Putnam Premier Income Trust filed SEC Form 8-K: Amendments to Articles of Incorporation or Bylaws; Change in Fiscal Year, Other Events, Financial Statements and Exhibits
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Item 5.03 Amendments to Articles of Incorporation or Bylaws; Change in Fiscal Year.
On , the Board of Trustees of Putnam Premier Income Trust (the “Fund”) determined it was in the best interests of shareholders to amend and restate the Bylaws of the Fund (the “Amended and Restated Bylaws”), effective as of November 17, 2023, to rescind Article 15 and its accompanying control share acquisition provisions (the “CSA Provisions”).
Pursuant to the rescinded CSA Provisions, a shareholder who obtained beneficial ownership of Fund shares in a “control share acquisition” could have exercised voting rights with respect to those shares only to the extent authorized by other shareholders of the Fund. A control share acquisition was an acquisition by any person of beneficial ownership of shares (subject to certain exclusions) entitling the person to vote shares in the election of Trustees within any one of four specified ranges of voting power, beginning at 10%. Once a person made a control share acquisition, that person would only have voting rights with respect to those shares to the extent authorized by a vote of shareholders. The CSA Provisions did not eliminate voting rights for shares acquired in control share acquisitions, but rather the provisions entrusted the Fund’s other “non-interested” shareholders with determining whether to approve the authorization of voting rights for such shares.
Prior to rescinding the CSA Provisions, on February 23, 2023, the Fund’s Board of Trustees had voted to exempt from the CSA Provisions, including on a going forward basis, all prior and, until further notice, new purchases of shares of the Fund that might otherwise be deemed control share acquisitions under the CSA Provisions.
Investors should refer to the Amended and Restated Bylaws for more information, which are attached as an Exhibit and incorporated herein by reference.
Item 8.01 Other Events.
On November 17, 2023, the Board of Trustees of the Fund voted to adopt an investment policy that requires the Fund, under normal circumstances, to maintain an average portfolio rating of investment grade. This requirement applies at the time of the making of an investment and is violated if, and only if, the average portfolio rating of the Fund would no longer be investment grade immediately after and as a result of such investment. For purposes of this requirement, the credit rating for each investment is determined at the time of purchase by a nationally recognized securities rating agency, or if the investment is not rated by a nationally recognized securities rating agency, by Putnam Investment Management, LLC, the Fund’s investment adviser.
Item 9.01. Financial Statements and Exhibits.
(d) Exhibits.
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Description | |
| 5.03 | Amended and Restated Bylaws of Putnam Premier Income Trust dated November 17, 2023 |
SIGNATURE
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned hereunto duly authorized.
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Putnam Premier Income Trust
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| By: | /s/Jonathan S. Horwitz | |
| Jonathan S. Horwitz | ||
| Date: November 17, 2023 | Executive Vice President, Principal Executive Officer and Compliance Liaison | |