Barings Participation Investors Announces Increased Quarterly Cash Dividend of $0.35 Per Share
The Board of Trustees of Barings Participation Investors (NYSE:MPV) (the "Trust") today announced that it has declared a quarterly dividend of $0.35 per share payable on January 19, 2024, to shareholders of record on December 29, 2023. The final determination of the source and tax characteristics of these distributions will depend upon the Trust's investment experience during its fiscal year and will be made after the Trust's year end and will be reported on IRS Form 1099-Div.
Clifford Noreen, Chairman, stated, "We are pleased to announce an increase of $0.01 per share to the Trust's quarterly cash dividend, which represents a 2.9% increase over the previous dividend of $0.34 per share. Significant growth in net investment income, due primarily to increases in base rates for our floating rate holdings and quality credit selection, has led the Board of Trustees to declare the sixth consecutive increase to the quarterly dividend, further benefiting shareholders."
On December 13, 2023, the Trust's $15.0 million Senior Fixed Rate Convertible Note matured, and the Trust entered into a new $15.0 million Senior Floating Rate Convertible Note with MassMutual. The new Senior Floating Rate Convertible Note has a maturity date of December 13, 2033, and accrues interest at a rate of SOFR plus 2.20%. Also on December 13, 2023, the Trust amended its revolving credit agreement with MassMutual to increase the commitment size by $7.5 million to a total of $22.5 million and extend the maturity of the agreement to December 13, 2028. As of December 14, 2023, the Trust had $6.8 million of outstanding borrowings on the revolving credit facility.
The next scheduled meeting of the Board of Trustees will be held on February 26, 2024.
Barings Participation Investors is a closed-end management investment company advised by Barings LLC. Its shares are traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the trading symbol ("MPV").
Per share amounts are rounded to the nearest cent.
PAST PERFORMANCE IS NOT NECESSARILY INDICATIVE OF FUTURE RESULTS
Cautionary Notice: Certain statements contained in this press release may be "forward looking" statements. Investors are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date on which they are made and which reflect management's current estimates, projections, expectations or beliefs, and which are subject to risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to differ materially. These statements are subject to change at any time based upon economic, market or other conditions and may not be relied upon as investment advice or an indication of the fund's trading intent. References to specific securities are not recommendations of such securities, and may not be representative of the fund's current or future investments. We undertake no obligation to publicly update forward looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise.
About Barings
Barings is a $347+ billion* global investment manager sourcing differentiated opportunities and building long-term portfolios across public and private fixed income, real estate, and specialist equity markets. With investment professionals based in North America, Europe and Asia Pacific, the firm, a subsidiary of MassMutual, aims to serve its clients, communities and employees, and is committed to sustainable practices and responsible investment.
*As of September 30, 2023
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