of. This update covers the period through the first week of June. Be sure to check out our other we ...