First Trust Senior Floating Rate Income Fund II Declares Its Monthly Common Share Distribution of $0.097 Per Share for January

Rhea-AI Summary

First Trust Senior Floating Rate Income Fund II (NYSE: FCT) has announced its monthly common share distribution of $0.097 per share, payable on January 15, 2025, to shareholders of record as of January 2, 2025. The distribution rate is 10.73% based on December 18, 2024 NAV of $10.85, and 11.32% based on the closing market price of $10.28.

The Fund primarily invests in senior secured floating-rate corporate loans, with at least 80% of its Managed Assets in lower grade debt instruments under normal market conditions. The distribution will consist of net investment income and return of capital, with final tax status to be determined after 2024. First Trust Advisors L.P. manages approximately $264 billion in assets as of November 30, 2024.

WHEATON, Ill.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- First Trust Senior Floating Rate Income Fund II (the "Fund") (NYSE: FCT) has declared the Fund’s regularly scheduled monthly common share distribution in the amount of $0.097 per share payable on January 15, 2025, to shareholders of record as of January 2, 2025. The ex-dividend date is expected to be January 2, 2025. The monthly distribution information for the Fund appears below.

First Trust Senior Floating Rate Income Fund II (FCT):

Distribution per share: .............................................................................................................................................................................................................. $0.097

Distribution Rate based on the December 18, 2024 NAV of $10.85: ....................................................................................................................................... 10.73%

Distribution Rate based on the December 18, 2024 closing market price of $10.28: .............................................................................................................. 11.32%

This distribution will consist of net investment income earned by the Fund and return of capital and may also consist of net short-term realized capital gains. The final determination of the source and tax status of all distributions paid in 2025 will be made after the end of 2025 and will be provided on Form 1099-DIV.

The Fund has a practice of seeking to maintain a relatively stable monthly distribution which may be changed periodically. First Trust Advisors L.P. ("FTA") believes the practice may benefit the Fund's market price and premium/discount to the Fund's NAV. The practice has no impact on the Fund's investment strategy and may reduce the Fund's NAV.

The Fund is a diversified, closed-end management investment company. The Fund's primary investment objective is to seek a high level of current income. As a secondary objective, the Fund attempts to preserve capital. The Fund pursues these investment objectives by investing primarily in senior secured floating-rate corporate loans. Under normal market conditions, the Fund will invest at least 80% of its Managed Assets in lower grade debt instruments.

First Trust Advisors L.P. ("FTA") is a federally registered investment advisor and serves as the Fund's investment advisor. FTA and its affiliate First Trust Portfolios L.P. ("FTP"), a FINRA registered broker-dealer, are privately-held companies that provide a variety of investment services. FTA has collective assets under management or supervision of approximately $264 billion as of November 30, 2024 through unit investment trusts, exchange-traded funds, closed-end funds, mutual funds and separate managed accounts. FTA is the supervisor of the First Trust unit investment trusts, while FTP is the sponsor. FTP is also a distributor of mutual fund shares and exchange-traded fund creation units. FTA and FTP are based in Wheaton, Illinois.

Principal Risk Factors: Risks are inherent in all investing. Certain risks applicable to the Fund are identified below, which includes the risk that you could lose some or all of your investment in the Fund. The principal risks of investing in the Fund are spelled out in the Fund's annual shareholder reports. The order of the below risk factors does not indicate the significance of any particular risk factor. The Fund also files reports, proxy statements and other information that is available for review.

Past performance is no assurance of future results. Investment return and market value of an investment in the Fund will fluctuate. Shares, when sold, may be worth more or less than their original cost. There can be no assurance that the Fund's investment objectives will be achieved. The Fund may not be appropriate for all investors.

Market risk is the risk that a particular investment, or shares of a fund in general may fall in value. Investments held by the Fund are subject to market fluctuations caused by real or perceived adverse economic conditions, political events, regulatory factors or market developments, changes in interest rates and perceived trends in securities prices. Shares of a fund could decline in value or underperform other investments as a result. In addition, local, regional or global events such as war, acts of terrorism, market manipulation, government defaults, government shutdowns, regulatory actions, political changes, diplomatic developments, the imposition of sanctions and other similar measures, spread of infectious disease or other public health issues, recessions, natural disasters or other events could have significant negative impact on a fund and its investments.

Current market conditions risk is the risk that a particular investment, or shares of the fund in general, may fall in value due to current market conditions. As a means to fight inflation, the Federal Reserve and certain foreign central banks have raised interest rates; however, the Federal Reserve has recently lowered interest rates and may continue to do so. Recent and potential future bank failures and challenges in commercial real estate markets could result in disruption to the broader banking industry or markets generally and reduce confidence in financial institutions and the economy as a whole, which may also heighten market volatility and reduce liquidity. The change in administration resulting from the 2024 United States national elections could result in significant impacts to the national and international political and financial landscape, which could affect, among other things, inflation and the securities markets generally. Ongoing armed conflicts between Russia and Ukraine in Europe and among Israel, Iran, Hamas and other militant groups in the Middle East, have caused and could continue to cause significant market disruptions and volatility within the markets in Russia, Europe, the Middle East and the United States. The hostilities and sanctions resulting from those hostilities have and could continue to have a significant impact on certain fund investments as well as fund performance and liquidity. A public health crisis, and the ensuing policies enacted by governments and central banks in response, could cause significant volatility and uncertainty in global financial markets, negatively impacting global growth prospects.

The Fund will typically invest in senior loans rated below investment grade, which are commonly referred to as "junk" or "high-yield" securities and considered speculative because of the credit risk of their issuers. Such issuers are more likely than investment grade issuers to default on their payments of interest and principal owed to the Fund, and such defaults could reduce the Fund's NAV and income distributions. An economic downturn would generally lead to a higher non-payment rate, and a senior loan may lose significant market value before a default occurs. Moreover, any specific collateral used to secure a senior loan may decline in value or become illiquid, which would adversely affect the senior loan's value.

The senior loan market has seen an increase in loans with weaker lender protections which may impact recovery values and/or trading levels in the future. The absence of financial maintenance covenants in a loan agreement generally means that the lender may not be able to declare a default if financial performance deteriorates. This may hinder the Fund's ability to reprice credit risk associated with a particular borrower and reduce the Fund's ability to restructure a problematic loan and mitigate potential loss. As a result, the Fund's exposure to losses on investments in senior loans may be increased, especially during a downturn in the credit cycle or changes in market or economic conditions.

A second lien loan may have a claim on the same collateral pool as the first lien or it may be secured by a separate set of assets. Second lien loans are typically secured by a second priority security interest or lien on specified collateral securing the Borrower's obligation under the interest. Because second lien loans are second to first lien loans, they present a greater degree of investment risk. Specifically, these loans are subject to the additional risk that the cash flow of the Borrower and property securing the loan may be insufficient to meet scheduled payments after giving effect to those loans with a higher priority. In addition, loans that have a lower than first lien priority on collateral of the Borrower generally have greater price volatility than those loans with a higher priority and may be less liquid.

In the event a borrower fails to pay scheduled interest or principal payments on a senior loan held by the Fund, the Fund will experience a reduction in its income and a decline in the value of the senior loan, which will likely reduce dividends and lead to a decline in the net asset value of the Fund's common shares. If the Fund acquires a senior loan from another lender, for example, by acquiring a participation, the Fund may also be subject to credit risks with respect to that lender. Although senior loans may be secured by specific collateral, the value of the collateral may not equal the Fund's investment when the senior loan is acquired or may decline below the principal amount of the senior loan subsequent to the Fund's investment. Also, to the extent that collateral consists of stock of the borrower or its subsidiaries or affiliates, the Fund bears the risk that the stock may decline in value, be relatively illiquid, and/or may lose all or substantially all of its value, causing the senior loan to be under collateralized. Therefore, the liquidation of the collateral underlying a senior loan may not satisfy the issuer's obligation to the Fund in the event of non-payment of scheduled interest or principal, and the collateral may not be readily liquidated.

Distressed securities frequently do not produce income while they are outstanding. The Fund may be required to incur certain extraordinary expenses in order to protect and recover its investment. The Fund also will be subject to significant uncertainty as to when and in what manner and for what value the obligations evidenced by the distressed securities will eventually be satisfied.

Use of leverage can result in additional risk and cost, and can magnify the effect of any losses.

The Fund's portfolio is also subject to credit risk, interest rate risk, liquidity risk, prepayment risk and reinvestment risk. Interest rate risk is the risk that fixed-income securities will decline in value because of changes in market interest rates. Credit risk is the risk that an issuer of a security will be unable or unwilling to make dividend, interest and/or principal payments when due and that the value of a security may decline as a result. Credit risk may be heightened for the Fund because it invests in below investment grade securities. Liquidity risk is the risk that the fund may have difficulty disposing of senior loans if it seeks to repay debt, pay dividends or expenses, or take advantage of a new investment opportunity. Prepayment risk is the risk that, upon a prepayment, the actual outstanding debt on which the Fund derives interest income will be reduced. The Fund may not be able to reinvest the proceeds received on terms as favorable as the prepaid loan. Reinvestment risk is the risk that income from the Fund's portfolio will decline if the Fund invests the proceeds from matured, traded or called instruments at market interest rates that are below the Fund's portfolio's current earnings rate.

The risks of investing in the Fund are spelled out in the shareholder reports and other regulatory filings.

The information presented is not intended to constitute an investment recommendation for, or advice to, any specific person. By providing this information, First Trust is not undertaking to give advice in any fiduciary capacity within the meaning of ERISA, the Internal Revenue Code or any other regulatory framework. Financial professionals are responsible for evaluating investment risks independently and for exercising independent judgment in determining whether investments are appropriate for their clients.

The Fund's daily closing New York Stock Exchange price and net asset value per share as well as other information can be found at https://www.ftportfolios.com or by calling 1-800-988-5891.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20241219282952/en/

Press Inquiries, Ryan Issakainen, 630-765-8689

Analyst Inquiries, Jeff Margolin, 630-915-6784

Broker Inquiries, Sales Team, 866-848-9727

Source: First Trust Senior Floating Rate Income Fund II

FAQ

What is FCT's monthly distribution amount for January 2025?

First Trust Senior Floating Rate Income Fund II (FCT) declared a monthly distribution of $0.097 per share, payable on January 15, 2025.

What is FCT's distribution rate based on its December 18, 2024 NAV?

The Fund's distribution rate is 10.73% based on the December 18, 2024 NAV of $10.85.

What is FCT's investment strategy and primary objective?

FCT's primary objective is to seek high current income, investing primarily in senior secured floating-rate corporate loans. Under normal conditions, at least 80% of its Managed Assets are invested in lower grade debt instruments.

When is the ex-dividend date for FCT's January 2025 distribution?

The ex-dividend date is expected to be January 2, 2025.

What are the main components of FCT's January 2025 distribution?

The distribution will consist of net investment income earned by the Fund and return of capital, and may also include net short-term realized capital gains.

How much assets does First Trust Advisors manage as of November 2024?

First Trust Advisors L.P. has collective assets under management or supervision of approximately $264 billion as of November 30, 2024.