Message #14 From:
NewsBot Date: January 12, 2007 11:21:00 AM
PIM News Putnam Closed-End Fund Shareholders Vote to Keep Funds Closed-End
BOSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Putnam High Income Securities Fund (NYSE: PCF), Putnam Master
Intermediate Income Trust (NYSE: PIM) and Putnam Premier Income Trust
(NYSE: PPT) held their annual meeting of shareholders on January 11,
2007.
At the meeting, shareholders of each fund voted against converting the
fund from closed-end to open-end form. The proposal to convert to
open-end form was submitted to the shareholders of the funds as a result
of provisions in each fund’s Agreement and
Declaration of Trust that require that, if the fund’s
shares trade at a certain discount to net asset value during the last 12
weeks of the fund’s fiscal year, a proposal to
convert the fund to open-end form must be presented to shareholders at
the fund’s next annual meeting.
As discussed in the definitive proxy statement filed with the Securities
and Exchange Commission on November 22, 2006, the Trustees believe that
these funds are afforded potential investment advantages as a result of
their closed-end status. For this and other reasons, the Trustees
recommended that shareholders of the funds vote to defeat the proposal.
The affirmative vote of more than 50% of the shares outstanding as of
the record date, October 16, 2006, would have been required to pass the
proposal. Fewer than 14% of each fund’s
outstanding shares were voted in favor of the proposal. These results
are consistent with the results of shareholder voting on similar
open-ending proposals in previous years by these funds and other Putnam
closed-end funds.
At the annual meeting, shareholders of each fund also elected each of
the 12 nominees for Trustees, who all currently serve as Trustees.
About Putnam Investments: At Putnam Investments, our top priority
remains prudently managing money for our more than 10 million individual
and institutional investors worldwide. Since 1937, our values have been
rooted in a profound sense of responsibility for the money entrusted to
us. We use a research-driven team approach to seek consistent,
dependable, superior investment results over time, although there is no
guarantee a fund will meet its objectives. We are committed to doing
what's right for investors, including maintaining stringent investor
protections for every Putnam fund.
About Putnam Investments: Founded in 1937, Putnam Investments is
one of the nation’s oldest and largest money
management firms. At the end of December 2006, Putnam Investments had
$192 billion in assets under management. Mutual fund assets were $124
billion. Institutional assets were $68 billion. Putnam has headquarters
in Boston and offices in London and Tokyo. For more information, go to www.putnaminvestments.com.
