SEC Form N-CSR filed by Blackrock Enhanced Government Fund Inc.
UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
FORM N-CSR
CERTIFIED SHAREHOLDER REPORT OF REGISTERED MANAGEMENT
INVESTMENT COMPANIES
Investment Company Act file number: 811-21793
| Name of Fund: | BlackRock Enhanced Government Fund, Inc. (EGF) |
| Fund Address: | 100 Bellevue Parkway, Wilmington, DE 19809 |
Name and address of agent for service: John M. Perlowski, Chief Executive Officer, BlackRock Enhanced Government Fund, Inc., 50 Hudson Yards, New York, NY 10001
Registrant’s telephone number, including area code: (800) 882-0052, Option 4
Date of fiscal year end: 12/31/2023
Date of reporting period: 12/31/2023
Item 1 – Report to Stockholders
(a) The Report to Shareholders is attached herewith.
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DECEMBER 31, 2023 |
| 2023 Annual Report | ||
BlackRock Enhanced Government Fund, Inc. (EGF)
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Not FDIC Insured • May Lose Value • No Bank Guarantee |
Supplemental Information (unaudited)
Section 19(a) Notices
BlackRock Enhanced Government Fund, Inc.’s (EGF) (the “Fund”) amounts and sources of distributions reported are estimates and are being provided pursuant to regulatory requirements and are not being provided for tax reporting purposes. The actual amounts and sources for tax reporting purposes will depend upon the Fund’s investment experience during its fiscal year and may be subject to changes based on tax regulations. The Fund will provide a Form 1099-DIV each calendar year that will tell you how to report these distributions for U.S. federal income tax purposes.
December 31, 2023
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Total Cumulative Distributions for the Fiscal Period |
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% Breakdown of the Total Cumulative Distributions for the Fiscal Period |
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| Fund Name | |
Net Income |
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Net Realized Capital Gains Short-Term |
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Net Realized Capital Gains Long-Term |
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Return of Capital |
(a) |
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Total Per Common Share |
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Net Income |
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Net Realized Capital Gains Short-Term |
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Net Realized Capital Gains Long-Term |
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Return of Capital |
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Total Per Common Share |
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| EGF |
$ | 0.334458 | $ | — | $ | — | $ | 0.157542 | $ | 0.492000 | 68 | % | — | % | — | % | 32 | % | 100 | % | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| (a) | The Fund estimates that it has distributed more than its net income and net realized capital gains; therefore, a portion of the distribution may be a return of capital. A return of capital may occur, for example, when some or all of the shareholder’s investment in the Fund is returned to the shareholder. A return of capital does not necessarily reflect the Fund’s investment performance and should not be confused with “yield” or “income.” When distributions exceed total return performance, the difference will reduce the Fund’s net asset value per share. |
Section 19(a) notices for the Fund, as applicable, are available on the BlackRock website at blackrock.com.
Managed Distribution Plan
The Fund, with the approval of its Board of Directors (the “Board”), has adopted a managed distribution plan, consistent with its investment objectives and policies, to support a level distribution of income, capital gains and/or return of capital (the “Plan”). In accordance with the Plan, the Fund currently distributes a fixed amount of $0.041000 per share on a monthly basis.
The fixed amount distributed per share is subject to change at the discretion of the Fund’s Board. The Fund is currently not relying on any exemptive relief from Section 19(b) of the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “1940 Act”). Under its Plan, the Fund will distribute all available investment income to its shareholders as required by the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the “Code”). If sufficient income (inclusive of net investment income and short-term capital gains) is not earned on a monthly basis, the Fund will distribute long-term capital gains and/or return of capital to shareholders in order to maintain a level distribution. Each monthly distribution to shareholders is expected to be at the fixed amount established by the Board; however, the Fund may make additional distributions from time to time, including additional capital gain distributions at the end of the taxable year, if required to meet requirements imposed by the Code and/or the 1940 Act.
Shareholders should not draw any conclusions about the Fund’s investment performance from the amount of these distributions or from the terms of the Plan. The Fund’s total return performance is presented in its financial highlights table.
The Board may amend, suspend or terminate the Fund’s Plan at any time without prior notice to the Fund’s shareholders if it deems such actions to be in the best interests of the Fund or its shareholders. The suspension or termination of the Plan could have the effect of creating a trading discount (if the Fund’s stock is trading at or above net asset value) or widening an existing trading discount. The Fund is subject to risks that could have an adverse impact on its ability to maintain level distributions. Examples of potential risks include, but are not limited to, economic downturns impacting the markets, changes in interest rates, decreased market volatility, companies suspending or decreasing corporate dividend distributions and changes in the Code.
| 2 |
2 0 2 3 B L A C K R O C K A N N U A L R E P O R T T O S H A R E H O L D E R S |
Dear Shareholder,
The combination of continued economic growth and cooling inflation provided a supportive backdrop for investors during the 12-month reporting period ended December 31, 2023. Significantly tighter monetary policy helped to rein in inflation, and the Consumer Price Index decelerated substantially in the first half of the year before stalling between 3% and 4% in the second half. A moderating labor market helped ease inflationary pressure, although wages continued to grow. Wage and job growth powered robust consumer spending, backstopping the economy. On October 7, 2023, Hamas launched a horrific attack on Israel. The ensuing war will have a significant humanitarian impact and could lead to heightened economic and market volatility. We see geopolitics as a structural market risk going forward. See our geopolitical risk dashboard at blackrock.com for more details.
Equity returns were robust during the period, as interest rates stabilized and the economy proved to be more resilient than many investors expected. The U.S. economy continued to show strength, and growth further accelerated in the third quarter of 2023. Large-capitalization U.S. stocks posted particularly substantial gains, supported by the performance of a few notable technology companies and small-capitalization U.S. stocks also advanced. Meanwhile, international developed market equities and emerging market stocks posted solid gains.
The 10-year U.S. Treasury yield ended 2023 where it began despite an eventful year that saw significant moves in bond markets. Overall, U.S. Treasuries gained as investors began to anticipate looser financial conditions. The corporate bond market benefited from improving economic sentiment, although high-yield corporate bond prices fared significantly better than investment-grade bonds as demand from yield-seeking investors remained strong.
The U.S. Federal Reserve (the “Fed”), attempting to manage persistent inflation, raised interest rates four times during the 12-month period, but paused its tightening in the second half of the period. The Fed also wound down its bond-buying programs and incrementally reduced its balance sheet by not replacing securities that reach maturity.
Supply constraints appear to have become an embedded feature of the new macroeconomic environment, making it difficult for developed economies to increase production without sparking higher inflation. Geopolitical fragmentation and an aging population risk further exacerbating these constraints, keeping the labor market tight and wage growth high. Although the Fed has stopped tightening for now, we believe that the new economic regime means that the Fed will need to maintain high rates for an extended period despite the market’s hopes for interest rate cuts, as reflected in the recent rally. In this new regime, we anticipate greater volatility and dispersion of returns, creating more opportunities for selective portfolio management.
We believe developed market equities have priced in an optimistic scenario for rate cuts, which we view as premature, so we prefer an underweight stance in the near term. Nevertheless, we are overweight on Japanese stocks as shareholder-friendly policies generate increased investor interest. We also believe that stocks with an AI tilt should benefit from an investment cycle that is set to support revenues and margins. In credit, there are selective opportunities in the near term despite tighter credit and financial conditions. For fixed income investing with a six- to twelve-month horizon, we see the most attractive investments in short-term U.S. Treasuries, U.S. mortgage-backed securities, and hard-currency emerging market bonds.
Overall, our view is that investors need to think globally, position themselves to be prepared for a decarbonizing economy, and be nimble as market conditions change. We encourage you to talk with your financial advisor and visit blackrock.com for further insight about investing in today’s markets.
Sincerely,
Rob Kapito
President, BlackRock Advisors, LLC
Rob Kapito
President, BlackRock Advisors, LLC
| Total Returns as of December 31, 2023 | ||||||||
| 6-Month | 12-Month | |||||||
|
U.S. large cap equities |
8.04 | % | 26.29 | % | ||||
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U.S. small cap equities |
8.18 | 16.93 | ||||||
| International equities |
5.88 | 18.24 | ||||||
| Emerging market equities |
4.71 | 9.83 | ||||||
| 3-month Treasury bills (ICE BofA 3-Month U.S. Treasury Bill Index) |
2.70 | 5.02 | ||||||
| U.S. Treasury securities |
1.11 | 2.83 | ||||||
| U.S. investment grade bonds |
3.37 | 5.53 | ||||||
| Tax-exempt municipal bonds |
3.63 | 6.40 | ||||||
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U.S. high yield bonds |
7.65 | 13.44 | ||||||
| Past performance is not an indication of future results. Index performance is shown for illustrative purposes only. You cannot invest directly in an index. |
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| 4 |
The Benefits and Risks of Leveraging
The Fund may utilize leverage to seek to enhance the distribution rate on, and net asset value (“NAV”) of, its common shares (“Common Shares”). However, there is no guarantee that these objectives can be achieved in all interest rate environments.
In general, the concept of leveraging is based on the premise that the financing cost of leverage, which is based on short-term interest rates, is normally lower than the income earned by the Fund on its longer-term portfolio investments purchased with the proceeds from leverage. To the extent that the total assets of the Fund (including the assets obtained from leverage) are invested in higher-yielding portfolio investments, the Fund’s shareholders benefit from the incremental net income. The interest earned on securities purchased with the proceeds from leverage (after paying the leverage costs) is paid to shareholders in the form of dividends, and the value of these portfolio holdings (less the leverage liability) is reflected in the per share NAV.
To illustrate these concepts, assume the Fund’s capitalization is $100 million and it utilizes leverage for an additional $30 million, creating a total value of $130 million available for investment in longer-term income securities. If prevailing short-term interest rates are 3% and longer-term interest rates are 6%, the yield curve has a strongly positive slope. In this case, the Fund’s financing costs on the $30 million of proceeds obtained from leverage are based on the lower short-term interest rates. At the same time, the securities purchased by the Fund with the proceeds from leverage earn income based on longer-term interest rates. In this case, the Fund’s financing cost of leverage is significantly lower than the income earned on the Fund’s longer-term investments acquired from such leverage proceeds, and therefore the holders of Common Shares (“Common Shareholders”) are the beneficiaries of the incremental net income.
However, in order to benefit shareholders, the return on assets purchased with leverage proceeds must exceed the ongoing costs associated with the leverage. If interest and other costs of leverage exceed the Fund’s return on assets purchased with leverage proceeds, income to shareholders is lower than if the Fund had not used leverage. Furthermore, the value of the Fund’s portfolio investments generally varies inversely with the direction of long-term interest rates, although other factors can influence the value of portfolio investments. In contrast, the amount of the Fund’s obligations under its leverage arrangement generally does not fluctuate in relation to interest rates. As a result, changes in interest rates can influence the Fund’s NAV positively or negatively. Changes in the future direction of interest rates are very difficult to predict accurately, and there is no assurance that the Fund’s intended leveraging strategy will be successful.
The use of leverage also generally causes greater changes in the Fund’s NAV, market price and dividend rates than comparable portfolios without leverage. In a declining market, leverage is likely to cause a greater decline in the NAV and market price of the Fund’s shares than if the Fund were not leveraged. In addition, the Fund may be required to sell portfolio securities at inopportune times or at distressed values in order to comply with regulatory requirements applicable to the use of leverage or as required by the terms of leverage instruments, which may cause the Fund to incur losses. The use of leverage may limit the Fund’s ability to invest in certain types of securities or use certain types of hedging strategies. The Fund incurs expenses in connection with the use of leverage, all of which are borne by shareholders and may reduce income to the shareholders. Moreover, to the extent the calculation of the Fund’s investment advisory fees includes assets purchased with the proceeds of leverage, the investment advisory fees payable to the Fund’s investment adviser will be higher than if the Fund did not use leverage.
The Fund may utilize leverage through reverse repurchase agreements as described in the Notes to Financial Statements, if applicable.
Under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “1940 Act”), the Fund is permitted to borrow money (including through the use of TOB Trusts) or issue debt securities up to 33 1/3% of its total managed assets. The Fund may voluntarily elect to limit its leverage to less than the maximum amount permitted under the 1940 Act.
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T H E B E N E F I T S A N D R I S K S O F L E V E R A G I N G |
5 |
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BlackRock Enhanced Government Fund, Inc. (EGF)
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In general, the goal of the Fund is to provide shareholders with current income and gains. The Fund seeks to pursue this goal primarily by investing in a portfolio of U.S. Government and U.S. Agency securities and utilizing an option over-writing strategy in an effort to generate current gains from option premiums and to enhance each Fund’s risk-adjusted return. The Fund’s objectives cannot be achieved in all market conditions.
The Fund writes call options on individual U.S. Government and U.S. Agency securities or on baskets of such securities or on interest rate swaps (“swaptions”) and may write call options on other debt securities. When writing (selling) a call option, the Fund grants the counterparty the right to buy an underlying reference security or enter into a defined transaction (e.g., a swap contract, in the case of the swaption) at an agreed-upon price (“strike price”) within an agreed upon time period. The Fund receives cash premiums from the counterparties upon writing (selling) the option or swaption, which along with net investment income and net realized gains, if any, are generally available to support current or future distributions paid by the Fund. During the option term, the counterparty may elect to exercise the option if the market value of the underlying reference security or underlying contract rises above the strike price, and the Fund is obligated to sell the security or contract to the counterparty at the strike price, realizing a gain or loss. If the option remains unexercised upon its expiration, the Fund realizes gains equal to the premiums received.
Writing call options and swaptions entails certain risks, which include but are not limited to, the following: an increase in the value of the underlying security above the strike price can result in the exercise of a written option (sale by the Fund to the counterparty) when the Fund might not otherwise have sold the security; exercise of the option by the counterparty may result in a sale below the current market value and in a gain or loss realized by the Fund; writing call options and swaptions limits the potential appreciation on the underlying interest rate swap or security and the yield on the Fund could decline; if current market interest rates fall below the strike price, the counterparty could exercise a written swaption when the Fund might not otherwise have entered into an interest rate swap; the Fund is bound by the terms of the underlying interest rate swap agreement upon exercise of the option by the counterparty which can result in a loss to the Fund in excess of the premium received. The premium that the Fund receives from writing a call option or swaption may not be sufficient to offset the potential appreciation on the underlying equity security or interest rate swap above the strike price of the option that could have otherwise been realized by the Fund. As such, an option over-writing strategy may outperform the general fixed-income market in rising or flat interest rate environments (when bond prices are steady or falling) but underperform in a falling interest rate environment (when bond prices are rising).
The Fund intends to write call options and swaptions to varying degrees depending upon market conditions. Please refer to the Schedule of Investments and the Notes to Financial Statements for details of written call options and swaptions.
Derivative Financial Instruments
The Fund may invest in various derivative financial instruments. These instruments are used to obtain exposure to a security, commodity, index, market, and/or other assets without owning or taking physical custody of securities, commodities and/or other referenced assets or to manage market, equity, credit, interest rate, foreign currency exchange rate, commodity and/or other risks. Derivative financial instruments may give rise to a form of economic leverage and involve risks, including the imperfect correlation between the value of a derivative financial instrument and the underlying asset, possible default of the counterparty to the transaction or illiquidity of the instrument. Pursuant to Rule 18f-4 under the 1940 Act, among other things, the Fund must either use derivative financial instruments with embedded leverage in a limited manner or comply with an outer limit on fund leverage risk based on value-at-risk. The Fund’s successful use of a derivative financial instrument depends on the investment adviser’s ability to predict pertinent market movements accurately, which cannot be assured. The use of these instruments may result in losses greater than if they had not been used, may limit the amount of appreciation the Fund can realize on an investment and/or may result in lower distributions paid to shareholders. The Fund’s investments in these instruments, if any, are discussed in detail in the Notes to Financial Statements.
| 6 |
2 0 2 3 B L A C K R O C K A N N U A L R E P O R T T O S H A R E H O L D E R S |
| Fund Summary as of December 31, 2023
|
BlackRock Enhanced Government Fund, Inc. (EGF)
|
Investment Objective
BlackRock Enhanced Government Fund, Inc.’s (EGF) (the “Fund”) investment objective is to provide shareholders with current income and gains. The Fund seeks to achieve its investment objective by investing primarily in a portfolio of U.S. Government securities and U.S. Government Agency securities, including U.S. Government mortgage-backed securities, that pay interest in an attempt to generate current income, and by employing a strategy of writing (selling) call options on individual or baskets of U.S. Government securities, U.S. Government Agency securities or other debt securities held by the Fund.
No assurance can be given that the Fund’s investment objective will be achieved.
Fund Information
| Symbol on New York Stock Exchange |
EGF | |
| Initial Offering Date |
October 31, 2005 | |
| Current Distribution Rate on Closing Market Price as of December 31, 2023 ($ 9.73)(a) |
5.06% | |
| Current Monthly Distribution per Common Share(b) |
$0.041000 | |
| Current Annualized Distribution per Common Share(b) |
$0.492000 | |
| (a) | Current distribution rate on closing market price is calculated by dividing the current annualized distribution per share by the closing market price. The current distribution rate may consist of income, net realized gains and/or a return of capital. Past performance is not an indication of future results. |
| (b) | The distribution rate is not constant and is subject to change. A portion of the distribution may be deemed a return of capital or net realized gain. |
Market Price and Net Asset Value Per Share Summary
| 12/31/23 | 12/31/22 | Change | High | Low | ||||||||||||||||
| Closing Market Price |
$ |
9.73 |
|
$ |
9.68 |
|
|
0.52 |
% |
$ |
10.40 |
|
$ |
9.06 |
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| Net Asset Value |
|
10.34 |
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|
10.38 |
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|
(0.39 |
) |
|
10.74 |
|
|
9.64 |
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GROWTH OF $10,000 INVESTMENT
| (a) | Represents the Fund’s closing market price on the NYSE and reflects the reinvestment of dividends and/or distributions at actual reinvestment prices. |
| (b) | An index that is a subset of ICE BofA U.S. Treasury Index including all securities with a remaining term to final maturity less than 10 years. ICE BofA U.S. Treasury Index tracks the performance of US dollar denominated sovereign debt publicly issued by the U.S. government in its domestic market. |
| F U N D S U M M A R Y |
7 |
| Fund Summary as of December 31, 2023 (continued)
|
BlackRock Enhanced Government Fund, Inc. (EGF)
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Performance
Returns for the period ended December 31, 2023 were as follows:
| Average Annual Total Returns |
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|
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|
1 Year |
5 Years |
10 Years |
||||||||||||||
| Fund at NAV(a)(b) |
|
4.66 |
% |
|
(1.18 |
)% |
|
0.30 |
% | |||||||
| Fund at Market Price(a)(b) |
|
5.60 |
|
|
(1.63 |
) |
|
0.50 |
| |||||||
| ICE BofA 1-3 Year U.S. Treasury Index(c) |
|
4.26 |
|
|
1.30 |
|
|
1.05 |
| |||||||
| FTSE Government/Mortgage Index(d) |
|
4.45 |
|
|
0.45 |
|
|
1.31 |
| |||||||
| ICE BofA 1-10 Year U.S. Treasury Index |
|
2.83 |
|
|
(0.03 |
) |
|
1.29 |
| |||||||
| (a) | All returns reflect reinvestment of dividends and/or distributions at actual reinvestment prices. Performance results reflect the Fund’s use of leverage, if any. |
| (b) | The Fund’s discount to NAV narrowed during the period, which accounts for the difference between performance based on market price and performance based on NAV. |
| (c) | An unmanaged index comprised of Treasury securities with maturities ranging from one to three years. |
| (d) | An unmanaged index that tracks the performance of U.S. dollar-denominated bonds issued in the U.S. investment-grade bond market. The index includes U.S. Treasury, government sponsored, and collateralized securities and provides a reliable representation of the U.S. investment-grade bond market. |
Performance results may include adjustments made for financial reporting purposes in accordance with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles. Past performance is not an indication of future results.
The Fund is presenting the performance of one or more indices for informational purposes only. The Fund is actively managed and does not seek to track or replicate the performance of any index. The index performance shown is not intended to be indicative of the Fund’s investment strategies, portfolio components or past or future performance.
More information about the Fund’s historical performance can be found in the “Closed End Funds” section of blackrock.com.
The following discussion relates to the Fund’s absolute performance based on NAV:
What factors influenced performance?
Performance is reviewed on an absolute basis due to the Fund’s unique strategy, which entails writing call options on individual or baskets of U.S. government securities or interest rates. The index returns listed above are for reference purposes only, as these indices do not reflect an option writing strategy.
The Fund’s exposure to agency mortgage-backed securities (“MBS”), collateralized loan obligations (“CLOs”), non-agency MBS and U.S. investment grade corporate bonds contributed positively to performance during the period.
There were no material detractors from the Fund’s performance for the period.
The Fund utilized derivatives during the period including interest rate swaptions as a hedge against long U.S. Treasury positions and as a means to manage duration, spread exposure and yield curve positioning. The use of swaps and Treasuries proved to be an efficient interest rate management tool during the reporting period and added positively to performance. During the period, the use of swaps and Treasury futures added to performance. The Fund’s cash position had no material impact on performance.
The Fund’s practice of maintaining a specified level of monthly distributions to shareholders did not have a material impact on the Fund’s investment strategy. The distribution policy resulted in return of capital for the period. Refer to the financial highlights and income tax information sections in this report for further information about the distributions.
Describe recent portfolio activity.
Over the period, the Fund purchased U.S. Treasury securities and used swaptions and U.S. Treasury futures to generate incremental yield. The Fund continued to favor agency MBS as a high-quality source of income especially given attractive valuations driven by the heightened interest rate volatility in March 2023 and regional bank selling of MBS. In the fourth quarter of 2023, the Fund trimmed this allocation in order to take profits following a period of strong performance. The Fund reduced the allocation to capital securities (i.e., subordinated bank debt) in the first half of 2023 due to concerns around potential pressures on the banking sector.
Describe portfolio positioning at period end.
At period end, the Fund continued to utilize its options writing strategy as a way to manage duration and generate incremental yield. The Fund maintained exposure to government-related sectors such as U.S. Treasury securities, agency debt and agency MBS, as well as a smaller exposure to spread sectors such as investment grade corporate bonds and CLOs.
The views expressed reflect the opinions of BlackRock as of the date of this report and are subject to change based on changes in market, economic or other conditions. These views are not intended to be a forecast of future events and are no guarantee of future results.
| 8 |
2 0 2 3 B L A C K R O C K A N N U A L R E P O R T T O S H A R E H O L D E R S |
| Fund Summary as of December 31, 2023 (continued)
|
BlackRock Enhanced Government Fund, Inc. (EGF)
|
Overview of the Fund’s Total Investments
PORTFOLIO COMPOSITION
| Asset Type(a) |
Percentage
of |
|||
| U.S. Government Sponsored Agency Securities |
|
70.2 |
% | |
| Asset-Backed Securities |
|
11.3 |
| |
| U.S. Treasury Obligations |
|
10.1 |
| |
| Non-Agency Mortgage-Backed Securities |
|
6.5 |
| |
| Corporate Bonds |
|
1.0 |
| |
| Preferred Securities |
|
0.9 |
| |
CREDIT QUALITY ALLOCATION
| Credit Rating(a)(b) |
Percentage
of |
|||
|
AAA/Aaa(c) |
|
87.4 |
% | |
| AA/Aa |
|
1.9 |
| |
| A |
|
6.0 |
| |
| BBB/Baa |
|
1.7 |
| |
| B |
|
0.3 |
| |
| N/R |
|
2.7 |
| |
| (a) | Excludes short-term securities. |
| (b) | For financial reporting purposes, credit quality ratings shown above reflect the highest rating assigned by either S&P Global Ratings or Moody’s Investors Service, Inc. if ratings differ. These rating agencies are independent, nationally recognized statistical rating organizations and are widely used. Investment grade ratings are credit ratings of BBB/Baa or higher. Below investment grade ratings are credit ratings of BB/Ba or lower. Investments designated N/R are not rated by either rating agency. Unrated investments do not necessarily indicate low credit quality. Credit quality ratings are subject to change. |
| (c) | The investment adviser evaluates the credit quality of not-rated investments based upon certain factors including, but not limited to, credit ratings for similar investments and financial analysis of sectors, individual investments and/or issuer. Using this approach, the investment adviser has deemed U.S. Government Sponsored Agency Securities and U.S. Treasury Obligations as AAA/Aaa. |
| F U N D S U M M A R Y |
9 |
|
December 31, 2023
|
BlackRock Enhanced Government Fund, Inc. (EGF) (Percentages shown are based on Net Assets)
|
| Security |
Par (000) |
Value | ||||||
|
Asset-Backed Securities |
||||||||
| Apidos CLO XXIV, Series 2016-24A, Class A1AL, (3-mo. CME Term SOFR + 1.21%), 6.63%, 10/20/30(a)(b) |
$ | 250 | $ | 249,544 | ||||
| Birch Grove CLO Ltd., Series 19A, Class CR, (3-mo. CME Term SOFR + 2.46%), 7.85%, 06/15/31(a)(b) |
300 | 300,577 | ||||||
| BlueMountain CLO XXV Ltd., Series 2019-25A, Class BR, (3-mo. CME Term SOFR + 1.96%), 7.36%, 07/15/36(a)(b) |
250 | 246,884 | ||||||
| Cedar Funding XV CLO Ltd., Series 2022-15A, Class B, (3-mo. CME Term SOFR + 1.80%), 7.22%, 04/20/35(a)(b) |
250 | 246,876 | ||||||
| Dryden CLO Ltd., Series 2017-53A, Class B, (3-mo. CME Term SOFR + 1.66%), 7.06%, 01/15/31(a)(b) |
250 | 248,584 | ||||||
| Elmwood CLO X Ltd., Series 2021-3A, Class C, (3-mo. CME Term SOFR + 2.21%), 7.63%, 10/20/34(a)(b) |
500 | 497,633 | ||||||
| Generate CLO Ltd., Series 2A, Class CR, (3-mo. CME Term SOFR + 2.11%), 7.52%, 01/22/31(a)(b) |
250 | 249,829 | ||||||
| Neuberger Berman Loan Advisers CLO Ltd.(a)(b) |
||||||||
| Series 2017-25A, Class AR, (3-mo. CME Term SOFR + 1.19%), 6.59%, 10/18/29 |
385 | 385,660 | ||||||
| Series 2019-35A, Class C, (3-mo. CME Term SOFR + 2.86%), 8.26%, 01/19/33 |
250 | 252,202 | ||||||
| OCP CLO Ltd., Series 2019-17A, Class BR, |
250 | 248,433 | ||||||
| OHA Credit Funding Ltd., Series 2019-4A, Class CR, (3-mo. CME Term SOFR + 2.31%), 7.72%, 10/22/36(a)(b) |
250 | 249,812 | ||||||
| Palmer Square CLO Ltd.(a)(b) |
||||||||
| Series 2014-1A, Class A1R2, (3-mo. CME Term SOFR + 1.39%), 6.79%, 01/17/31 |
162 | 162,365 | ||||||
| Series 2015-1A, Class BR4, (3-mo. CME Term SOFR + 2.11%), 7.48%, 05/21/34 |
250 | 247,164 | ||||||
| Securitized Asset-Backed Receivables LLC Trust, Series 2005-OP1, Class M2, (1-mo. Term SOFR + 0.79%), 6.15%, 01/25/35(a) |
119 | 103,191 | ||||||
| Southwick Park CLO LLC, Series 2019-4A, Class A1R, (3-mo. CME Term SOFR + 1.32%), 6.74%, 07/20/32(a)(b) |
250 | 249,394 | ||||||
| Trimaran CAVU Ltd., Series 2019-1A, Class C1, (3-mo. CME Term SOFR + 3.41%), 8.83%, 07/20/32(a)(b) |
250 | 250,004 | ||||||
| Voya CLO Ltd., Series 2016-1A, Class A1R, |
212 | 212,061 | ||||||
|
|
|
|||||||
| Total Asset-Backed Securities — 11.4% |
4,400,213 | |||||||
|
|
|
|||||||
| Corporate Bonds |
||||||||
| Aerospace & Defense — 0.1% | ||||||||
| Boeing Co., 3.63%, 02/01/31 |
50 | 46,440 | ||||||
|
|
|
|||||||
| Banks — 0.2% | ||||||||
| Morgan Stanley, (1-day SOFR + 3.12%), 3.62%, 04/01/31(a) |
75 | 69,092 | ||||||
|
|
|
|||||||
| Diversified Telecommunication Services — 0.4% | ||||||||
| Verizon Communications, Inc., 2.36%, 03/15/32 |
175 | 145,560 | ||||||
|
|
|
|||||||
| Security |
Par (000) |
Value | ||||||
|
Software — 0.3% |
||||||||
| Oracle Corp., 2.95%, 04/01/30 |
$ | 125 | $ | 112,818 | ||||
|
|
|
|||||||
| Total Corporate Bonds — 1.0% |
373,910 | |||||||
|
|
|
|||||||
| Non-Agency Mortgage-Backed Securities |
| |||||||
| Collateralized Mortgage Obligations — 6.5% | ||||||||
| Bank of America Mortgage Trust, Series 2003-J, Class 2A1, 5.15%, 11/25/33(a) |
17 | 15,297 | ||||||
| Bravo Residential Funding Trust, Series 2021-NQM1, Class A1, 0.94%, 02/25/49(a)(b) |
48 | 41,944 | ||||||
| Chase Home Lending Mortgage Trust, Series 2019-ATR1, Class A12, 6.50%, 04/25/49(a)(b) |
34 | 34,026 | ||||||
| COLT Mortgage Loan Trust(b) |
||||||||
| Series 2022-1, Class A1, 4.55%, 04/25/67(a) |
95 | 93,492 | ||||||
| Series 2022-2, Class A1, 2.99%, 02/25/67 |
117 | 105,948 | ||||||
| Series 2022-7, Class A1, 5.16%, 04/25/67 |
202 | 197,026 | ||||||
| Credit Suisse Mortgage Capital Certificates Trust, Series 2022-ATH1, Class A1A, 2.87%, 01/25/67(a)(b) |
114 | 106,648 | ||||||
| Ellington Financial Mortgage Trust, Series 2022-1, Class A1, 2.21%, 01/25/67(a)(b) |
228 | 191,558 | ||||||
| Flagstar Mortgage Trust, Series 2021-4, Class A1, 2.50%, 06/01/51(a)(b) |
169 | 138,664 | ||||||
| GS Mortgage-Backed Securities Corp. Trust, Series 2022- PJ2, Class A4, 2.50%, |
87 | 71,223 | ||||||
| GS Mortgage-Backed Securities Trust, Series 2021-PJ2, Class A2, 2.50%, 11/25/51(a)(b) |
83 | 68,046 | ||||||
| JP Morgan Mortgage Trust(a)(b) |
||||||||
| Series 2022-DSC1, Class A1, 4.75%, 01/25/63 |
111 | 105,449 | ||||||
| Series 2022-INV3, Class A3B, 3.00%, 09/25/52 |
86 | 73,424 | ||||||
| Mello Mortgage Capital Acceptance, Series 2022-INV2, Class A3, 3.00%, 04/25/52(a)(b) |
90 | 76,882 | ||||||
| MFA Trust(a)(b) |
||||||||
| Series 2020-NQM1, Class A1, 1.48%, 03/25/65 |
58 | 54,466 | ||||||
| Series 2021-NQM1, Class M1, 2.31%, 04/25/65 |
250 | 189,796 | ||||||
| OBX Trust, Series 2022-INC3, Class A1, 3.00%, 02/25/52(a)(b) |
89 | 75,792 | ||||||
| RCKT Mortgage Trust, Series 2022-2, Class A1, 3.00%, 02/25/52(a)(b) |
88 | 75,087 | ||||||
| STAR Trust, Series 2021-1, Class M1, 2.36%, 05/25/65(a)(b) |
200 | 152,933 | ||||||
| TRK Trust, Series 2021-INV2, Class A1, 1.97%, 11/25/56(a)(b) |
134 | 112,824 | ||||||
| Verus Securitization Trust(b) |
||||||||
| Series 2022-1, Class A1, 2.72%, 01/25/67 |
84 | 74,729 | ||||||
| Series 2022-3, Class A1, 4.13%, 02/25/67 |
326 | 303,512 | ||||||
| Series 2022-7, Class A1, 5.15%, 07/25/67 |
131 | 130,724 | ||||||
|
|
|
|||||||
| 2,489,490 | ||||||||
| 10 |
2 0 2 3 B L A C K R O C K A N N U A L R E P O R T T O S H A R E H O L D E R S |
| Schedule of Investments (continued) December 31, 2023
|
BlackRock Enhanced Government Fund, Inc. (EGF) (Percentages shown are based on Net Assets)
|
| Security |
Par (000) |
Value | ||||||
|
Interest Only Collateralized Mortgage Obligations — 0.0% |
||||||||
| CitiMortgage Alternative Loan Trust, Series 2007-A5, Class 1A7, 6.00%, 05/25/37 |
$ | 61 | $ | 10,718 | ||||
|
|
|
|||||||
| Total Non-Agency Mortgage-Backed Securities — 6.5% |
| |||||||
| (Cost: $2,747,645) |
2,500,208 | |||||||
|
|
|
|||||||
| Preferred Securities |
| |||||||
| Capital Trusts — 0.9%(a)(c) | ||||||||
| Banks — 0.9% | ||||||||
| HSBC Holdings PLC, 8.00% |
200 | 205,858 | ||||||
| Wells Fargo & Co., Series U, 5.88% |
160 | 158,332 | ||||||
|
|
|
|||||||
| 364,190 | ||||||||
|
|
|
|||||||
| Total Preferred Securities — 0.9% |
364,190 | |||||||
|
|
|
|||||||
| U.S. Government Sponsored Agency Securities |
| |||||||
| Agency Obligations — 9.0% | ||||||||
| Fannie Mae, 1.61%, 01/27/33 |
300 | 238,719 | ||||||
| Federal Farm Credit Banks Funding Corp. |
||||||||
| 2.75%, 02/22/30 |
400 | 366,298 | ||||||
| 1.84%, 01/25/36 |
500 | 363,359 | ||||||
| Federal Home Loan Banks, 2.13%, 09/14/29 |
1,000 | 904,650 | ||||||
| Freddie Mac |
||||||||
| 0.38%, 05/17/24 |
500 | 490,792 | ||||||
| 0.40%, 05/24/24 |
905 | 887,736 | ||||||
| 0.41%, 09/17/24 |
220 | 212,953 | ||||||
|
|
|
|||||||
| 3,464,507 | ||||||||
| Collateralized Mortgage Obligations — 10.6% | ||||||||
| Fannie Mae REMICS |
||||||||
| Series 2013-73, Class KE, 3.00%, 07/25/43 |
500 | 420,656 | ||||||
| Series 2017-90, Class WB, 3.00%, 11/25/47 |
433 | 343,601 | ||||||
| Series 2020-79, Class JA, 1.50%, 11/25/50 |
218 | 189,923 | ||||||
| Series 2022-25, Class KL, 4.00%, 05/25/52 |
1,000 | 904,014 | ||||||
| Series 2022-31, Class BZ, 4.00%, 10/25/51 |
703 | 603,886 | ||||||
| Series 4480, Class ZX, 4.00%, 11/15/44 |
632 | 602,989 | ||||||
| Freddie Mac REMICS |
||||||||
| Series 4398, Class ZX, 4.00%, 09/15/54 |
361 | 325,916 | ||||||
| Series 4921, Class NL, 3.00%, 10/25/49 |
504 | 370,901 | ||||||
| Series 5230, Class DL, 3.50%, 09/25/44 |
400 | 344,317 | ||||||
|
|
|
|||||||
| 4,106,203 | ||||||||
| Commercial Mortgage-Backed Securities — 0.0% | ||||||||
| Ginnie Mae, Series 2006-30, Class IO, 2.79%, 05/16/46(a) . |
37 | 5 | ||||||
|
|
|
|||||||
| Interest Only Collateralized Mortgage Obligations — 0.3% | ||||||||
| Fannie Mae REMICS, Series 2012-47, Class NI, 4.50%, 04/25/42 |
187 | 31,456 | ||||||
| Ginnie Mae(a) |
||||||||
| Series 2009-116, Class KS, (1-mo. Term SOFR + 6.36%), 1.00%, 12/16/39 |
109 | 8,864 | ||||||
| Series 2011-52, Class NS, (1-mo. Term SOFR + 6.56%), 1.20%, 04/16/41 |
1,094 | 80,758 | ||||||
|
|
|
|||||||
| 121,078 | ||||||||
| Mortgage-Backed Securities — 50.6% | ||||||||
| Freddie Mac Mortgage-Backed Securities, 3.50%, 01/01/46 |
790 | 742,845 | ||||||
| Ginnie Mae Mortgage-Backed Securities, 5.00%, 11/15/35. |
2 | 1,477 | ||||||
| Uniform Mortgage-Backed Securities |
||||||||
| 4.00%, 10/01/24 - 10/01/53 |
5,100 | 4,963,803 | ||||||
| 1.50%, 06/01/31 |
632 | 581,027 | ||||||
| Security |
Par (000) |
Value | ||||||
|
Mortgage-Backed Securities (continued) |
||||||||
| Uniform Mortgage-Backed Securities (continued) |
|
|||||||
| 5.00%, 11/01/33 - 01/16/54(d) |
$ | 2,503 | $ | 2,516,386 | ||||
| 3.50%, 02/01/35 - 01/16/54(d) |
2,392 | 2,224,304 | ||||||
| 5.50%, 03/01/35 - 04/01/53 |
1,496 | 1,522,783 | ||||||
| 6.00%, 02/01/36 - 03/01/38 |
64 | 66,828 | ||||||
| 4.50%, 04/01/39 - 01/16/54(d) |
2,742 | 2,732,279 | ||||||
| 3.00%, 03/01/43 - 05/01/52 |
3,400 | 3,073,728 | ||||||
| 6.50%, 09/01/53 - 10/01/53 |
1,114 | 1,141,474 | ||||||
|
|
|
|||||||
| 19,566,934 | ||||||||
|
|
|
|||||||
| Total U.S. Government Sponsored Agency Securities — 70.5% |
| |||||||
| (Cost: $28,551,063) |
|
27,258,727 | ||||||
|
|
|
|||||||
| U.S. Treasury Obligations |
||||||||
| U.S. Treasury Bonds |
||||||||
| 1.88%, 02/15/41 - 02/15/51(e) |
940 | 670,293 | ||||||
| 3.38%, 08/15/42 |
900 | 802,512 | ||||||
| 3.00%, 08/15/48 |
5 | 4,070 | ||||||
| 2.38%, 05/15/51 |
700 | 499,516 | ||||||
| 2.00%, 08/15/51 |
950 | 620,357 | ||||||
| U.S. Treasury Notes |
||||||||
| 5.00%, 10/31/25 |
590 | 596,730 | ||||||
| 4.38%, 11/30/28 |
700 | 716,297 | ||||||
|
|
|
|||||||
| Total U.S. Treasury Obligations — 10.1% |
3,909,775 | |||||||
|
|
|
|||||||
| Total Long-Term Investments — 100.4% |
38,807,023 | |||||||
|
|
|
|||||||
|
Shares |
||||||||
|
Short-Term Securities |
||||||||
| Money Market Funds — 3.4% | ||||||||
| BlackRock Liquidity Funds, T-Fund, Institutional Class, 5.26%(f)(g) |
1,302,929 | 1,302,929 | ||||||
|
|
|
|||||||
| Total Short-Term Securities — 3.4% |
1,302,929 | |||||||
|
|
|
|||||||
| Total Investments Before Options Written — 103.8% |
|
40,109,952 | ||||||
|
|
|
|||||||
| Options Written — (0.4)% |
(136,080 | ) | ||||||
|
|
|
|||||||
| Total Investments, Net of Options Written — 103.4% |
|
39,973,872 | ||||||
| Liabilities in Excess of Other Assets — (3.4)% |
|
(1,322,959 | ) | |||||
|
|
|
|||||||
| Net Assets — 100.0% |
|
$ |
38,650,913 |
| ||||
|
|
|
|||||||
| (a) | Variable rate security. Interest rate resets periodically. The rate shown is the effective interest rate as of period end. Security description also includes the reference rate and spread if published and available. |
| (b) | Security exempt from registration pursuant to Rule 144A under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended. These securities may be resold in transactions exempt from registration to qualified institutional investors. |
| (c) | Perpetual security with no stated maturity date. |
| (d) | Represents or includes a TBA transaction. |
| (e) | All or a portion of the security has been pledged as collateral in connection with outstanding OTC derivatives. |
| (f) | Affiliate of the Fund. |
| (g) | Annualized 7-day yield as of period end. |
|
S C H E D U L E O F I N V E S T M E N T S |
11 |
| Schedule of Investments (continued) December 31, 2023
|
BlackRock Enhanced Government Fund, Inc. (EGF)
|
Affiliates
Investments in issuers considered to be affiliate(s) of the Fund during the year ended December 31, 2023 for purposes of Section 2(a)(3) of the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended, were as follows:
| Affiliated Issuer | Value at 12/31/22 |
Purchases at Cost |
Proceeds from Sale |
Net Realized Gain (Loss) |
Change in Unrealized Appreciation (Depreciation) |
Value at 12/31/23 |
Shares Held at |
Income | Capital Gain Distributions from Underlying Funds |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| BlackRock Liquidity Funds, |
$ | 1,738,499 | $ | — | $ (435,570 | )(a) | $ | — | $ | — | $ | 1,302,929 | 1,302,929 | $ | 75,618 | $ | — | |||||||||||||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| (a) | Represents net amount purchased (sold). |
Derivative Financial Instruments Outstanding as of Period End
Futures Contracts
| Description | Number of Contracts |
Expiration Date |
Notional Amount (000) |
Value/ Unrealized Appreciation (Depreciation) |
||||||||||||
| Long Contracts |
||||||||||||||||
| 10-Year U.S. Ultra Long Treasury Note |
5 | 03/19/24 | $ | 590 | $ | 26,203 | ||||||||||
| Ultra U.S. Treasury Bond |
11 | 03/19/24 | 1,470 | 105,293 | ||||||||||||
| 2-Year U.S. Treasury Note |
8 | 03/28/24 | 1,647 | 15,841 | ||||||||||||
| 5-Year U.S. Treasury Note |
51 | 03/28/24 | 5,547 | 125,826 | ||||||||||||
|
|
|
|||||||||||||||
| 273,163 | ||||||||||||||||
|
|
|
|||||||||||||||
| Short Contracts |
||||||||||||||||
| 10-Year U.S. Treasury Note |
7 | 03/19/24 | 790 | (25,866 | ) | |||||||||||
| U.S. Long Bond |
8 | 03/19/24 | 1,000 | (72,574 | ) | |||||||||||
|
|
|
|||||||||||||||
| (98,440 | ) | |||||||||||||||
|
|
|
|||||||||||||||
| $ | 174,723 | |||||||||||||||
|
|
|
|||||||||||||||
OTC Interest Rate Swaptions Written
| Description | Paid by the Fund | Received by the Fund | Counterparty | Expiration Date |
Exercise Rate |
Notional Amount (000) |
Value | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rate | Frequency | Rate | Frequency | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Call |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 10-Year Interest Rate Swap, 02/01/34 |
3.42% | Annual | |
1-Day SOFR, 5.38% |
|
Annual | Goldman Sachs International |
01/30/24 | 3.42 | % | USD | 3,607 | $ | (31,011 | ) | |||||||||||||||
| 2-Year Interest Rate Swap, 02/01/26 |
3.99% | Annual | |
1-Day SOFR, 5.38% |
|
Annual | Goldman Sachs International |
01/30/24 | 3.99 | USD | 17,315 | (49,875 | ) | |||||||||||||||||
| 30-Year Interest Rate Swap, 02/01/54 |
3.23% | Annual | |
1-Day SOFR, 5.38% |
|
Annual | Goldman Sachs International |
01/30/24 | 3.23 | USD | 1,442 | (17,724 | ) | |||||||||||||||||
| 5-Year Interest Rate Swap, 02/01/29 |
3.47% | Annual | |
1-Day SOFR, 5.38% |
|
Annual | Goldman Sachs International |
01/30/24 | 3.47 | USD | 6,493 | (37,470 | ) | |||||||||||||||||
|
|
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| $ | (136,080 | ) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
OTC Credit Default Swaps — Sell Protection
| Reference Obligation/Index | Financing Rate Received by the Fund |
Payment Frequency |
Counterparty | Termination Date |
Credit Rating(a) |
Notional Amount (000)(b) |
Value | Upfront Premium Paid (Received) |
Unrealized Appreciation (Depreciation) |
|||||||||||||||||
| CMBX.NA.9 |
3.00 | % | Monthly | Goldman Sachs International | 09/17/58 | N/R | 26 | $(4,528) | $ | (2,720 | ) | $ | (1,808 | ) | ||||||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
||||||||||||||||||||||
| (a) | Using the rating of the issuer or the underlying securities of the index, as applicable, provided by S&P Global Ratings. |
| (b) | The maximum potential amount the Fund may pay should a negative credit event take place as defined under the terms of the agreement. |
| 12 |
2 0 2 3 B L A C K R O C K A N N U A L R E P O R T T O S H A R E H O L D E R S |
| Schedule of Investments (continued) December 31, 2023
|
BlackRock Enhanced Government Fund, Inc. (EGF) |
Balances Reported in the Statement of Assets and Liabilities for OTC Swaps and Options Written
|
|
||||||||||||||||||||
| Description | Swap Premiums Paid |
Swap Premiums Received |
Unrealized Appreciation |
Unrealized Depreciation |
Value | |||||||||||||||
| OTC Swaps |
$ |
— |
|
$ |
(2,720 |
) |
$ |
— |
|
$ |
(1,808 |
) |
$ |
— |
| |||||
| Options Written |
|
N/A |
|
|
N/A |
|
|
36,920 |
|
|
— |
|
|
(136,080 |
) | |||||
|
|
||||||||||||||||||||
Derivative Financial Instruments Categorized by Risk Exposure
As of period end, the fair values of derivative financial instruments located in the Statement of Assets and Liabilities were as follows:
|
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Commodity Contracts |
Credit Contracts |
Equity Contracts |
Foreign Currency Exchange Contracts |
Interest Rate Contracts |
Other Contracts |
Total | ||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Assets — Derivative Financial Instruments |
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Futures contracts |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Unrealized appreciation on futures contracts(a) |
$ |
— |
|
$ |
— |
|
$ |
— |
|
$ |
— |
|
$ |
273,163 |
|
$ |
— |
|
$ |
273,163 |
| |||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|||||||||||||||
| Liabilities — Derivative Financial Instruments |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Futures contracts |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Unrealized depreciation on futures contracts(a) |
$ |
— |
|
$ |
— |
|
$ |
— |
|
$ |
— |
|
$ |
98,440 |
|
$ |
— |
|
$ |
98,440 |
| |||||||
| Options written |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Options written at value |
|
— |
|
|
— |
|
|
— |
|
|
— |
|
|
136,080 |
|
|
— |
|
|
136,080 |
| |||||||
| Swaps — OTC |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Unrealized depreciation on OTC swaps; Swap premiums received |
|
— |
|
|
4,528 |
|
|
— |
|
|
— |
|
|
— |
|
|
— |
|
|
4,528 |
| |||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|||||||||||||||
| $ |
— |
|
$ |
4,528 |
|
$ |
— |
|
$ |
— |
|
$ |
234,520 |
|
$ |
— |
|
$ |
239,048 |
| ||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|||||||||||||||
| (a) | Net cumulative unrealized appreciation (depreciation) on futures contracts and centrally cleared swaps, if any, are reported in the Schedule of Investments. In the Statement of Assets and Liabilities, only current day’s variation margin is reported in receivables or payables and the net cumulative unrealized appreciation (depreciation) is included in accumulated earnings (loss). |
For the period ended December 31, 2023, the effect of derivative financial instruments in the Statement of Operations was as follows:
|
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Commodity Contracts |
Credit Contracts |
Equity Contracts |
Foreign Currency Exchange Contracts |
Interest Rate Contracts |
Other Contracts |
Total | ||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Net Realized Gain (Loss) from: |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Futures contracts |
$ |
— |
|
$ |
— |
|
$ |
— |
|
$ |
— |
|
$ |
(337,419 |
) |
$ |
— |
|
$ |
(337,419 |
) | |||||||
| Forward foreign currency exchange contracts |
|
— |
|
|
— |
|
|
— |
|
|
328 |
|
|
— |
|
|
— |
|
|
328 |
| |||||||
| Options written |
|
— |
|
|
— |
|
|
— |
|
|
— |
|
|
49,453 |
|
|
— |
|
|
49,453 |
| |||||||
| Swaps |
|
— |
|
|
(6,824 |
) |
|
— |
|
|
— |
|
|
6,260 |
|
|
— |
|
|
(564 |
) | |||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|||||||||||||||
| $ |
— |
|
$ |
(6,824 |
) |
$ |
— |
|
$ |
328 |
|
$ |
(281,706 |
) |
$ |
— |
|
$ |
(288,202 |
) | ||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|||||||||||||||
| Net Change in Unrealized Appreciation (Depreciation) on: |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Futures contracts |
$ |
— |
|
$ |
— |
|
$ |
— |
|
$ |
— |
|
$ |
84,281 |
|
$ |
— |
|
$ |
84,281 |
| |||||||
| Options written |
|
— |
|
|
— |
|
|
— |
|
|
— |
|
|
4,556 |
|
|
— |
|
|
4,556 |
| |||||||
| Swaps |
|
— |
|
|
8,523 |
|
|
— |
|
|
— |
|
|
47,184 |
|
|
— |
|
|
55,707 |
| |||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|||||||||||||||
| $ |
— |
|
$ |
8,523 |
|
$ |
— |
|
$ |
— |
|
$ |
136,021 |
|
$ |
— |
|
$ |
144,544 |
| ||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|||||||||||||||
|
S C H E D U L E O F I N V E S T M E N T S |
13 |
| Schedule of Investments (continued) December 31, 2023
|
BlackRock Enhanced Government Fund, Inc. (EGF) |
Average Quarterly Balances of Outstanding Derivative Financial Instruments
| Futures contracts: |
||||
| Average notional value of contracts — long |
$ |
9,411,547 |
| |
| Average notional value of contracts — short |
$ |
2,220,111 |
| |
| Forward foreign currency exchange contracts: |
||||
| Average amounts purchased — in USD |
$ |
1,075 |
| |
| Options: |
||||
| Average notional value of swaption contracts written |
$ |
29,656,500 |
| |
| Credit default swaps: |
||||
| Average notional value — sell protection |
$ |
26,000 |
| |
| Interest rate swaps: |
||||
| Average notional value — pays fixed rate |
$ |
225,000 |
| |
| Average notional value — receives fixed rate |
$ |
— |
(a) |
| (a) | Derivative financial instrument not held at any quarter-end. The risk exposure table serves as an indicator of activity during the period. |
For more information about the Fund’s investment risks regarding derivative financial instruments, refer to the Notes to Financial Statements.
Derivative Financial Instruments — Offsetting as of Period End
The Fund’s derivative assets and liabilities (by type) were as follows:
|
Assets |
Liabilities |
|||||||
| Derivative Financial Instruments |
||||||||
| Futures contracts |
$ |
6,883 |
|
$ |
6,378 |
| ||
| Options |
|
— |
|
|
136,080 |
| ||
| Swaps — OTC(a) |
|
— |
|
|
4,528 |
| ||
|
|
|
|
|
|||||
| Total derivative assets and liabilities in the Statement of Assets and Liabilities |
|
6,883 |
|
|
146,986 |
| ||
|
|
|
|
|
|||||
| Derivatives not subject to a Master Netting Agreement or similar agreement (“MNA”) |
|
(6,883 |
) |
|
(6,378 |
) | ||
|
|
|
|
|
|||||
| Total derivative assets and liabilities subject to an MNA |
$ |
— |
|
$ |
140,608 |
| ||
|
|
|
|
|
|||||
| (a) | Includes unrealized appreciation (depreciation) on OTC swaps and swap premiums (paid/received) in the Statement of Assets and Liabilities. |
The following table presents the Fund’s derivative liabilities by counterparty net of amounts available for offset under an MNA and net of the related collateral pledged by the Fund:
| Counterparty | |
Derivative Liabilities Subject to an MNA by Counterparty |
|
|
Derivatives Available for Offset |
|
|
Non-Cash Collateral Pledged |
|
|
Cash Collateral Pledged |
|
|
Net Amount of Derivative Liabilities |
(a) | |||||
| Goldman Sachs International |
$ |
140,608 |
|
$ |
— |
|
$ |
— |
|
$ |
— |
|
$ |
140,608 |
| |||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| (a) | Net amount represents the net amount payable due to counterparty in the event of default. Net amount may be offset further by the options written receivable/payable on the Statement of Assets and Liabilities. |
Fair Value Hierarchy as of Period End
Various inputs are used in determining the fair value of financial instruments. For a description of the input levels and information about the Fund’s policy regarding valuation of financial instruments, refer to the Notes to Financial Statements.
The following table summarizes the Fund’s financial instruments categorized in the fair value hierarchy. The breakdown of the Fund’s financial instruments into major categories is disclosed in the Schedule of Investments above.
|
|
||||||||||||||||
| Level 1 | Level 2 | Level 3 | Total | |||||||||||||
|
|
||||||||||||||||
| Assets |
||||||||||||||||
| Investments |
||||||||||||||||
| Long-Term Investments |
||||||||||||||||
| Asset-Backed Securities |
$ |
— |
|
$ |
4,400,213 |
|
$ |
— |
|
$ |
4,400,213 |
| ||||
| Corporate Bonds |
|
— |
|
|
373,910 |
|
|
— |
|
|
373,910 |
| ||||
| Non-Agency Mortgage-Backed Securities |
|
— |
|
|
2,500,208 |
|
|
— |
|
|
2,500,208 |
| ||||
| Preferred Securities |
|
— |
|
|
364,190 |
|
|
— |
|
|
364,190 |
| ||||
| 14 |
2 0 2 3 B L A C K R O C K A N N U A L R E P O R T T O S H A R E H O L D E R S |
| Schedule of Investments (continued) December 31, 2023
|
BlackRock Enhanced Government Fund, Inc. (EGF) |
Fair Value Hierarchy as of Period End (continued)
|
|
||||||||||||||||
| Level 1 | Level 2 | Level 3 | Total | |||||||||||||
|
|
||||||||||||||||
| U.S. Government Sponsored Agency Securities |
$ |
— |
|
$ |
27,258,727 |
|
$ |
— |
|
$ |
27,258,727 |
| ||||
| U.S. Treasury Obligations |
|
— |
|
|
3,909,775 |
|
|
— |
|
|
3,909,775 |
| ||||
| Short-Term Securities |
||||||||||||||||
| Money Market Funds |
|
1,302,929 |
|
|
— |
|
|
— |
|
|
1,302,929 |
| ||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|||||||||
| $ |
1,302,929 |
|
$ |
38,807,023 |
|
$ |
— |
|
$ |
40,109,952 |
| |||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|||||||||
| Derivative Financial Instruments(a) |
||||||||||||||||
| Assets |
||||||||||||||||
| Interest Rate Contracts |
$ |
273,163 |
|
$ |
— |
|
$ |
— |
|
$ |
273,163 |
| ||||
| Liabilities |
||||||||||||||||
| Credit Contracts |
|
— |
|
|
(1,808 |
) |
|
— |
|
|
(1,808 |
) | ||||
| Interest Rate Contracts |
|
(98,440 |
) |
|
(136,080 |
) |
|
— |
|
|
(234,520 |
) | ||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|||||||||
| $ |
174,723 |
|
$ |
(137,888 |
) |
$ |
— |
|
$ |
36,835 |
| |||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|||||||||
| (a) | Derivative financial instruments are swaps, futures contracts and options written. Swaps and futures contracts are valued at the unrealized appreciation (depreciation) on the instrument and options written are shown at value. |
See notes to financial statements.
|
S C H E D U L E O F I N V E S T M E N T S |
15 |
Statement of Assets and Liabilities
December 31, 2023
| EGF | |||||
| ASSETS |
|||||
| Investments, at value — unaffiliated(a) |
$ |
38,807,023 |
|||
| Investments, at value — affiliated(b) |
|
1,302,929 |
|||
| Cash pledged for futures contracts |
|
143,000 |
|||
| Foreign currency, at value(c) |
|
25,522 |
|||
| Receivables: |
|||||
| Options written |
|
173,000 |
|||
| Dividends — affiliated |
|
4,686 |
|||
| Interest — unaffiliated |
|
326,002 |
|||
| Variation margin on futures contracts |
|
6,883 |
|||
| Prepaid expenses |
|
365 |
|||
|
|
|
||||
| Total assets |
|
40,789,410 |
|||
|
|
|
||||
| LIABILITIES |
|||||
| Bank overdraft |
|
3,303 |
|||
| Options written, at value(d) |
|
136,080 |
|||
| Payables: |
|||||
| Investments purchased |
|
1,351,296 |
|||
| Accounting services fees |
|
3,334 |
|||
| Custodian fees |
|
5,825 |
|||
| Investment advisory fees |
|
17,827 |
|||
| Directors’ and Officer’s fees |
|
446 |
|||
| Options written |
|
477,600 |
|||
| Other accrued expenses |
|
16,335 |
|||
| Principal payups |
|
66,393 |
|||
| Professional fees |
|
42,973 |
|||
| Transfer agent fees |
|
6,179 |
|||
| Variation margin on futures contracts |
|
6,378 |
|||
| Swap premiums received |
|
2,720 |
|||
| Unrealized depreciation on OTC swaps |
|
1,808 |
|||
|
|
|
||||
| Total liabilities |
|
2,138,497 |
|||
|
|
|
||||
| Commitments and contingent liabilities |
|||||
| NET ASSETS |
$ |
38,650,913 |
|||
|
|
|
||||
| NET ASSETS CONSIST OF |
|||||
| Paid-in capital(e)(f)(g) |
$ |
68,729,894 |
|||
| Accumulated loss |
|
(30,078,981 |
) | ||
|
|
|
||||
| NET ASSETS |
$ |
38,650,913 |
|||
|
|
|
||||
| Net asset value |
$ |
10.34 |
|||
|
|
|
||||
|
(a) Investments, at cost — unaffiliated |
$ |
41,114,581 |
| ||
| (b) Investments, at cost — affiliated |
$ |
1,302,929 |
|||
| (c) Foreign currency, at cost |
$ |
25,026 |
|||
| (d) Premiums received |
$ |
173,000 |
|||
| (e) Shares outstanding |
|
3,738,451 |
|||
| (f) Shares authorized |
|
200 million |
|||
| (g) Par value |
$ |
0.10 |
|||
See notes to financial statements.
| 16 |
2 0 2 3 B L A C K R O C K A N N U A L R E P O R T T O S H A R E H O L D E R S |
Year Ended December 31, 2023
| EGF | |||||
| INVESTMENT INCOME |
|||||
| Dividends — affiliated |
$ |
75,618 |
|||
| Interest — unaffiliated |
|
1,829,999 |
|||
|
|
|
||||
| Total investment income |
|
1,905,617 |
|||
|
|
|
||||
| EXPENSES |
|||||
| Investment advisory |
|
386,139 |
|||
| Professional |
|
68,377 |
|||
| Custodian |
|
27,109 |
|||
| Transfer agent |
|
20,988 |
|||
| Printing and postage |
|
16,686 |
|||
| Repurchase offer |
|
14,753 |
|||
| Registration |
|
8,368 |
|||
| Accounting services |
|
7,374 |
|||
| Directors and Officer |
|
1,508 |
|||
| Miscellaneous |
|
21,942 |
|||
|
|
|
||||
| Total expenses excluding interest expense |
|
573,244 |
|||
| Interest expense |
|
196,145 |
|||
|
|
|
||||
| Total expenses |
|
769,389 |
|||
| Less: |
|||||
| Fees waived and/or reimbursed by the Manager |
|
(137,501 |
) | ||
|
|
|
||||
| Total expenses after fees waived and/or reimbursed |
|
631,888 |
|||
|
|
|
||||
| Net investment income |
|
1,273,729 |
|||
|
|
|
||||
| REALIZED AND UNREALIZED GAIN (LOSS) |
|||||
| Net realized gain (loss) from: |
|||||
| Investments — unaffiliated |
|
(3,314,462 |
) | ||
| Forward foreign currency exchange contracts |
|
328 |
|||
| Foreign currency transactions |
|
(7,320 |
) | ||
| Futures contracts |
|
(337,419 |
) | ||
| Options written |
|
49,453 |
|||
| Swaps |
|
(564 |
) | ||
|
|
|
||||
|
|
(3,609,984 |
) | |||
|
|
|
||||
| Net change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation) on: |
|||||
| Investments — unaffiliated |
|
3,816,868 |
|||
| Foreign currency translations |
|
5,216 |
|||
| Futures contracts |
|
84,281 |
|||
| Options written |
|
4,556 |
|||
| Swaps |
|
55,707 |
|||
|
|
|
||||
|
|
3,966,628 |
||||
|
|
|
||||
| Net realized and unrealized gain |
|
356,644 |
|||
|
|
|
||||
| NET INCREASE IN NET ASSETS RESULTING FROM OPERATIONS |
$ |
1,630,373 |
|||
|
|
|
||||
See notes to financial statements.
|
F I N A N C I A L S T A T E M E N T S |
17 |
Statements of Changes in Net Assets
| EGF | ||||||||||
| Year Ended 12/31/23 |
Year Ended 12/31/22 | |||||||||
| INCREASE (DECREASE) IN NET ASSETS |
||||||||||
| OPERATIONS |
||||||||||
| Net investment income |
$ |
1,273,729 |
$ |
1,094,975 |
||||||
| Net realized gain (loss) |
|
(3,609,984 |
) |
|
373,280 |
|||||
| Net change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation) |
|
3,966,628 |
|
(9,433,661 |
) | |||||
|
|
|
|
|
|||||||
| Net increase (decrease) in net assets resulting from operations |
|
1,630,373 |
|
|
(7,965,406 |
) | ||||
|
|
|
|
|
|||||||
| DISTRIBUTIONS TO SHAREHOLDERS(a) |
||||||||||
| From net investment income |
|
(1,254,428 |
) |
|
(1,061,068 |
) | ||||
| Return of capital |
|
(673,629 |
) |
|
(798,630 |
) | ||||
|
|
|
|
|
|||||||
| Decrease in net assets resulting from distributions to shareholders |
|
(1,928,057 |
) |
|
(1,859,698 |
) | ||||
|
|
|
|
|
|||||||
| CAPITAL SHARE TRANSACTIONS |
||||||||||
| Redemption of shares resulting from a repurchase offer(b) |
|
(1,916,442 |
) |
|
(2,098,085 |
) | ||||
|
|
|
|
|
|||||||
| NET ASSETS |
||||||||||
| Total decrease in net assets |
|
(2,214,126 |
) |
|
(11,923,189 |
) | ||||
| Beginning of year |
|
40,865,039 |
|
52,788,228 |
||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|||||||
| End of year |
$ |
38,650,913 |
$ |
40,865,039 |
||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|||||||
| (a) | Distributions for annual periods determined in accordance with U.S. federal income tax regulations. |
| (b) | Net of repurchase fees of $39,352 and $43,494. |
See notes to financial statements.
| 18 |
2 0 2 3 B L A C K R O C K A N N U A L R E P O R T T O S H A R E H O L D E R S |
Year Ended December 31, 2023
| EGF | |||||
| CASH PROVIDED BY (USED FOR) OPERATING ACTIVITIES |
|||||
| Net increase in net assets resulting from operations |
$ |
1,630,373 |
|||
| Adjustments to reconcile net increase in net assets resulting from operations to net cash provided by operating activities: |
|||||
| Proceeds from sales of long-term investments and principal paydowns/payups |
|
89,603,623 |
|||
| Purchases of long-term investments |
|
(70,019,468 |
) | ||
| Net proceeds from sales of short-term securities |
|
435,570 |
|||
| Amortization of premium and accretion of discount on investments and other fees |
|
(98,988 |
) | ||
| Premiums paid on closing options written |
|
(1,594,287 |
) | ||
| Premiums received from options written |
|
2,120,500 |
|||
| Net realized loss on investments and options written |
|
3,265,054 |
|||
| Net unrealized appreciation on investments, options written and swaps |
|
(3,835,163 |
) | ||
| (Increase) Decrease in Assets |
|||||
| Receivables |
|||||
| Dividends — affiliated |
|
(197 |
) | ||
| Interest — unaffiliated |
|
155,959 |
|||
| Variation margin on futures contracts |
|
67,280 |
|||
| Variation margin on centrally cleared swaps |
|
1,628 |
|||
| Prepaid expenses |
|
(20 |
) | ||
| Increase (Decrease) in Liabilities |
|||||
| Payables |
|||||
| Accounting services fees |
|
(278 |
) | ||
| Custodian fees |
|
1,420 |
|||
| Interest expense |
|
(21,979 |
) | ||
| Investment advisory fees |
|
(15,168 |
) | ||
| Directors’ and Officer’s fees |
|
341 |
|||
| Other accrued expenses |
|
5,190 |
|||
| Professional fees |
|
(14,918 |
) | ||
| Transfer agent fees |
|
(6,629 |
) | ||
| Variation margin on futures contracts |
|
2,108 |
|||
| Swap premiums received |
|
(10,618 |
) | ||
|
|
|
||||
| Net cash provided by operating activities |
|
21,671,333 |
|||
|
|
|
||||
| CASH PROVIDED BY (USED FOR) FINANCING ACTIVITIES |
|||||
| Cash dividends paid to shareholders |
|
(1,928,057 |
) | ||
| Net payments on redemption of capital shares |
|
(1,916,442 |
) | ||
| Increase in bank overdraft |
|
3,303 |
|||
| Net borrowing of reverse repurchase agreements |
|
(18,173,750 |
) | ||
|
|
|
||||
| Net cash used for financing activities |
|
(22,014,946 |
) | ||
|
|
|
||||
| CASH IMPACT FROM FOREIGN EXCHANGE FLUCTUATIONS |
|||||
| Cash impact from foreign exchange fluctuations |
|
5,216 |
|||
|
|
|
||||
| CASH AND FOREIGN CURRENCY |
|||||
| Net decrease in restricted and unrestricted cash and foreign currency |
|
(338,397 |
) | ||
| Restricted and unrestricted cash and foreign currency at beginning of year |
|
506,919 |
|||
|
|
|
||||
| Restricted and unrestricted cash and foreign currency at end of year |
$ |
168,522 |
|||
|
|
|
||||
| SUPPLEMENTAL DISCLOSURE OF CASH FLOW INFORMATION |
|||||
| Cash paid during the year for interest expense |
$ |
218,124 |
|||
|
|
|
||||
| RECONCILIATION OF RESTRICTED AND UNRESTRICTED CASH AND FOREIGN CURRENCY AT THE END OF YEAR TO THE STATEMENT OF ASSETS AND LIABILITIES |
|||||
| Cash pledged |
|||||
| Futures contracts |
$ |
143,000 |
|||
| Foreign currency at value |
|
25,522 |
|||
|
|
|
||||
| $ |
168,522 |
||||
|
|
|
||||
See notes to financial statements.
|
F I N A N C I A L S T A T E M E N T S |
19 |
(For a share outstanding throughout each period)
| EGF | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Year Ended 12/31/23 |
Year Ended 12/31/22 |
Year Ended 12/31/21 |
Year Ended 12/31/20 |
Year Ended 12/31/19 |
||||||||||||||||
| Net asset value, beginning of year |
$ |
10.38 |
|
$ |
12.74 |
|
$ |
13.34 |
|
$ |
13.52 |
|
$ |
13.48 |
| |||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|||||||||||
| Net investment income(a) |
|
0.33 |
|
|
0.27 |
|
|
0.29 |
|
|
0.33 |
|
|
0.33 |
| |||||
| Net realized and unrealized gain (loss)(b) |
|
0.12 |
|
|
(2.18 |
) |
|
(0.40 |
) |
|
(0.02 |
) |
|
0.20 |
| |||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|||||||||||
| Net increase (decrease) from investment operations |
|
0.45 |
|
|
(1.91 |
) |
|
(0.11 |
) |
|
0.31 |
|
|
0.53 |
| |||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|||||||||||
|
Distributions(c) |
||||||||||||||||||||
| From net investment income |
|
(0.32 |
) |
|
(0.26 |
) |
|
(0.30 |
) |
|
(0.33 |
) |
|
(0.30 |
) | |||||
| Return of capital |
|
(0.17 |
) |
|
(0.19 |
) |
|
(0.19 |
) |
|
(0.16 |
) |
|
(0.19 |
) | |||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|||||||||||
| Total distributions |
|
(0.49 |
) |
|
(0.45 |
) |
|
(0.49 |
) |
|
(0.49 |
) |
|
(0.49 |
) | |||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|||||||||||
| Net asset value, end of year |
$ |
10.34 |
|
$ |
10.38 |
|
$ |
12.74 |
|
$ |
13.34 |
|
$ |
13.52 |
| |||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|||||||||||
| Market price, end of year |
$ |
9.73 |
|
$ |
9.68 |
|
$ |
12.57 |
|
$ |
13.46 |
|
$ |
13.15 |
| |||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|||||||||||
| Total Return(d) |
||||||||||||||||||||
| Based on net asset value |
|
4.66 |
% |
|
(14.92 |
)% |
|
(0.75 |
)% |
|
2.41 |
% |
|
4.13 |
% | |||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|||||||||||
| Based on market price |
|
5.60 |
% |
|
(19.59 |
)% |
|
(2.94 |
)% |
|
6.25 |
% |
|
5.18 |
% | |||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|||||||||||
| Ratios to Average Net Assets(e) |
||||||||||||||||||||
| Total expenses |
|
1.92 |
% |
|
2.17 |
% |
|
1.38 |
% |
|
1.37 |
% |
|
1.90 |
% | |||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|||||||||||
| Total expenses after fees waived and/or reimbursed |
|
1.57 |
% |
|
1.74 |
% |
|
1.02 |
% |
|
1.02 |
% |
|
1.52 |
% | |||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|||||||||||
| Total expenses after fees waived and/or reimbursed and excluding interest expense |
|
1.08 |
% |
|
1.14 |
% |
|
1.00 |
% |
|
0.93 |
% |
|
0.97 |
% | |||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|||||||||||
| Net investment income |
|
3.17 |
% |
|
2.37 |
% |
|
2.21 |
% |
|
2.45 |
% |
|
2.44 |
% | |||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|||||||||||
| Supplemental Data |
||||||||||||||||||||
| Net assets, end of year (000) |
$ |
38,651 |
|
$ |
40,865 |
|
$ |
52,788 |
|
$ |
56,832 |
|
$ |
64,004 |
| |||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|||||||||||
| Borrowings outstanding, end of year (000) |
$ |
— |
|
$ |
18,178 |
|
$ |
12,336 |
|
$ |
10,952 |
|
$ |
16,258 |
| |||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|||||||||||
| Portfolio turnover rate(f) |
|
148 |
% |
|
181 |
% |
|
116 |
% |
|
3 |
% |
|
17 |
% | |||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|||||||||||
| (a) | Based on average shares outstanding. |
| (b) | Net realized and unrealized gain (loss) per share amounts include repurchase fees of $0.01 for each of the years ended December 31, 2023, 2022, 2021 and $0.03 for each of the years ended December 31, 2019 and 2020. |
| (c) | Distributions for annual periods determined in accordance with U.S. federal income tax regulations. |
| (d) | Total returns based on market price, which can be significantly greater or less than the net asset value, may result in substantially different returns. Where applicable, excludes the effects of any sales charges and assumes the reinvestment of distributions at actual reinvestment prices. |
| (e) | Excludes fees and expenses incurred indirectly as a result of investments in underlying funds. |
| (f) | Includes mortgage dollar roll transactions (“MDRs”). Additional information regarding portfolio turnover rate is as follows: |
| Year Ended 12/31/23 |
Year Ended 12/31/22 |
Year Ended 12/31/21 |
Year Ended 12/31/20 |
Year Ended 12/31/19 |
||||||||||||||||
| Portfolio turnover rate (excluding MDRs) |
|
87 |
% |
|
121 |
% |
|
57 |
% |
|
3 |
% |
|
17 |
% | |||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|||||||||||
See notes to financial statements.
| 20 |
2 0 2 3 B L A C K R O C K A N N U A L R E P O R T T O S H A R E H O L D E R S |
1. ORGANIZATION
BlackRock Enhanced Government Fund, Inc. (the “Fund”) is registered under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “1940 Act”). The Fund is registered as a diversified, closed-end management investment company. The Fund is organized as a Maryland corporation. The Fund determines and makes available for publication the net asset value (“NAV”) of its Common Shares on a daily basis.
The Fund, together with certain other registered investment companies advised by BlackRock Advisors, LLC (the “Manager”) or its affiliates, is included in a complex of funds referred to as the BlackRock Fixed-Income Complex.
2. SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES
The financial statements are prepared in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (“U.S. GAAP”), which may require management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities in the financial statements, disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements and the reported amounts of increases and decreases in net assets from operations during the reporting period. Actual results could differ from those estimates. The Fund is considered an investment company under U.S. GAAP and follows the accounting and reporting guidance applicable to investment companies. Below is a summary of significant accounting policies:
Investment Transactions and Income Recognition: For financial reporting purposes, investment transactions are recorded on the dates the transactions are executed. Realized gains and losses on investment transactions are determined using the specific identification method. Dividend income and capital gain distributions, if any, are recorded on the ex-dividend dates. Non-cash dividends, if any, are recorded on the ex-dividend dates at fair value. Interest income, including amortization and accretion of premiums and discounts on debt securities, is recognized daily on an accrual basis.
Foreign Currency Translation: The Fund’s books and records are maintained in U.S. dollars. Securities and other assets and liabilities denominated in foreign currencies are translated into U.S. dollars using exchange rates determined as of the close of trading on the New York Stock Exchange (“NYSE”). Purchases and sales of investments are recorded at the rates of exchange prevailing on the respective dates of such transactions. Generally, when the U.S. dollar rises in value against a foreign currency, the investments denominated in that currency will lose value; the opposite effect occurs if the U.S. dollar falls in relative value.
The Fund does not isolate the effect of fluctuations in foreign exchange rates from the effect of fluctuations in the market prices of investments for financial reporting purposes. Accordingly, the effects of changes in exchange rates on investments are not segregated in the Statement of Operations from the effects of changes in market prices of those investments, but are included as a component of net realized and unrealized gain (loss) from investments. The Fund reports realized currency gains (losses) on foreign currency related transactions as components of net realized gain (loss) for financial reporting purposes, whereas such components are generally treated as ordinary income for U.S. federal income tax purposes.
Bank Overdraft: The Fund had outstanding cash disbursements exceeding deposited cash amounts at the custodian during the reporting period and as of the report date. The Fund is obligated to repay the custodian for any overdraft, including any related costs or expenses, where applicable. For financial reporting purposes, overdraft fees, if any, are included in interest expense in the Statement of Operations.
Collateralization: If required by an exchange or counterparty agreement, the Fund may be required to deliver/deposit cash and/or securities to/with an exchange, or broker-dealer or custodian as collateral for certain investments.
Distributions: Distributions from net investment income are declared and paid monthly. Distributions of capital gains are recorded on the ex-dividend dates and made at least annually. The portion of distributions, if any, that exceeds a fund’s current and accumulated earnings and profits, as measured on a tax basis, constitute a non-taxable return of capital. The character and timing of distributions are determined in accordance with U.S. federal income tax regulations, which may differ from U.S. GAAP.
Deferred Compensation Plan: Under the Deferred Compensation Plan (the “Plan”) approved by the Board of Directors of the Fund (the “Board”), the directors who are not “interested persons” of the Fund, as defined in the 1940 Act (“Independent Directors”), may defer a portion of their annual complex-wide compensation. Deferred amounts earn an approximate return as though equivalent dollar amounts had been invested in common shares of certain funds in the BlackRock Fixed-Income Complex selected by the Independent Directors. This has the same economic effect for the Independent Directors as if the Independent Directors had invested the deferred amounts directly in certain funds in the BlackRock Fixed-Income Complex.
The Plan is not funded and obligations thereunder represent general unsecured claims against the general assets of the Fund, as applicable. Deferred compensation liabilities, if any, are included in the Directors’ and Officer’s fees payable in the Statement of Assets and Liabilities and will remain as a liability of the Fund until such amounts are distributed in accordance with the Plan. Net appreciation (depreciation) in the value of participants’ deferral accounts is allocated among the participating funds in the BlackRock Fixed-Income Complex and reflected as Directors and Officer expense on the Statement of Operations. The Directors and Officer expense may be negative as a result of a decrease in value of the deferred accounts.
Indemnifications: In the normal course of business, the Fund enters into contracts that contain a variety of representations that provide general indemnification. The Fund’s maximum exposure under these arrangements is unknown because it involves future potential claims against the Fund, which cannot be predicted with any certainty.
Other: Expenses directly related to the Fund are charged to the Fund. Other operating expenses shared by several funds, including other funds managed by the Manager, are prorated among those funds on the basis of relative net assets or other appropriate methods.
|
N O T E S T O F I N A N C I A L S T A T E M E N T S |
21 |
Notes to Financial Statements (continued)
3. INVESTMENT VALUATION AND FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENTS
Investment Valuation Policies: The Fund’s investments are valued at fair value (also referred to as “market value” within the financial statements) each day that the Fund is open for business and, for financial reporting purposes, as of the report date. U.S. GAAP defines fair value as the price a fund would receive to sell an asset or pay to transfer a liability in an orderly transaction between market participants at the measurement date. The Board has approved the designation of the Fund’s Manager as the valuation designee for the Fund. The Fund determines the fair values of its financial instruments using various independent dealers or pricing services under the Manager’s policies. If a security’s market price is not readily available or does not otherwise accurately represent the fair value of the security, the security will be valued in accordance with the Manager’s policies and procedures as reflecting fair value. The Manager has formed a committee (the “Valuation Committee”) to develop pricing policies and procedures and to oversee the pricing function for all financial instruments, with assistance from other BlackRock pricing committees.
Fair Value Inputs and Methodologies: The following methods and inputs are used to establish the fair value of the Fund’s assets and liabilities:
| • | Fixed-income investments for which market quotations are readily available are generally valued using the last available bid price or current market quotations provided by independent dealers or third-party pricing services. Pricing services generally value fixed-income securities assuming orderly transactions of an institutional round lot size, but a fund may hold or transact in such securities in smaller, odd lot sizes. Odd lots may trade at lower prices than institutional round lots. The pricing services may use matrix pricing or valuation models that utilize certain inputs and assumptions to derive values, including transaction data (e.g., recent representative bids and offers), market data, credit quality information, perceived market movements, news, and other relevant information. Certain fixed-income securities, including asset-backed and mortgage related securities may be valued based on valuation models that consider the estimated cash flows of each tranche of the entity, establish a benchmark yield and develop an estimated tranche specific spread to the benchmark yield based on the unique attributes of the tranche. The amortized cost method of valuation may be used with respect to debt obligations with sixty days or less remaining to maturity unless the Manager determines such method does not represent fair value. |
| • | Investments in open-end U.S. mutual funds (including money market funds) are valued at that day’s published NAV. |
| • | Futures contracts are valued based on that day’s last reported settlement or trade price on the exchange where the contract is traded. |
| • | Exchange-traded options are valued at the mean between the last bid and ask prices at the close of the options market in which the options trade. An exchange-traded option for which there is no mean price is valued at the last bid (long positions) or ask (short positions) price. If no bid or ask price is available, the prior day’s price will be used, unless it is determined that the prior day’s price no longer reflects the fair value of the option. Over-the-counter (“OTC”) options and options on swaps (“swaptions”) are valued by an independent pricing service using a mathematical model, which incorporates a number of market data factors, such as the trades and prices of the underlying instruments. |
| • | Swap agreements are valued utilizing quotes received daily by independent pricing services or through brokers, which are derived using daily swap curves and models that incorporate a number of market data factors, such as discounted cash flows, trades and values of the underlying reference instruments. |
If events (e.g., market volatility, company announcement or a natural disaster) occur that are expected to materially affect the value of such investment, or in the event that application of these methods of valuation results in a price for an investment that is deemed not to be representative of the market value of such investment, or if a price is not available, the investment will be valued by the Valuation Committee in accordance with the Manager’s policies and procedures as reflecting fair value (“Fair Valued Investments”). The fair valuation approaches that may be used by the Valuation Committee include market approach, income approach and cost approach. Valuation techniques such as discounted cash flow, use of market comparables and matrix pricing are types of valuation approaches and are typically used in determining fair value. When determining the price for Fair Valued Investments, the Valuation Committee seeks to determine the price that the Fund might reasonably expect to receive or pay from the current sale or purchase of that asset or liability in an arm’s-length transaction. Fair value determinations shall be based upon all available factors that the Valuation Committee deems relevant and consistent with the principles of fair value measurement.
Fair Value Hierarchy: Various inputs are used in determining the fair value of financial instruments. These inputs to valuation techniques are categorized into a fair value hierarchy consisting of three broad levels for financial reporting purposes as follows:
| • | Level 1 – Unadjusted price quotations in active markets/exchanges for identical assets or liabilities that the Fund has the ability to access; |
| • | Level 2 – Other observable inputs (including, but not limited to, quoted prices for similar assets or liabilities in markets that are active, quoted prices for identical or similar assets or liabilities in markets that are not active, inputs other than quoted prices that are observable for the assets or liabilities (such as interest rates, yield curves, volatilities, prepayment speeds, loss severities, credit risks and default rates) or other market–corroborated inputs); and |
| • | Level 3 – Unobservable inputs based on the best information available in the circumstances, to the extent observable inputs are not available (including the Valuation Committee’s assumptions used in determining the fair value of financial instruments). |
The hierarchy gives the highest priority to unadjusted quoted prices in active markets for identical assets or liabilities (Level 1 measurements) and the lowest priority to unobservable inputs (Level 3 measurements). Accordingly, the degree of judgment exercised in determining fair value is greatest for instruments categorized in Level 3. The inputs used to measure fair value may fall into different levels of the fair value hierarchy. In such cases, for disclosure purposes, the fair value hierarchy classification is determined based on the lowest level input that is significant to the fair value measurement in its entirety. Investments classified within Level 3 have significant unobservable inputs used by the Valuation Committee in determining the price for Fair Valued Investments. Level 3 investments include equity or debt issued by privately held companies or funds that may not have a secondary market and/or may have a limited number of investors. The categorization of a value determined for financial instruments is based on the pricing transparency of the financial instruments and is not necessarily an indication of the risks associated with investing in those securities.
| 22 |
2 0 2 3 B L A C K R O C K A N N U A L R E P O R T T O S H A R E H O L D E R S |
Notes to Financial Statements (continued)
4. SECURITIES AND OTHER INVESTMENTS
Asset-Backed and Mortgage-Backed Securities: Asset-backed securities are generally issued as pass-through certificates or as debt instruments. Asset-backed securities issued as pass-through certificates represent undivided fractional ownership interests in an underlying pool of assets. Asset-backed securities issued as debt instruments, which are also known as collateralized obligations, are typically issued as the debt of a special purpose entity organized solely for the purpose of owning such assets and issuing such debt. Asset-backed securities are often backed by a pool of assets representing the obligations of a number of different parties. The yield characteristics of certain asset-backed securities may differ from traditional debt securities. One such major difference is that all or a principal part of the obligations may be prepaid at any time because the underlying assets (i.e., loans) may be prepaid at any time. As a result, a decrease in interest rates in the market may result in increases in the level of prepayments as borrowers, particularly mortgagors, refinance and repay their loans. An increased prepayment rate with respect to an asset-backed security will have the effect of shortening the maturity of the security. In addition, a fund may subsequently have to reinvest the proceeds at lower interest rates. If a fund has purchased such an asset-backed security at a premium, a faster than anticipated prepayment rate could result in a loss of principal to the extent of the premium paid.
For mortgage pass-through securities (the “Mortgage Assets”) there are a number of important differences among the agencies and instrumentalities of the U.S. Government that issue mortgage-related securities and among the securities that they issue. For example, mortgage-related securities guaranteed by Ginnie Mae are guaranteed as to the timely payment of principal and interest by Ginnie Mae and such guarantee is backed by the full faith and credit of the United States. However, mortgage-related securities issued by Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae, including Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae guaranteed mortgage pass-through certificates, which are solely the obligations of Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae, are not backed by or entitled to the full faith and credit of the United States, but are supported by the right of the issuer to borrow from the U.S. Treasury.
Non-agency mortgage-backed securities are securities issued by non-governmental issuers and have no direct or indirect government guarantees of payment and are subject to various risks. Non-agency mortgage loans are obligations of the borrowers thereunder only and are not typically insured or guaranteed by any other person or entity. The ability of a borrower to repay a loan is dependent upon the income or assets of the borrower. A number of factors, including a general economic downturn, acts of God, terrorism, social unrest and civil disturbances, may impair a borrower’s ability to repay its loans.
Collateralized Debt Obligations: Collateralized debt obligations (“CDOs”), including collateralized bond obligations (“CBOs”) and collateralized loan obligations (“CLOs”), are types of asset-backed securities. A CDO is an entity that is backed by a diversified pool of debt securities (CBOs) or syndicated bank loans (CLOs). The cash flows of the CDO can be split into multiple segments, called “tranches,” which will vary in risk profile and yield. The riskiest segment is the subordinated or “equity” tranche. This tranche bears the greatest risk of defaults from the underlying assets in the CDO and serves to protect the other, more senior, tranches from default in all but the most severe circumstances. Since it is shielded from defaults by the more junior tranches, a “senior” tranche will typically have higher credit ratings and lower yields than their underlying securities, and often receive investment grade ratings from one or more of the nationally recognized rating agencies. Despite the protection from the more junior tranches, senior tranches can experience substantial losses due to actual defaults, increased sensitivity to future defaults and the disappearance of one or more protecting tranches as a result of changes in the credit profile of the underlying pool of assets.
Multiple Class Pass-Through Securities: Multiple class pass-through securities, including collateralized mortgage obligations (“CMOs”) and commercial mortgage-backed securities, may be issued by Ginnie Mae, U.S. Government agencies or instrumentalities or by trusts formed by private originators of, or investors in, mortgage loans. In general, CMOs are debt obligations of a legal entity that are collateralized by a pool of residential or commercial mortgage loans or Mortgage Assets. The payments on these are used to make payments on the CMOs or multiple pass-through securities. Multiple class pass-through securities represent direct ownership interests in the Mortgage Assets. Classes of CMOs include interest only (“IOs”), principal only (“POs”), planned amortization classes and targeted amortization classes. IOs and POs are stripped mortgage-backed securities representing interests in a pool of mortgages, the cash flow from which has been separated into interest and principal components. IOs receive the interest portion of the cash flow while POs receive the principal portion. IOs and POs can be extremely volatile in response to changes in interest rates. As interest rates rise and fall, the value of IOs tends to move in the same direction as interest rates. POs perform best when prepayments on the underlying mortgages rise since this increases the rate at which the principal is returned and the yield to maturity on the PO. When payments on mortgages underlying a PO are slower than anticipated, the life of the PO is lengthened and the yield to maturity is reduced. If the underlying Mortgage Assets experience greater than anticipated prepayments of principal, a fund’s initial investment in the IOs may not fully recoup.
Capital Securities and Trust Preferred Securities: Capital securities, including trust preferred securities, are typically issued by corporations, generally in the form of interest-bearing notes with preferred securities characteristics. In the case of trust preferred securities, an affiliated business trust of a corporation issues these securities, generally in the form of beneficial interests in subordinated debentures or similarly structured securities. The securities can be structured with either a fixed or adjustable coupon that can have either a perpetual or stated maturity date. For trust preferred securities, the issuing bank or corporation pays interest to the trust, which is then distributed to holders of these securities as a dividend. Dividends can be deferred without creating an event of default or acceleration, although maturity cannot take place unless all cumulative payment obligations have been met. The deferral of payments does not affect the purchase or sale of these securities in the open market. These securities generally are rated below that of the issuing company’s senior debt securities and are freely callable at the issuer’s option.
TBA Commitments: TBA commitments are forward agreements for the purchase or sale of securities, including mortgage-backed securities for a fixed price, with payment and delivery on an agreed upon future settlement date. The specific securities to be delivered are not identified at the trade date. However, delivered securities must meet specified terms, including issuer, rate and mortgage terms. When entering into TBA commitments, a fund may take possession of or deliver the underlying mortgage-backed securities but can extend the settlement or roll the transaction. TBA commitments involve a risk of loss if the value of the security to be purchased or sold declines or increases, respectively, prior to settlement date, if there are expenses or delays in connection with the TBA transactions, or if the counterparty fails to complete the transaction.
In order to better define contractual rights and to secure rights that will help a fund mitigate its counterparty risk, TBA commitments may be entered into by a fund under Master Securities Forward Transaction Agreements (each, an “MSFTA”). An MSFTA typically contains, among other things, collateral posting terms and netting provisions in the event of default and/or termination event. The collateral requirements are typically calculated by netting the mark-to-market amount for each transaction under such agreement and comparing that amount to the value of the collateral currently pledged by a fund and the counterparty. Cash collateral that has been pledged to cover the obligations of a fund and cash collateral received from the counterparty, if any, is reported separately in the Statement of Assets and Liabilities as cash pledged as collateral for TBA commitments
|
N O T E S T O F I N A N C I A L S T A T E M E N T S |
23 |
Notes to Financial Statements (continued)
or cash received as collateral for TBA commitments, respectively. Non-cash collateral pledged by a fund, if any, is noted in the Schedule of Investments. Typically, a fund is permitted to sell, re-pledge or use the collateral it receives; however, the counterparty is not permitted to do so. To the extent amounts due to a fund are not fully collateralized, contractually or otherwise, a fund bears the risk of loss from counterparty non-performance.
Mortgage Dollar Roll Transactions: The Fund may sell TBA mortgage-backed securities and simultaneously contract to repurchase substantially similar (i.e., same type, coupon and maturity) securities on a specific future date at an agreed upon price. During the period between the sale and repurchase, a fund is not entitled to receive interest and principal payments on the securities sold. Mortgage dollar roll transactions are treated as purchases and sales and a fund realizes gains and losses on these transactions. Mortgage dollar rolls involve the risk that the market value of the securities that a fund is required to purchase may decline below the agreed upon repurchase price of those securities.
Reverse Repurchase Agreements: Reverse repurchase agreements are agreements with qualified third-party broker dealers in which a fund sells securities to a bank or broker-dealer and agrees to repurchase the same securities at a mutually agreed upon date and price. A fund receives cash from the sale to use for other investment purposes. During the term of the reverse repurchase agreement, a fund continues to receive the principal and interest payments on the securities sold. Certain agreements have no stated maturity and can be terminated by either party at any time. Interest on the value of the reverse repurchase agreements issued and outstanding is based upon competitive market rates determined at the time of issuance. A fund may utilize reverse repurchase agreements when it is anticipated that the interest income to be earned from the investment of the proceeds of the transaction is greater than the interest expense of the transaction. Reverse repurchase agreements involve leverage risk. If a fund suffers a loss on its investment of the transaction proceeds from a reverse repurchase agreement, a fund would still be required to pay the full repurchase price. Further, a fund remains subject to the risk that the market value of the securities repurchased declines below the repurchase price. In such cases, a fund would be required to return a portion of the cash received from the transaction or provide additional securities to the counterparty.
Cash received in exchange for securities delivered plus accrued interest due to the counterparty is recorded as a liability in the Statement of Assets and Liabilities at face value including accrued interest. Due to the short-term nature of the reverse repurchase agreements, face value approximates fair value. Interest payments made by a fund to the counterparties are recorded as a component of interest expense in the Statement of Operations. In periods of increased demand for the security, a fund may receive a fee for the use of the security by the counterparty, which may result in interest income to a fund.
For the year ended December 31, 2023, the average daily amount of reverse repurchase agreements outstanding and the weighted average interest rate for the Fund were $5,282,649 and 2.80%, respectively.
Reverse repurchase transactions are entered into by a fund under Master Repurchase Agreements (each, an “MRA”), which permit a fund, under certain circumstances, including an event of default (such as bankruptcy or insolvency), to offset payables and/or receivables under the MRA with collateral held and/or posted to the counterparty and create one single net payment due to or from a fund. With reverse repurchase transactions, typically a fund and counterparty under an MRA are permitted to sell, re-pledge, or use the collateral associated with the transaction. Bankruptcy or insolvency laws of a particular jurisdiction may impose restrictions on or prohibitions against such a right of offset in the event of the MRA counterparty’s bankruptcy or insolvency. Pursuant to the terms of the MRA, a fund receives or posts securities and cash as collateral with a market value in excess of the repurchase price to be paid or received by a fund upon the maturity of the transaction. Upon a bankruptcy or insolvency of the MRA counterparty, a fund is considered an unsecured creditor to the extent that the aggregate market value of the cash collateral and the purchased securities it holds is less than the repurchase price. As such, the receipt of any shortfall or any closeout amount owed to a fund upon termination of the MRA could be delayed or not received at all.
In the event the counterparty of securities under an MRA files for bankruptcy or becomes insolvent, a fund’s use of the proceeds from the agreement may be restricted while the counterparty, or its trustee or receiver, determines whether or not to enforce a fund’s obligation to repurchase the securities.
5. DERIVATIVE FINANCIAL INSTRUMENTS
The Fund engages in various portfolio investment strategies using derivative contracts both to increase the returns of the Fund and/or to manage its exposure to certain risks such as credit risk, equity risk, interest rate risk, foreign currency exchange rate risk, commodity price risk or other risks (e.g., inflation risk). Derivative financial instruments categorized by risk exposure are included in the Schedule of Investments. These contracts may be transacted on an exchange or OTC.
Futures Contracts: Futures contracts are purchased or sold to gain exposure to, or manage exposure to, changes in interest rates (interest rate risk) and changes in the value of equity securities (equity risk) or foreign currencies (foreign currency exchange rate risk).
Futures contracts are exchange-traded agreements between the Fund and a counterparty to buy or sell a specific quantity of an underlying instrument at a specified price and on a specified date. Depending on the terms of a contract, it is settled either through physical delivery of the underlying instrument on the settlement date or by payment of a cash amount on the settlement date. Upon entering into a futures contract, the Fund is required to deposit initial margin with the broker in the form of cash or securities in an amount that varies depending on a contract’s size and risk profile. The initial margin deposit must then be maintained at an established level over the life of the contract. Amounts pledged, which are considered restricted, are included in cash pledged for futures contracts in the Statement of Assets and Liabilities.
Securities deposited as initial margin are designated in the Schedule of Investments and cash deposited, if any, are shown as cash pledged for futures contracts in the Statement of Assets and Liabilities. Pursuant to the contract, the Fund agrees to receive from or pay to the broker an amount of cash equal to the daily fluctuation in market value of the contract (“variation margin”). Variation margin is recorded as unrealized appreciation (depreciation) and, if any, shown as variation margin receivable (or payable) on futures contracts in the Statement of Assets and Liabilities. When the contract is closed, a realized gain or loss is recorded in the Statement of Operations equal to the difference between the notional amount of the contract at the time it was opened and the notional amount at the time it was closed. The use of futures contracts involves the risk of an imperfect correlation in the movements in the price of futures contracts and interest rates, foreign currency exchange rates or underlying assets.
Forward Foreign Currency Exchange Contracts: Forward foreign currency exchange contracts are entered into to gain or reduce exposure to foreign currencies (foreign currency exchange rate risk).
| 24 |
2 0 2 3 B L A C K R O C K A N N U A L R E P O R T T O S H A R E H O L D E R S |
Notes to Financial Statements (continued)
A forward foreign currency exchange contract is an agreement between two parties to buy and sell a currency at a set exchange rate on a specified date. These contracts help to manage the overall exposure to the currencies in which some of the investments held by the Fund are denominated and in some cases, may be used to obtain exposure to a particular market. The contracts are traded OTC and not on an organized exchange.
The contract is marked-to-market daily and the change in market value is recorded as unrealized appreciation (depreciation) in the Statement of Assets and Liabilities. When a contract is closed, a realized gain or loss is recorded in the Statement of Operations equal to the difference between the value at the time it was opened and the value at the time it was closed. Non-deliverable forward foreign currency exchange contracts are settled with the counterparty in cash without the delivery of foreign currency. The use of forward foreign currency exchange contracts involves the risk that the value of a forward foreign currency exchange contract changes unfavorably due to movements in the value of the referenced foreign currencies, and such value may exceed the amount(s) reflected in the Statement of Assets and Liabilities. Cash amounts pledged for forward foreign currency exchange contracts are considered restricted and are included in cash pledged as collateral for OTC derivatives in the Statement of Assets and Liabilities. The Fund’s risk of loss from counterparty credit risk on OTC derivatives is generally limited to the aggregate unrealized gain netted against any collateral held by the Fund.
Options: The Fund may purchase and write call and put options to increase or decrease its exposure to the risks of underlying instruments, including equity risk, interest rate risk and/or commodity price risk and/or, in the case of options written, to generate gains from options premiums.
A call option gives the purchaser (holder) of the option the right (but not the obligation) to buy, and obligates the seller (writer) to sell (when the option is exercised) the underlying instrument at the exercise or strike price at any time or at a specified time during the option period. A put option gives the holder the right to sell and obligates the writer to buy the underlying instrument at the exercise or strike price at any time or at a specified time during the option period.
Premiums paid on options purchased and premiums received on options written, as well as the daily fluctuation in market value, are included in investments at value – unaffiliated and options written at value, respectively, in the Statement of Assets and Liabilities. When an instrument is purchased or sold through the exercise of an option, the premium is offset against the cost or proceeds of the underlying instrument. When an option expires, a realized gain or loss is recorded in the Statement of Operations to the extent of the premiums received or paid. When an option is closed or sold, a gain or loss is recorded in the Statement of Operations to the extent the cost of the closing transaction exceeds the premiums received or paid. When the Fund writes a call option, such option is typically “covered,” meaning that it holds the underlying instrument subject to being called by the option counterparty. When the Fund writes a put option, cash is segregated in an amount sufficient to cover the obligation. These amounts, which are considered restricted, are included in cash pledged as collateral for options written in the Statement of Assets and Liabilities.
| • | Swaptions — The Fund may purchase and write options on swaps (“swaptions”) primarily to preserve a return or spread on a particular investment or portion of the Fund’s holdings, as a duration management technique or to protect against an increase in the price of securities it anticipates purchasing at a later date. The purchaser and writer of a swaption is buying or granting the right to enter into a previously agreed upon interest rate or credit default swap agreement (interest rate risk and/or credit risk) at any time before the expiration of the option. |
In purchasing and writing options, the Fund bears the risk of an unfavorable change in the value of the underlying instrument or the risk that it may not be able to enter into a closing transaction due to an illiquid market. Exercise of a written option could result in the Fund purchasing or selling a security when it otherwise would not, or at a price different from the current market value.
Swaps: Swap contracts are entered into to manage exposure to issuers, markets and securities. Such contracts are agreements between the Fund and a counterparty to make periodic net payments on a specified notional amount or a net payment upon termination. Swap agreements are privately negotiated in the OTC market and may be entered into as a bilateral contract (“OTC swaps”) or centrally cleared (“centrally cleared swaps”).
For OTC swaps, any upfront premiums paid and any upfront fees received are shown as swap premiums paid and swap premiums received, respectively, in the Statement of Assets and Liabilities and amortized over the term of the contract. The daily fluctuation in market value is recorded as unrealized appreciation (depreciation) on OTC Swaps in the Statement of Assets and Liabilities. Payments received or paid are recorded in the Statement of Operations as realized gains or losses, respectively. When an OTC swap is terminated, a realized gain or loss is recorded in the Statement of Operations equal to the difference between the proceeds from (or cost of) the closing transaction and the Fund’s basis in the contract, if any. Generally, the basis of the contract is the premium received or paid.
In a centrally cleared swap, immediately following execution of the swap contract, the swap contract is novated to a central counterparty (the “CCP”) and the CCP becomes the Fund’s counterparty on the swap. The Fund is required to interface with the CCP through the broker. Upon entering into a centrally cleared swap, the Fund is required to deposit initial margin with the broker in the form of cash or securities in an amount that varies depending on the size and risk profile of the particular swap. Securities deposited as initial margin are designated in the Schedule of Investments and cash deposited is shown as cash pledged for centrally cleared swaps in the Statement of Assets and Liabilities. Amounts pledged, which are considered restricted cash, are included in cash pledged for centrally cleared swaps in the Statement of Assets and Liabilities. Pursuant to the contract, the Fund agrees to receive from or pay to the broker variation margin. Variation margin is recorded as unrealized appreciation (depreciation) and shown as variation margin receivable (or payable) on centrally cleared swaps in the Statement of Assets and Liabilities. Payments received from (paid to) the counterparty are amortized over the term of the contract and recorded as realized gains (losses) in the Statement of Operations, including those at termination.
| • | Credit default swaps — Credit default swaps are entered into to manage exposure to the market or certain sectors of the market, to reduce risk exposure to defaults of corporate and/or sovereign issuers or to create exposure to corporate and/or sovereign issuers to which a fund is not otherwise exposed (credit risk). |
The Fund may either buy or sell (write) credit default swaps on single-name issuers (corporate or sovereign), a combination or basket of single-name issuers or traded indexes. Credit default swaps are agreements in which the protection buyer pays fixed periodic payments to the seller in consideration for a promise from the protection seller to make a specific payment should a negative credit event take place with respect to the referenced entity (e.g., bankruptcy, failure to pay, obligation acceleration, repudiation, moratorium or restructuring). As a buyer, if an underlying credit event occurs, the Fund will either (i) receive from the seller an amount equal to the notional amount of the swap and deliver the referenced security or underlying securities comprising the index, or (ii) receive a net settlement of cash equal to the notional amount of the swap less the recovery value of the security or underlying securities comprising the index. As a seller (writer), if an underlying credit event occurs, the Fund will
|
N O T E S T O F I N A N C I A L S T A T E M E N T S |
25 |
Notes to Financial Statements (continued)
either pay the buyer an amount equal to the notional amount of the swap and take delivery of the referenced security or underlying securities comprising the index or pay a net settlement of cash equal to the notional amount of the swap less the recovery value of the security or underlying securities comprising the index.
| • | Interest rate swaps — Interest rate swaps are entered into to gain or reduce exposure to interest rates or to manage duration, the yield curve or interest rate (interest rate risk). |
Interest rate swaps are agreements in which one party pays a stream of interest payments, either fixed or floating, in exchange for another party’s stream of interest payments, either fixed or floating, on the same notional amount for a specified period of time. In more complex interest rate swaps, the notional principal amount may decline (or amortize) over time.
Swap transactions involve, to varying degrees, elements of interest rate, credit and market risks in excess of the amounts recognized in the Statement of Assets and Liabilities. Such risks involve the possibility that there will be no liquid market for these agreements, that the counterparty to the agreements may default on its obligation to perform or disagree as to the meaning of the contractual terms in the agreements, and that there may be unfavorable changes in interest rates and/or market values associated with these transactions.
Master Netting Arrangements: In order to define its contractual rights and to secure rights that will help it mitigate its counterparty risk, the Fund may enter into an International Swaps and Derivatives Association, Inc. Master Agreement (“ISDA Master Agreement”) or similar agreement with its derivative contract counterparties. An ISDA Master Agreement is a bilateral agreement between the Fund and a counterparty that governs certain OTC derivatives and typically contains, among other things, collateral posting terms and netting provisions in the event of a default and/or termination event. Under an ISDA Master Agreement, the Fund may, under certain circumstances, offset with the counterparty certain derivative financial instruments’ payables and/or receivables with collateral held and/or posted and create one single net payment. The provisions of the ISDA Master Agreement typically permit a single net payment in the event of default including the bankruptcy or insolvency of the counterparty. However, bankruptcy or insolvency laws of a particular jurisdiction may impose restrictions on or prohibitions against the right of offset in bankruptcy, insolvency or other events.
Collateral Requirements: For derivatives traded under an ISDA Master Agreement, the collateral requirements are typically calculated by netting the mark-to-market amount for each transaction under such agreement and comparing that amount to the value of any collateral currently pledged by the Fund and the counterparty.
Cash collateral that has been pledged to cover obligations of the Fund and cash collateral received from the counterparty, if any, is reported separately in the Statement of Assets and Liabilities as cash pledged as collateral and cash received as collateral, respectively. Non-cash collateral pledged by the Fund, if any, is noted in the Schedule of Investments. Generally, the amount of collateral due from or to a counterparty is subject to a certain minimum transfer amount threshold before a transfer is required, which is determined at the close of business of the Fund. Any additional required collateral is delivered to/pledged by the Fund on the next business day. Typically, the counterparty is not permitted to sell, re-pledge or use cash and non-cash collateral it receives. The Fund generally agrees not to use non-cash collateral that it receives but may, absent default or certain other circumstances defined in the underlying ISDA Master Agreement, be permitted to use cash collateral received. In such cases, interest may be paid pursuant to the collateral arrangement with the counterparty. To the extent amounts due to the Fund from the counterparties are not fully collateralized, the Fund bears the risk of loss from counterparty non-performance. Likewise, to the extent the Fund has delivered collateral to a counterparty and stands ready to perform under the terms of its agreement with such counterparty, the Fund bears the risk of loss from a counterparty in the amount of the value of the collateral in the event the counterparty fails to return such collateral. Based on the terms of agreements, collateral may not be required for all derivative contracts.
For financial reporting purposes, the Fund does not offset derivative assets and derivative liabilities that are subject to netting arrangements, if any, in the Statement of Assets and Liabilities.
6. INVESTMENT ADVISORY AGREEMENT AND OTHER TRANSACTIONS WITH AFFILIATES
Investment Advisory: The Fund entered into an Investment Advisory Agreement with the Manager, the Fund’s investment adviser and an indirect, wholly-owned subsidiary of BlackRock, Inc. (“BlackRock”), to provide investment advisory and administrative services. The Manager is responsible for the management of the Fund’s portfolio and provides the personnel, facilities, equipment and certain other services necessary to the operations of the Fund.
For such services, the Fund pays the Manager a monthly fee at an annual rate equal to 0.85% of the average daily value of the Fund’s net assets, plus the proceeds of any debt securities or outstanding borrowings used for leverage.
For purposes of calculating this fee, “net assets” mean the total assets of the Fund minus the sum of its accrued liabilities.
Expense Waivers: The Manager voluntarily agreed to waive a portion of its investment advisory fees to the annual rate of 0.30% of the Fund’s average daily net assets, plus the proceeds of any outstanding borrowings used for leverage. This amount is included in fees waived and/or reimbursed by the Manager in the Statement of Operations. During the year ended December 31, 2023, the Manager waived $136,285 pursuant to this agreement.
The Manager contractually agreed to waive its investment advisory fees by the amount of investment advisory fees the Fund pays to the Manager indirectly through its investment in affiliated money market funds (the “affiliated money market fund waiver”) through June 30, 2025. The contractual agreement may be terminated upon 90 days’ notice by a majority of the Independent Directors, or by a vote of a majority of the outstanding voting securities of the Fund. This amount is included in fees waived and/or reimbursed by the Manager in the Statement of Operations. For the year ended December 31, 2023, the amount waived was $1,216.
The Manager contractually agreed to waive its investment advisory fee with respect to any portion of the Fund’s assets invested in affiliated equity and fixed-income mutual funds and affiliated exchange-traded funds that have a contractual management fee through June 30, 2025. The agreement can be renewed for annual periods thereafter, and may be terminated on 90 days’ notice, each subject to approval by a majority of the Fund’s Independent Directors. For the year ended December 31, 2023, there were no fees waived by the Manager pursuant to this arrangement.
| 26 |
2 0 2 3 B L A C K R O C K A N N U A L R E P O R T T O S H A R E H O L D E R S |
Notes to Financial Statements (continued)
Directors and Officers: Certain directors and/or officers of the Fund are directors and/or officers of BlackRock or its affiliates. The Fund reimburses the Manager for a portion of the compensation paid to the Fund’s Chief Compliance Officer, which is included in Directors and Officer in the Statement of Operations.
7. PURCHASES AND SALES
For the year ended December 31, 2023, purchases and sales of investments, including paydowns/payups, mortgage dollar rolls and excluding short-term securities, were as follows:
|
U.S. Government Securities |
Other Securities | |||||||||||||||||||
| Fund Name |
Purchases |
Sales |
Purchases |
Sales | ||||||||||||||||
| EGF |
$ |
3,291,730 |
$ |
25,181,292 |
$ |
63,117,396 |
$ |
63,181,176 |
||||||||||||
For the year ended December 31, 2023, purchases and sales related to mortgage dollar rolls were $27,594,328 and $27,587,448, respectively.
8. INCOME TAX INFORMATION
It is the Fund’s policy to comply with the requirements of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, applicable to regulated investment companies, and to distribute substantially all of its taxable income to its shareholders. Therefore, no U.S. federal income tax provision is required.
The Fund files U.S. federal and various state and local tax returns. No income tax returns are currently under examination. The statute of limitations on the Fund’s U.S. federal tax returns generally remains open for a period of three years after they are filed. The statutes of limitations on the Fund’s state and local tax returns may remain open for an additional year depending upon the jurisdiction.
Management has analyzed tax laws and regulations and their application to the Fund as of December 31, 2023, inclusive of the open tax return years, and does not believe that there are any uncertain tax positions that require recognition of a tax liability in the Fund’s financial statements.
The tax character of distributions paid was as follows:
| Fund Name | Year Ended 12/31/23 |
Year Ended 12/31/22 | ||||||||
| EGF |
||||||||||
| Ordinary income |
$ |
1,254,428 |
$ |
1,061,068 |
||||||
| Return of capital |
|
673,629 |
|
798,630 |
||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|||||||
| $ |
1,928,057 |
$ |
1,859,698 |
|||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|||||||
As of December 31, 2023, the tax components of accumulated earnings (loss) were as follows:
| Fund Name | Non-Expiring Capital Loss Carryforwards(a) |
Net Unrealized Gains (Losses)(b) |
Total | |||||||||
| EGF |
$ |
(27,788,360) |
|
$ |
(2,290,621) |
|
$ |
(30,078,981) |
| |||
| (a) | Amounts available to offset future realized capital gains. |
| (b) | The difference between book-basis and tax-basis net unrealized gains (losses) was attributable primarily to the tax deferral of losses on wash sales, the realization for tax purposes of unrealized gains(losses) on certain futures contracts, amortization and accretion methods of premiums and discounts on fixed income securities, accounting for swap agreements and classification of investments. |
As of December 31, 2023, gross unrealized appreciation and depreciation based on cost of investments (including short positions and derivatives, if any) for U.S. federal income tax purposes were as follows:
| Fund Name | Tax Cost | Gross Unrealized Appreciation |
Gross Unrealized Depreciation |
Net Unrealized Appreciation (Depreciation) |
||||||||||||
| EGF |
$ |
42,436,164 |
|
$ |
431,396 |
|
$ |
(2,722,513 |
) |
$ |
(2,291,117 |
) | ||||
9. PRINCIPAL RISKS
In the normal course of business, the Fund invests in securities or other instruments and may enter into certain transactions, and such activities subject the Fund to various risks, including among others, fluctuations in the market (market risk) or failure of an issuer to meet all of its obligations. The value of securities or other instruments may also be affected by various factors, including, without limitation: (i) the general economy; (ii) the overall market as well as local, regional or global political and/or social instability; (iii) regulation, taxation or international tax treaties between various countries; or (iv) currency, interest rate and price fluctuations. Local, regional or global events such as war, acts of terrorism, the spread of infectious illness or other public health issues, recessions, or other events could have a significant impact on the Fund and its investments.
Illiquidity Risk: The Fund may invest without limitation in illiquid or less liquid investments or investments in which no secondary market is readily available or which are otherwise illiquid, including private placement securities. The Fund may not be able to readily dispose of such investments at prices that approximate those at which the Fund
|
N O T E S T O F I N A N C I A L S T A T E M E N T S |
27 |
Notes to Financial Statements (continued)
could sell such investments if they were more widely traded and, as a result of such illiquidity, the Fund may have to sell other investments or engage in borrowing transactions if necessary to raise funds to meet its obligations. Limited liquidity can also affect the market price of investments, thereby adversely affecting the Fund’s NAV and ability to make dividend distributions. Privately issued debt securities are often of below investment grade quality, frequently are unrated and present many of the same risks as investing in below investment grade public debt securities.
Market Risk: The Fund may be exposed to prepayment risk, which is the risk that borrowers may exercise their option to prepay principal earlier than scheduled during periods of declining interest rates, which would force the Fund to reinvest in lower yielding securities. The Fund may also be exposed to reinvestment risk, which is the risk that income from the Fund’s portfolio will decline if the Fund invests the proceeds from matured, traded or called fixed-income securities at market interest rates that are below the Fund portfolio’s current earnings rate.
Counterparty Credit Risk: The Fund may be exposed to counterparty credit risk, or the risk that an entity may fail to or be unable to perform on its commitments related to unsettled or open transactions, including making timely interest and/or principal payments or otherwise honoring its obligations. The Fund manages counterparty credit risk by entering into transactions only with counterparties that the Manager believes have the financial resources to honor their obligations and by monitoring the financial stability of those counterparties. Financial assets, which potentially expose the Fund to market, issuer and counterparty credit risks, consist principally of financial instruments and receivables due from counterparties. The extent of the Fund’s exposure to market, issuer and counterparty credit risks with respect to these financial assets is approximately their value recorded in the Statement of Assets and Liabilities, less any collateral held by the Fund.
A derivative contract may suffer a mark-to-market loss if the value of the contract decreases due to an unfavorable change in the market rates or values of the underlying instrument. Losses can also occur if the counterparty does not perform under the contract.
For OTC options purchased, the Fund bears the risk of loss in the amount of the premiums paid plus the positive change in market values net of any collateral held by the Fund should the counterparty fail to perform under the contracts. Options written by the Fund do not typically give rise to counterparty credit risk, as options written generally obligate the Fund, and not the counterparty, to perform. The Fund may be exposed to counterparty credit risk with respect to options written to the extent the Fund deposits collateral with its counterparty to a written option.
With exchange-traded futures and centrally cleared swaps, there is less counterparty credit risk to the Fund since the exchange or clearinghouse, as counterparty to such instruments, guarantees against a possible default. The clearinghouse stands between the buyer and the seller of the contract; therefore, credit risk is limited to failure of the clearinghouse. While offset rights may exist under applicable law, the Fund does not have a contractual right of offset against a clearing broker or clearinghouse in the event of a default (including the bankruptcy or insolvency). Additionally, credit risk exists in exchange-traded futures and centrally cleared swaps with respect to initial and variation margin that is held in a clearing broker’s customer accounts. While clearing brokers are required to segregate customer margin from their own assets, in the event that a clearing broker becomes insolvent or goes into bankruptcy and at that time there is a shortfall in the aggregate amount of margin held by the clearing broker for all its clients, typically the shortfall would be allocated on a pro rata basis across all the clearing broker’s customers, potentially resulting in losses to the Fund.
Geographic/Asset Class Risk: A diversified portfolio, where this is appropriate and consistent with a fund’s objectives, minimizes the risk that a price change of a particular investment will have a material impact on the NAV of a fund. The investment concentrations within the Fund’s portfolio are disclosed in its Schedule of Investments.
The Fund invests a significant portion of its assets in fixed-income securities and/or uses derivatives tied to the fixed-income markets. Changes in market interest rates or economic conditions may affect the value and/or liquidity of such investments. Interest rate risk is the risk that prices of bonds and other fixed-income securities will decrease as interest rates rise and increase as interest rates fall. The Fund may be subject to a greater risk of rising interest rates due to the period of historically low interest rates that ended in March 2022. The Federal Reserve has recently been raising the federal funds rate as part of its efforts to address inflation. There is a risk that interest rates will continue to rise, which will likely drive down the prices of bonds and other fixed-income securities, and could negatively impact the Fund’s performance.
The Fund invests a significant portion of its assets in securities of issuers located in the United States. A decrease in imports or exports, changes in trade regulations, inflation and/or an economic recession in the United States may have a material adverse effect on the U.S. economy and the securities listed on U.S. exchanges. Proposed and adopted policy and legislative changes in the United States may also have a significant effect on U.S. markets generally, as well as on the value of certain securities. Governmental agencies project that the United States will continue to maintain elevated public debt levels for the foreseeable future which may constrain future economic growth. Circumstances could arise that could prevent the timely payment of interest or principal on U.S. government debt, such as reaching the legislative “debt ceiling.” Such non-payment would result in substantial negative consequences for the U.S. economy and the global financial system. If U.S. relations with certain countries deteriorate, it could adversely affect issuers that rely on the United States for trade. The United States has also experienced increased internal unrest and discord. If these trends were to continue, they may have an adverse impact on the U.S. economy and the issuers in which the Fund invests.
The Fund invests a significant portion of its assets in securities backed by commercial or residential mortgage loans or in issuers that hold mortgage and other asset-backed securities. When a fund concentrates its investments in this manner, it assumes a greater risk of prepayment or payment extension by securities issuers. Changes in economic conditions, including delinquencies and/or defaults on assets underlying these securities, can affect the value, income and/or liquidity of such positions. Investment percentages in these securities are presented in the Schedule of Investments.
LIBOR Transition Risk: The Fund may be exposed to financial instruments that recently transitioned from, or continue to be tied to, the London Interbank Offered Rate (“LIBOR”) to determine payment obligations, financing terms, hedging strategies or investment value. The United Kingdom’s Financial Conduct Authority, which regulates LIBOR, has ceased publishing all LIBOR settings, but some USD LIBOR settings will continue to be published under a synthetic methodology until September 30, 2024 for certain legacy contracts. The Secured Overnight Financing Rate (“SOFR”) has been used increasingly on a voluntary basis in new instruments and transactions. Under U.S. regulations that implement a statutory fallback mechanism to replace LIBOR, benchmark rates based on SOFR have replaced LIBOR in certain financial contracts. The ultimate effect of the LIBOR transition process on the Fund is uncertain.
| 28 |
2 0 2 3 B L A C K R O C K A N N U A L R E P O R T T O S H A R E H O L D E R S |
Notes to Financial Statements (continued)
10. CAPITAL SHARE TRANSACTIONS
The Fund is authorized to issue 200 million shares, all of which were initially classified as Common Shares. The Board is authorized, however, to reclassify any unissued Common Shares to Preferred Shares without the approval of Common Shareholders.
Common Shares
The Fund participates in an open market share repurchase program (the “Repurchase Program”). From December 1, 2022, through November 30, 2023 the Fund may repurchase up to 5% of its outstanding common shares under the Repurchase Program, based on common shares outstanding as of the close of business on November 30, 2022, subject to certain conditions. From December 1, 2023 through November 30, 2024, the Fund may repurchase up to 5% of its outstanding common shares under the Repurchase Program, based on common shares outstanding as of the close of business on November 30, 2023, subject to certain conditions. The Repurchase Program has an accretive effect as shares are purchased at a discount to the Fund’s NAV. There is no assurance that the Fund will purchase shares in any particular amounts.
The Fund will make offers to purchase between 5% and 25% of its outstanding shares at approximate 12 month intervals. Repurchase offer results for the periods shown were as follows:
| Commencement Date of Tender Offer Period(a) |
Valuation Date |
Number of Shares Tendered |
Tendered Shares as a Percentage of Outstanding Shares |
Number of Tendered Purchased |
Tendered Shares Purchased as a Percentage of Outstanding Shares |
Purchase Price | Total Amount of Purchases |
|||||||||||||||||||||
| 10/13/23 |
|
11/15/23 |
|
|
2,458,193 |
|
|
62.5 |
% |
|
196,760 |
|
|
5.0 |
% |
|
$9.7400 |
|
|
$1,916,442 |
| |||||||
| Commencement Date of Tender Offer Period(a) |
Valuation Date |
Number of Shares Tendered |
Tendered Shares as a Percentage of Outstanding Shares |
Number of Tendered Purchased |
Tendered Shares as a Percentage
of |
Purchase Price | Total Amount of Purchases |
|||||||||||||||||||||
| 10/17/22 |
|
11/17/22 |
|
|
2,801,163 |
|
|
67.6 |
% |
|
207,116 |
|
|
5.0 |
% |
|
$10.1300 |
|
|
$2,098,085 |
| |||||||
| (a) | Date the repurchase offer period began. |
The amount of the repurchase offer is shown as redemptions of shares resulting from a repurchase offer in the Statements of Changes in Net Assets. The Fund charged a 2% repurchase fee of the value of the shares that were repurchased to compensate the Fund for expenses directly related to the repurchase offer, which is included in the capital share transactions in the Statements of the Changes in Net Assets. Costs directly related to the repurchase offer, primarily mailing and printing costs, are shown as repurchase offer in the Statement of Operations.
11. SUBSEQUENT EVENTS
Management’s evaluation of the impact of all subsequent events on the Fund’s financial statements was completed through the date the financial statements were issued and the following item was noted:
The Fund declared and paid or will pay distributions to Common Shareholders as follows:
| Fund Name | Declaration Date |
Record Date |
Payable/ Paid Date |
Dividend Per Common Share |
||||||||||||
| EGF |
|
01/02/24 |
|
|
01/12/24 |
|
|
01/31/24 |
|
$ |
0.041000 |
| ||||
|
|
02/01/24 |
|
|
02/15/24 |
|
|
02/29/24 |
|
|
0.041000 |
| |||||
|
N O T E S T O F I N A N C I A L S T A T E M E N T S |
29 |
Report of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm
To the Shareholders and the Board of Directors of BlackRock Enhanced Government Fund, Inc.:
Opinion on the Financial Statements and Financial Highlights
We have audited the accompanying statement of assets and liabilities of BlackRock Enhanced Government Fund, Inc. (the “Fund”), including the schedule of investments, as of December 31, 2023, the related statements of operations and cash flows for the year then ended, the statements of changes in net assets for each of the two years in the period then ended, the financial highlights for each of the five years in the period then ended, and the related notes. In our opinion, the financial statements and financial highlights present fairly, in all material respects, the financial position of the Fund as of December 31, 2023, and the results of its operations and its cash flows for the year then ended, the changes in its net assets for each of the two years in the period then ended, and the financial highlights for each of the five years in the period then ended, in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America.
Basis for Opinion
These financial statements and financial highlights are the responsibility of the Fund’s management. Our responsibility is to express an opinion on the Fund’s financial statements and financial highlights based on our audits. We are a public accounting firm registered with the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States) (PCAOB) and are required to be independent with respect to the Fund in accordance with the U.S. federal securities laws and the applicable rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission and the PCAOB.
We conducted our audits in accordance with the standards of the PCAOB. Those standards require that we plan and perform the audit to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements and financial highlights are free of material misstatement, whether due to error or fraud. The Fund is not required to have, nor were we engaged to perform, an audit of its internal control over financial reporting. As part of our audits we are required to obtain an understanding of internal control over financial reporting but not for the purpose of expressing an opinion on the effectiveness of the Fund’s internal control over financial reporting. Accordingly, we express no such opinion.
Our audits included performing procedures to assess the risks of material misstatement of the financial statements and financial highlights, whether due to error or fraud, and performing procedures that respond to those risks. Such procedures included examining, on a test basis, evidence regarding the amounts and disclosures in the financial statements and financial highlights. Our audits also included evaluating the accounting principles used and significant estimates made by management, as well as evaluating the overall presentation of the financial statements and financial highlights. Our procedures included confirmation of securities owned as of December 31, 2023, by correspondence with custodians or counterparties; when replies were not received, we performed other auditing procedures. We believe that our audits provide a reasonable basis for our opinion.
Deloitte & Touche LLP
Boston, Massachusetts
February 23, 2024
We have served as the auditor of one or more BlackRock investment companies since 1992.
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Important Tax Information (unaudited)
The following amount, or maximum amount allowable by law, is hereby designated as qualified dividend income for individuals for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023:
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| Fund Name | Qualified Dividend Income |
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| EGF |
|
$ 19,065 |
| |
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The Fund hereby designates the following amount, or maximum amount allowable by law, of distributions from direct federal obligation interest for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023:
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| Fund Name | Federal Obligation Interest |
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|
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||||
| EGF |
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$ 124,229 |
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||||
The law varies in each state as to whether and what percent of ordinary income dividends attributable to federal obligations is exempt from state income tax. Shareholders are advised to check with their tax advisers to determine if any portion of the dividends received is exempt from state income tax.
The following percentage, or maximum percentage allowable by law, of ordinary income distributions paid during the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023 qualified for the dividends-received deduction for corporate shareholders:
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| Fund Name | Dividends-Received Deduction |
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|
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||||
| EGF |
|
0.88% |
| |
|
|
||||
The Fund hereby designates the following amount, or maximum amount allowable by law, as interest income eligible to be treated as a Section 163(j) interest dividend for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023:
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| Fund Name | Interest Dividends |
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|
|
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| EGF |
$ |
1,252,429 |
| |
|
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The Fund hereby designates the following amount, or maximum amount allowable by law, as interest-related dividends eligible for exemption from U.S. withholding tax for nonresident aliens and foreign corporations for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023:
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| Fund Name | Interest- Related Dividends |
|||
|
|
||||
| EGF |
$ |
1,007,621 |
| |
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I M P O R T A N T T A X I N F O R M A T I O N |
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Investment Objectives, Policies and Risks
Recent Changes
The following information is a summary of certain changes since December 31, 2022. This information may not reflect all of the changes that have occurred since you purchased the Fund.
During the Fund’s most recent fiscal year, there were no material changes in the Fund’s investment objectives or policies that have not been approved by shareholders or in the principal risk factors associated with investment in the Fund.
Investment Objectives and Policies
The Fund’s investment objective is to provide stockholders with current income and gains. The Fund has an interval fund structure, pursuant to which the Fund will conduct, subject to applicable Maryland law, annual repurchase offers for between 5% and 25% of the Fund’s outstanding shares. The Fund’s investment objective and interval fund structure are fundamental policies and may not be changed without the approval of a majority of the outstanding voting securities of the Fund (as defined in the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “Investment Company Act”)).
The Fund seeks to achieve its investment objective by investing primarily in a diversified portfolio of U.S. Government securities and U.S. Government Agency securities, including U.S. Government mortgage-backed securities, that pay interest in an attempt to generate current income, and by employing a strategy of writing (selling) call options on individual or baskets of U.S. Government securities, U.S. Government Agency securities and other debt securities and on interest rate swaps (“swaptions”) held by the Fund in an effort to generate current gains from option premiums and to enhance the Fund’s risk-adjusted return (the “Option Strategy”).
Under normal market conditions, the Fund will invest at least 80% of the value of its net assets (including assets acquired with the proceeds from the sale of any preferred stock), plus the amount of any outstanding debt securities or borrowings for investment purposes, in U.S. Government securities and U.S. Government Agency securities, including U.S. Government mortgage-backed securities. This is a non-fundamental policy and may be changed by the Board of Directors of the Fund provided that stockholders are provided with at least 60 days’ prior notice of any change as required by the rules under the Investment Company Act.
The Fund may also invest up to 20% of its net assets in non-U.S. Government debt securities of foreign or domestic issuers, including commercial paper, notes, corporate bonds, debentures, asset-backed securities, mortgage-backed securities, corporate loans, sovereign debt securities and money market securities that are rated in one of the four highest rating categories by at least one of the nationally recognized statistical rating organizations (including Baa or better by Moody’s Investors Service, Inc. or BBB or better by S&P Global Ratings or Fitch Ratings, Inc.) or, if unrated, are considered by BlackRock Advisors, LLC (the “Manager”) to be of comparable quality (referred to herein as “other debt securities”). Securities rated in any of the four highest rating categories are known as “investment grade” securities. As part of its Option Strategy, the Fund may also write call options on these other debt securities.
The Fund is not limited as to the maturities of its portfolio investments and may take full advantage of the entire range of maturities offered by U.S. Government securities, U.S. Government Agency securities and other debt securities. The Manager may adjust the average maturity of the Fund’s portfolio from time to time, depending on its assessment of the relative yields available on securities of different maturities and its assessment of future interest rate patterns.
Most of the options written by the Fund will be traded over-the-counter although the Fund may utilize exchange-traded options as well. In general, the Fund will primarily write (sell) call options that are “European style,” meaning that the options may be exercised only on the expiration date. However, the Fund may from time to time write call options that are “American style,” meaning that the options may be exercised at any point up to and including the expiration date.
The Fund will generally write (sell) call options that are “out-of-the-money” or “at-the-money” at the time of sale. Out-of-the-money call options are options with an exercise price that is above the principal value of the underlying U.S. Government security, U.S. Government Agency security or other debt security at the time of sale whereas at-the-money call options are options with an exercise price that is equal to the principal value of the underlying U.S. Government security, U.S. Government Agency security or other debt security at the time of sale. In addition to providing possible gains through premiums, out-of-the-money call options allow the Fund to potentially benefit from appreciation in the U.S. Government securities, U.S. Government Agency securities or other debt securities held by the Fund with respect to which the option was written, up to the exercise price. The Fund also reserves the right to sell call options that are “in-the-money” (i.e., those with an exercise price below the principal value of the underlying security at the time of sale). When the price of the security upon which a call option is written rises, call options that were out-of-the-money when written may become in-the-money (i.e., the principal value of the security rises above the exercise price of the option), thereby increasing the likelihood that the options will be exercised and the Fund will be forced to sell the security at the exercise price upon the purchaser’s exercise of the option.
The Fund expects that it will primarily write call options whose terms to expiration range from one to three months. The Fund reserves the right to sell call options of both longer and shorter terms.
The Manager will attempt to maintain for the Fund written call options positions on U.S. Government securities, U.S. Government Agency securities or other debt securities whose price movements, taken in the aggregate, are correlated with the price movements of the U.S. Government securities, U.S. Government Agency securities and other debt securities held in the Fund’s portfolio. In doing so, the Manager will consider data relating to the Fund’s fixed income holdings, including interest rates, maturity and coupon rate. The Fund anticipates that it will write (sell) call options on a substantial portion of the U.S. Government securities, U.S. Government Agency securities and other debt securities held in its portfolio.
The Fund also may use other derivative strategies involving call and put options, futures and forward contracts, swap agreements, options on swaps, short sales and other derivative instruments in an attempt to enhance return or to hedge against market and other risks in the portfolio. The Fund may also enter into derivatives transactions that in certain circumstances may produce effects similar to leverage.
The Fund may vary its investment objective and policies for temporary defensive purposes during periods in which the Manager believes that conditions in the securities markets or other economic, financial or political conditions warrant and in order to keep the Fund’s cash fully invested, including during the period in which the net proceeds of
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Investment Objectives, Policies and Risks (continued)
Investment Objectives and Policies (continued)
the offering are being invested. Under such conditions, the Fund may invest up to 100% of its total assets in short-term securities issued or guaranteed by the U.S. Government or its instrumentalities or agencies, certificates of deposit, bankers’ acceptances and other bank obligations, commercial paper rated in the highest category by an established rating service, or other debt securities deemed by the Manager to be consistent with a defensive posture, or may hold its assets in cash. This might negatively affect the Fund’s ability to achieve its investment objective.
Leverage: Although the Fund has no present intention to use leverage, it may in the future leverage its portfolio through borrowings, the issuance of debt securities, the issuance of preferred stock or a combination thereof. The Fund may borrow money and issue debt securities in amounts up to 331/3 %, and may issue shares of preferred stock in amounts up to 50%, of the value of its total assets to finance additional investments. The Fund also may borrow money as a temporary measure for extraordinary or emergency purposes, including the payment of dividends and the settlement of securities transactions that otherwise might require untimely dispositions of Fund securities.
The Fund may enter into derivative securities transactions that have leverage embedded in them.
Risk Factors
This section contains a discussion of the general risks of investing in the Fund. The net asset value and market price of, and dividends paid on, the common shares will fluctuate with and be affected by, among other things, the risks more fully described below. As with any fund, there can be no guarantee that the Fund will meet its investment objective or that the Fund’s performance will be positive for any period of time. The order of the below risk factors does not indicate the significance of any particular risk factor.
Annual Repurchases of Fund Shares: The Fund has an interval fund structure, pursuant to which the Fund will conduct, subject to applicable Maryland law, annual repurchase offers for between 5% and 25% of the Fund’s outstanding shares. These required annual repurchases are likely to decrease the overall size of the Fund, which could over time: (i) harm the Fund’s investment performance by limiting the extent to which the Fund may invest in illiquid securities; (ii) increase the Fund’s expense ratio as the Fund’s assets decrease; (iii) threaten the Fund’s continued listing of its common shares on the New York Stock Exchange, and, consequently, the liquidity of its shares; and (iv) jeopardize the Fund’s viability and continued existence. Moreover, there are additional risks associated with the Fund’s annual repurchase offers, including the risk that: (i) because a repurchase offer will be for 5% to 25% of the Fund’s outstanding shares, if the repurchase offer is oversubscribed, shareholders may be unable to liquidate all or a given percentage of their investment at net asset value during the repurchase offer; (ii) due to the potential for the Fund to purchase shares on a pro rata basis if the repurchase offer is over-subscribed, some investors may tender more shares than they wish to have repurchased in order to ensure the repurchase of a specific number of shares; (iii) the repurchase offer may not eliminate any discount at which the Fund’s shares trade; and (iv) because the Fund expects, in certain circumstances, to liquidate portfolio securities in order to fund repurchase offers, the need to sell such securities may in turn affect the market for such securities and accordingly diminish the value of the Fund’s investments. Furthermore, to the extent the Fund borrows to finance the making of repurchases, interest on such borrowings reduce the Fund’s returns.
Investment and Market Discount Risk: An investment in the Fund’s common shares is subject to investment risk, including the possible loss of the entire amount that you invest. As with any stock, the price of the Fund’s common shares will fluctuate with market conditions and other factors. If shares are sold, the price received may be more or less than the original investment. Common shares are designed for long-term investors and the Fund should not be treated as a trading vehicle. Shares of closed-end management investment companies frequently trade at a discount from their net asset value. This risk is separate and distinct from the risk that the Fund’s net asset value could decrease as a result of its investment activities. At any point in time an investment in the Fund’s common shares may be worth less than the original amount invested, even after taking into account distributions paid by the Fund. During periods in which the Fund may use leverage, the Fund’s investment, market discount and certain other risks will be magnified.
Debt Securities Risk: Debt securities, such as bonds, involve interest rate risk, such as credit risk, interest rate risk, extension risk, and prepayment risk, each of which are described in further detail below:
| • | Credit Risk – Credit risk refers to the possibility that the issuer of a debt security (i.e., the borrower) will not be able to make payments of interest and principal when due. Changes in an issuer’s credit rating or the market’s perception of an issuer’s creditworthiness may also affect the value of the Fund’s investment in that issuer. The degree of credit risk depends on both the financial condition of the issuer and the terms of the obligation. |
| • | Interest Rate Risk – The market value of bonds and other fixed-income securities changes in response to interest rate changes and other factors. Interest rate risk is the risk that prices of bonds and other fixed-income securities will increase as interest rates fall and decrease as interest rates rise. |
The Fund may be subject to a greater risk of rising interest rates due to the recent period of historically low interest rates. For example, if interest rates increase by 1%, assuming a current portfolio duration of ten years, and all other factors being equal, the value of the Fund’s investments would be expected to decrease by 10%. (Duration is a measure of the price sensitivity of a debt security or portfolio of debt securities to relative changes in interest rates.) The magnitude of these fluctuations in the market price of bonds and other fixed-income securities is generally greater for those securities with longer maturities. Fluctuations in the market price of the Fund’s investments will not affect interest income derived from instruments already owned by the Fund, but will be reflected in the Fund’s net asset value. The Fund may lose money if short-term or long-term interest rates rise sharply in a manner not anticipated by Fund management.
To the extent the Fund invests in debt securities that may be prepaid at the option of the obligor (such as mortgage-backed securities), the sensitivity of such securities to changes in interest rates may increase (to the detriment of the Fund) when interest rates rise. Moreover, because rates on certain floating rate debt securities typically reset only periodically, changes in prevailing interest rates (and particularly sudden and significant changes) can be expected to cause some fluctuations in the net asset value of the Fund to the extent that it invests in floating rate debt securities.
These basic principles of bond prices also apply to U.S. Government securities. A security backed by the “full faith and credit” of the U.S. Government is guaranteed only as to its stated interest rate and face value at maturity, not its current market price. Just like other fixed-income securities, government-guaranteed securities will fluctuate in value when interest rates change.
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Investment Objectives, Policies and Risks (continued)
Investment Objectives and Policies (continued)
A general rise in interest rates has the potential to cause investors to move out of fixed-income securities on a large scale, which may increase redemptions from funds that hold large amounts of fixed-income securities. Heavy redemptions could cause the Fund to sell assets at inopportune times or at a loss or depressed value and could hurt the Fund’s performance.
| • | Extension Risk – When interest rates rise, certain obligations will be paid off by the obligor more slowly than anticipated, causing the value of these obligations to fall. |
| • | Prepayment Risk – When interest rates fall, certain obligations will be paid off by the obligor more quickly than originally anticipated, and the Fund may have to invest the proceeds in securities with lower yields. |
U.S. Government Obligations Risk: Certain securities in which the Fund may invest, including securities issued by certain U.S. Government agencies and U.S. Government sponsored enterprises, are not guaranteed by the U.S. Government or supported by the full faith and credit of the United States. In addition, circumstances could arise that could prevent the timely payment of interest or principal on U.S. Government obligations, such as reaching the legislative “debt ceiling.” Such non-payment could result in losses to the Fund and substantial negative consequences for the U.S. economy and the global financial system.
Mortgage- and Asset-Backed Securities Risks: Mortgage- and asset-backed securities represent interests in “pools” of mortgages or other assets, including consumer loans or receivables held in trust. Mortgage- and asset-backed securities are subject to credit, interest rate, prepayment and extension risks. These securities also are subject to risk of default on the underlying mortgage or asset, particularly during periods of economic downturn. Small movements in interest rates (both increases and decreases) may quickly and significantly reduce the value of certain mortgage-backed securities.
Corporate Loans Risk: Commercial banks and other financial institutions or institutional investors make corporate loans to companies that need capital to grow or restructure. Borrowers generally pay interest on corporate loans at rates that change in response to changes in market interest rates such as the Secured Overnight Financing Rate (“SOFR”), the London Interbank Offered Rate (“LIBOR”) or the prime rates of U.S. banks. As a result, the value of corporate loan investments is generally less exposed to the adverse effects of shifts in market interest rates than investments that pay a fixed rate of interest. The market for corporate loans may be subject to irregular trading activity and wide bid/ask spreads. In addition, transactions in corporate loans may settle on a delayed basis. As a result, the proceeds from the sale of corporate loans may not be readily available to make additional investments or to meet the Fund’s redemption obligations. To the extent the extended settlement process gives rise to short-term liquidity needs, the Fund may hold additional cash, sell investments or temporarily borrow from banks and other lenders.
Money Market Securities Risk: If market conditions improve while the Fund has invested some or all of its assets in high quality money market securities, this strategy could result in reducing the potential gain from the market upswing, thus reducing the Fund’s opportunity to achieve its investment objective.
Foreign Securities Risk: Foreign investments often involve special risks not present in U.S. investments that can increase the chances that the Fund will lose money. These risks include:
| • | The Fund generally holds its foreign securities and cash in foreign banks and securities depositories, which may be recently organized or new to the foreign custody business and may be subject to only limited or no regulatory oversight. |
| • | Changes in foreign currency exchange rates can affect the value of the Fund’s portfolio. |
| • | The economies of certain foreign markets may not compare favorably with the economy of the United States with respect to such issues as growth of gross national product, reinvestment of capital, resources and balance of payments position. |
| • | The governments of certain countries, or the U.S. Government with respect to certain countries, may prohibit or impose substantial restrictions through capital controls and/or sanctions on foreign investments in the capital markets or certain industries in those countries, which may prohibit or restrict the ability to own or transfer currency, securities, derivatives or other assets. |
| • | Many foreign governments do not supervise and regulate stock exchanges, brokers and the sale of securities to the same extent as does the United States and may not have laws to protect investors that are comparable to U.S. securities laws. |
| • | Settlement and clearance procedures in certain foreign markets may result in delays in payment for or delivery of securities not typically associated with settlement and clearance of U.S. investments. |
| • | The Fund’s claims to recover foreign withholding taxes may not be successful, and if the likelihood of recovery of foreign withholding taxes materially decreases, due to, for example, a change in tax regulation or approach in the foreign country, accruals in the Fund’s net asset value for such refunds may be written down partially or in full, which will adversely affect the Fund’s net asset value. |
Sovereign Debt Risk: Sovereign debt instruments are subject to the risk that a governmental entity may delay or refuse to pay interest or repay principal on its sovereign debt, due, for example, to cash flow problems, insufficient foreign currency reserves, political considerations, the relative size of the governmental entity’s debt position in relation to the economy or the failure to put in place economic reforms required by the International Monetary Fund or other multilateral agencies.
Risks Associated with Writing Call Options: There are various risks associated with the Option Strategy. The purchaser of an option written (sold) by the Fund has the right to purchase the security underlying the option at the exercise price up to and including the expiration date of the option. Therefore, as the writer of a call option, the Fund forgoes, during the term of the option, the opportunity to profit from increases in the market value of the underlying securities held by the Fund with respect to which the option was written above the sum of the premium and the exercise price of the call. However the Fund has retained the risk of loss (net of premiums received) should the price of the Fund’s portfolio securities decline. Consequently, as a result of the Option Strategy, the net asset value of the Fund may tend to decline over time.
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Investment Objectives, Policies and Risks (continued)
Investment Objectives and Policies (continued)
A decision as to whether, when and how to use options involves the exercise of skill and judgment and even a well-conceived transaction may be unsuccessful to some degree because of market developments or unexpected events.
Derivatives Risk: The Fund’s use of derivatives may increase its costs, reduce the Fund’s returns and/or increase volatility. Derivatives involve significant risks, including:
| • | Leverage Risk – The Fund’s use of derivatives can magnify the Fund’s gains and losses. Relatively small market movements may result in large changes in the value of a derivatives position and can result in losses that greatly exceed the amount originally invested. |
| • | Market Risk – Some derivatives are more sensitive to interest rate changes and market price fluctuations than other securities. The Fund could also suffer losses related to its derivatives positions as a result of unanticipated market movements, which losses are potentially unlimited. Finally, the Manager may not be able to predict correctly the direction of securities prices, interest rates and other economic factors, which could cause the Fund’s derivatives positions to lose value. |
| • | Counterparty Risk – Derivatives are also subject to counterparty risk, which is the risk that the other party in the transaction will be unable or unwilling to fulfill its contractual obligation, and the related risks of having concentrated exposure to such a counterparty. |
| • | Illiquidity Risk – The possible lack of a liquid secondary market for derivatives and the resulting inability of the Fund to sell or otherwise close a derivatives position could expose the Fund to losses and could make derivatives more difficult for the Fund to value accurately. |
| • | Operational Risk – The use of derivatives includes the risk of potential operational issues, including documentation issues, settlement issues, systems failures, inadequate controls and human error. |
| • | Legal Risk – The risk of insufficient documentation, insufficient capacity or authority of counterparty, or legality or enforceability of a contract. |
| • | Volatility and Correlation Risk – Volatility is defined as the characteristic of a security, an index or a market to fluctuate significantly in price within a short time period. A risk of the Fund’s use of derivatives is that the fluctuations in their values may not correlate with the overall securities markets. |
| • | Valuation Risk – Valuation for derivatives may not be readily available in the market. Valuation may be more difficult in times of market turmoil since many investors and market makers may be reluctant to purchase complex instruments or quote prices for them. |
| • | Hedging Risk – Hedges are sometimes subject to imperfect matching between the derivative and the underlying security, and there can be no assurance that the Fund’s hedging transactions will be effective. The use of hedging may result in certain adverse tax consequences. |
| • | Tax Risk – Certain aspects of the tax treatment of derivative instruments, including swap agreements and commodity-linked derivative instruments, are currently unclear and may be affected by changes in legislation, regulations or other legally binding authority. Such treatment may be less favorable than that given to a direct investment in an underlying asset and may adversely affect the timing, character and amount of income the Fund realizes from its investments. |
Leverage Risk: The Fund’s use of leverage may increase or decrease from time to time in its discretion and the Fund may, in the future, determine not to use leverage.
The use of leverage creates an opportunity for increased common share net investment income dividends, but also creates risks for the holders of common shares. The Fund cannot assure you that the use of leverage will result in a higher yield on the common shares. Any leveraging strategy the Fund employs may not be successful.
Leverage involves risks and special considerations for common shareholders, including:
| • | the likelihood of greater volatility of net asset value, market price and dividend rate of the common shares than a comparable portfolio without leverage; |
| • | the risk that fluctuations in interest rates or dividend rates on any leverage that the Fund must pay will reduce the return to the common shareholders; |
| • | the effect of leverage in a declining market, which is likely to cause a greater decline in the net asset value of the common shares than if the Fund were not leveraged, which may result in a greater decline in the market price of the common shares; |
| • | leverage may increase operating costs, which may reduce total return. |
Any decline in the net asset value of the Fund’s investments will be borne entirely by the holders of common shares. Therefore, if the market value of the Fund’s portfolio declines, leverage will result in a greater decrease in net asset value to the holders of common shares than if the Fund were not leveraged. This greater net asset value decrease will also tend to cause a greater decline in the market price for the common shares.
Illiquid Investments Risk: The Fund may invest without limitation in illiquid or less liquid investments or investments in which no secondary market is readily available or which are otherwise illiquid, including private placement securities. The Fund may not be able to readily dispose of such investments at prices that approximate those at which the Fund could sell such investments if they were more widely traded and, as a result of such illiquidity, the Fund may have to sell other investments or engage in borrowing transactions if necessary to raise cash to meet its obligations. Limited liquidity can also affect the market price of investments, thereby adversely affecting the Fund’s net asset value and ability to make dividend distributions. The financial markets in general, and certain segments of the mortgage-related securities markets in particular, have in recent years experienced periods of extreme secondary market supply and demand imbalance, resulting in a loss of liquidity during which market prices were suddenly and substantially below traditional measures of intrinsic value. During such periods, some investments could be sold only at arbitrary prices and with substantial losses. Periods of such market dislocation may occur again at any time. Privately issued debt securities are often of below investment grade quality, frequently are unrated and present many of the same risks as investing in below investment grade public debt securities.
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35 |
Investment Objectives, Policies and Risks (continued)
Investment Objectives and Policies (continued)
Tax Risk: Certain transactions entered into by the Fund are subject to special tax rules that may, among other things, (i) affect the character of gains and losses realized, (ii) disallow, suspend or otherwise limit the allowance of certain losses or deductions and (iii) accelerate the recognition of income without a corresponding receipt of cash (with which to make the necessary distributions to satisfy distribution requirements applicable to regulated investment companies). Operation of these rules could, therefore, affect the character, amount and timing of distributions to shareholders. Special tax rules also will require the Fund to mark to market certain types of positions in its portfolio, including some of its call options (i.e., treat them as sold on the last day of the taxable year), and may result in the recognition of income without a corresponding receipt of cash. The Fund intends to monitor its transactions, to make appropriate tax elections and to make appropriate entries in its books and records to lessen the effect of these tax rules and avoid any possible disqualification for the favorable tax treatment afforded regulated investment companies. In addition, there is a possibility that the Fund may make total distributions during a calendar or fiscal year in an amount that exceeds the Fund’s net investment income and net realized capital gains for the relevant fiscal year. In such situations, the amount by which the Fund’s total distributions exceed net investment income and net realized capital gains would generally be treated as a tax-free return of capital up to the amount of a shareholder’s tax basis in his or her shares, with any amounts exceeding such basis treated as gain from the sale of shares.
Certain dividend income is eligible for taxation at a lower rate that is also applicable to long term capital gains in the hands of individual shareholders. Certain tax rules may limit the Fund’s ability to designate dividends as long term capital gains eligible for taxation at reduced rates. Short term capital gains and interest income on debt securities are not eligible for this reduced tax rate. In addition, gains from writing call options generally will not be eligible for taxation at a reduced rate.
The Fund’s investments and the tax treatment of Fund distributions may be affected by future changes in tax laws and regulations. The impact of such legislation on the Fund and its shareholders cannot be predicted.
Risk of Investing in the United States: Certain changes in the U.S. economy, such as when the U.S. economy weakens or when its financial markets decline, may have an adverse effect on the securities to which the Fund has exposure.
Market Risk and Selection Risk: Market risk is the risk that one or more markets in which the Fund invests will go down in value, including the possibility that the markets will go down sharply and unpredictably. The value of a security or other asset may decline due to changes in general market conditions, economic trends or events that are not specifically related to the issuer of the security or other asset, or factors that affect a particular issuer or issuers, exchange, country, group of countries, region, market, industry, group of industries, sector or asset class. Local, regional or global events such as war, acts of terrorism, the spread of infectious illness or other public health issues like pandemics or epidemics, recessions, or other events could have a significant impact on the Fund and its investments. Selection risk is the risk that the securities selected by Fund management will underperform the markets, the relevant indices or the securities selected by other funds with similar investment objectives and investment strategies. This means you may lose money.
An outbreak of an infectious coronavirus (COVID-19) that was first detected in December 2019 developed into a global pandemic that has resulted in numerous disruptions in the market and has had significant economic impact leaving general concern and uncertainty. Although vaccines have been developed and approved for use by various governments, the duration of the pandemic and its effects cannot be predicted with certainty. The impact of this coronavirus, and other epidemics and pandemics that may arise in the future, could affect the economies of many nations, individual companies and the market in general ways that cannot necessarily be foreseen at the present time.
Shareholder Activism Risk: Shareholder activism involving closed-end funds has recently been increasing. Shareholder activism can take many forms, including engaging in public campaigns to demand that the Fund consider significant transactions such as a tender offer, merger or liquidation or to attempt to influence the Fund’s corporate governance and/or management, commencing proxy contests to attempt to elect the activists’ representatives or others to the Fund’s Board of Directors, or to seek other actions such as a termination of the Fund’s investment advisory contract with its current investment manager or commencing litigation. If the Fund becomes the subject of shareholder activism, then management and the Board may be required to divert significant resources and attention to respond to the activist and the Fund may incur substantial costs defending against such activism if management and the Board determine that the activist’s demands are not in the best interest of the Fund. Further, the Fund’s share price could be subject to significant fluctuation or otherwise be adversely affected by the events, risks and uncertainties of any shareholder activism.
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Automatic Dividend Reinvestment Plan
Pursuant to EGF’s Dividend Reinvestment Plan (the “Reinvestment Plan”), Common Shareholders are automatically enrolled to have all distributions of dividends and capital gains and other distributions reinvested by Computershare Trust Company, N.A. (the “Reinvestment Plan Agent”) in the Fund’s Common Shares pursuant to the Reinvestment Plan. Shareholders who do not participate in the Reinvestment Plan will receive all distributions in cash paid by check and mailed directly to the shareholders of record (or if the shares are held in street name or other nominee name, then to the nominee) by the Reinvestment Plan Agent, which serves as agent for the shareholders in administering the Reinvestment Plan.
After EGF declares a dividend or determines to make a capital gain or other distribution, the Reinvestment Plan Agent will acquire shares for the participants’ accounts, depending upon the following circumstances, either (i) through receipt of unissued but authorized shares from the Fund (“newly issued shares”) or (ii) by purchase of outstanding shares on the open market or on the Fund’s primary exchange (“open-market purchases”). If, on the dividend payment date, the net asset value (“NAV”) per share is equal to or less than the market price per share plus estimated brokerage commissions (such condition often referred to as a “market premium”), the Reinvestment Plan Agent will invest the dividend amount in newly issued shares acquired on behalf of the participants. The number of newly issued shares to be credited to each participant’s account will be determined by dividing the dollar amount of the dividend by the NAV on the date the shares are issued. However, if the NAV is less than 95% of the market price on the dividend payment date, the dollar amount of the dividend will be divided by 95% of the market price on the dividend payment date. If, on the dividend payment date, the NAV is greater than the market price per share plus estimated brokerage commissions (such condition often referred to as a “market discount”), the Reinvestment Plan Agent will invest the dividend amount in shares acquired on behalf of the participants in open-market purchases. If the Reinvestment Plan Agent is unable to invest the full dividend amount in open-market purchases, or if the market discount shifts to a market premium during the purchase period, the Reinvestment Plan Agent will invest any un-invested portion in newly issued shares. Investments in newly issued shares made in this manner would be made pursuant to the same process described above and the date of issue for such newly issued shares will substitute for the dividend payment date.
You may elect not to participate in the Reinvestment Plan and to receive all dividends in cash by contacting the Reinvestment Plan Agent, at the address set forth below.
Participation in the Reinvestment Plan is completely voluntary and may be terminated or resumed at any time without penalty by notice if received and processed by the Reinvestment Plan Agent prior to the dividend record date. Additionally, the Reinvestment Plan Agent seeks to process notices received after the record date but prior to the payable date and such notices often will become effective by the payable date. Where late notices are not processed by the applicable payable date, such termination or resumption will be effective with respect to any subsequently declared dividend or other distribution.
The Reinvestment Plan Agent’s fees for the handling of the reinvestment of distributions will be paid by the Fund. However, each participant will pay a pro rata share of brokerage commissions incurred with respect to the Reinvestment Plan Agent’s open-market purchases in connection with the reinvestment of all distributions. The automatic reinvestment of all distributions will not relieve participants of any U.S. federal, state or local income tax that may be payable on such dividends or distributions.
The Fund reserves the right to amend or terminate the Reinvestment Plan. There is no direct service charge to participants in the Reinvestment Plan; however, the Fund reserves the right to amend the Reinvestment Plan to include a service charge payable by the participants. Participants in EGF that request a sale of shares are subject to a $0.02 per share sold brokerage commission. All correspondence concerning the Reinvestment Plan should be directed to Computershare Trust Company, N.A. through the internet at computershare.com/blackrock, or in writing to Computershare, P.O. Box 43006, Providence, RI 02940-3078, Telephone: (800) 699-1236. Overnight correspondence should be directed to the Reinvestment Plan Agent at Computershare, 150 Royall Street, Suite 101, Canton, MA 02021.
| A U T O M A T I C D I V I D E N D R E I N V E S T M E N T P L A N |
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Director and Officer Information
| Independent Directors(a) | ||||||||
| Name Year of Birth(b) |
Position(s) Held (Length of Service)(c) |
Principal Occupation(s) During Past 5 Years | Number of BlackRock-Advised Registered Investment Companies (“RICs”) Consisting of Investment Portfolios (“Portfolios”) Overseen |
Public Company Past 5 Years | ||||
| R. Glenn Hubbard 1958 |
Chair of the Board (Since 2022) Director (Since 2007) |
Dean, Columbia Business School from 2004 to 2019; Faculty member, Columbia Business School since 1988. | 69 RICs consisting of 102 Portfolios | ADP (data and information services) from 2004 to 2020; Metropolitan Life Insurance Company (insurance); TotalEnergies SE (multi-energy) | ||||
| W. Carl Kester(d) 1951 |
Vice Chair of the Board (Since 2022) Director (Since 2007) |
Baker Foundation Professor and George Fisher Baker Jr. Professor of Business Administration, Emeritus, Harvard Business School since 2022; George Fisher Baker Jr. Professor of Business Administration, Harvard Business School from 2008 to 2022; Deputy Dean for Academic Affairs from 2006 to 2010; Chairman of the Finance Unit, from 2005 to 2006; Senior Associate Dean and Chairman of the MBA Program from 1999 to 2005; Member of the faculty of Harvard Business School since 1981. | 71 RICs consisting of 104 Portfolios | None | ||||
| Cynthia L. Egan 1955 |
Director (Since 2016) |
Advisor, U.S. Department of the Treasury from 2014 to 2015; President, Retirement Plan Services, for T. Rowe Price Group, Inc. from 2007 to 2012; executive positions within Fidelity Investments from 1989 to 2007. | 71 RICs consisting of 104 Portfolios | Unum (insurance); The Hanover Insurance Group (Board Chair); Huntsman Corporation (Lead Independent Director and non- Executive Vice Chair of the Board) (chemical products) | ||||
| Frank J. Fabozzi(d) 1948 |
Director (Since 2007) |
Editor of The Journal of Portfolio Management since 1986; Professor of Finance, EDHEC Business School (France) from 2011 to 2022; Professor of Practice, Johns Hopkins University since 2021; Professor in the Practice of Finance, Yale University School of Management from 1994 to 2011 and currently a Teaching Fellow in Yale’s Executive Programs; Visiting Professor, Rutgers University for the Spring 2019 semester; Visiting Professor, New York University for the 2019 academic year; Adjunct Professor of Finance, Carnegie Mellon University in fall 2020 semester. | 71 RICs consisting of 104 Portfolios | None | ||||
| Lorenzo A. Flores 1964 |
Director (Since 2021) |
Vice Chairman, Kioxia, Inc. since 2019; Chief Financial Officer, Xilinx, Inc. from 2016 to 2019; Corporate Controller, Xilinx, Inc. from 2008 to 2016. | 69 RICs consisting of 102 Portfolios | None | ||||
| Stayce D. Harris 1959 |
Director (Since 2021) |
Lieutenant General, Inspector General of the United States Air Force from 2017 to 2019; Lieutenant General, Assistant Vice Chief of Staff and Director, Air Staff, United States Air Force from 2016 to 2017; Major General, Commander, 22nd Air Force, AFRC, Dobbins Air Reserve Base, Georgia from 2014 to 2016; Pilot, United Airlines from 1990 to 2020. | 69 RICs consisting of 102 Portfolios | KULR Technology Group, Inc. in 2021; The Boeing Company (airplane manufacturer) | ||||
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Director and Officer Information (continued)
| Independent Directors(a) (continued) | ||||||||
| Name Year of Birth(b) |
Position(s) Held (Length of Service)(c) |
Principal Occupation(s) During Past 5 Years | Number of BlackRock-Advised Registered Investment Companies (“RICs”) Consisting of Investment Portfolios (“Portfolios”) Overseen |
Public Company Past 5 Years | ||||
| J. Phillip Holloman 1955 |
Director (Since 2021) |
President and Chief Operating Officer, Cintas Corporation from 2008 to 2018. | 69 RICs consisting of 102 Portfolios | PulteGroup, Inc. (home construction); Rockwell Automation Inc. (industrial automation); Vestis Corporation (uniforms and facilities services) | ||||
|
Catherine A. Lynch(d) 1961 |
Director (Since 2016) |
Chief Executive Officer, Chief Investment Officer and various other positions, National Railroad Retirement Investment Trust from 2003 to 2016; Associate Vice President for Treasury Management, The George Washington University from 1999 to 2003; Assistant Treasurer, Episcopal Church of America from 1995 to 1999. | 71 RICs consisting of 104 Portfolios | PennyMac Mortgage Investment Trust | ||||
| Non-Management Interested Director(a)(f) | ||||||||
| Name Year of Birth(b) |
Position(s) Held (Length of Service) |
Principal Occupation(s) During Past 5 Years | Number of BlackRock-Advised Registered Investment Companies (“RICs”) Consisting of Investment Portfolios (“Portfolios”) Overseen |
Public Company and Other Investment Company Directorships Held During Past 5 Years | ||||
| Arthur P. Steinmetz 1958 |
Director (Since 2023) |
Consultant, Posit PBC (enterprise data science) since 2020; Director, ScotiaBank (U.S.) from 2020 to 2023; Chairman, Chief Executive Officer and President of OppenheimerFunds, Inc. from 2015, 2014 and 2013, respectively to 2019; Trustee, President and Principal Executive Officer of 104 OppenheimerFunds funds from 2014 to 2019; Portfolio manager of various OppenheimerFunds fixed income mutual funds from 1986 to 2014. | 70 RICs consisting of 103 Portfolios | Trustee of 104 OppenheimerFunds funds from 2014 to 2019 | ||||
| D I R E C T O R A N D O F F I C E R I N F O R M A T I O N |
39 |
Director and Officer Information (continued)
| Interested Directors(a)(e) | ||||||||
| Name Year of Birth(b) |
Position(s) Held (Length of Service)(c) |
Principal Occupation(s) During Past 5 Years | Number of BlackRock-Advised Registered Investment Companies (“RICs”) Consisting of Investment Portfolios (“Portfolios”) Overseen |
Public Company and Other Investment Company Directorships Held During Past 5 Years | ||||
| Robert Fairbairn 1965 |
Director (Since 2018) |
Vice Chairman of BlackRock, Inc. since 2019; Member of BlackRock’s Global Executive and Global Operating Committees; Co-Chair of BlackRock’s Human Capital Committee; Senior Managing Director of BlackRock, Inc. from 2010 to 2019; oversaw BlackRock’s Strategic Partner Program and Strategic Product Management Group from 2012 to 2019; Member of the Board of Managers of BlackRock Investments, LLC from 2011 to 2018; Global Head of BlackRock’s Retail and iShares® businesses from 2012 to 2016. | 97 RICs consisting of 268 Portfolios | None | ||||
| John M. Perlowski(d) 1964 |
Director (Since 2015) President and Chief Executive Officer (Since 2010) |
Managing Director of BlackRock, Inc. since 2009; Head of BlackRock Global Accounting and Product Services since 2009; Advisory Director of Family Resource Network (charitable foundation) since 2009. | 99 RICs consisting of 270 Portfolios | None | ||||
| (a) | The address of each Director is c/o BlackRock, Inc., 50 Hudson Yards, New York, New York 10001. |
| (b) | Each Independent Director holds office until his or her successor is duly elected and qualifies or until his or her earlier death, resignation, retirement or removal as provided by the Fund’s by-laws or charter or statute, or until December 31 of the year in which he or she turns 75. Directors who are “interested persons,” as defined in the Investment Company Act serve until their successor is duly elected and qualifies or until their earlier death, resignation, retirement or removal as provided by the Fund’s by-laws or statute, or until December 31 of the year in which they turn 72. The Board may determine to extend the terms of Independent Directors on a case-by-case basis, as appropriate. |
| (c) | Following the combination of Merrill Lynch Investment Managers, L.P. (“MLIM”) and BlackRock, Inc. in September 2006, the various legacy MLIM and legacy BlackRock fund boards were realigned and consolidated into three new fund boards in 2007. Certain Independent Directors first became members of the boards of other legacy MLIM or legacy BlackRock funds as follows: Frank J. Fabozzi, 1988; R. Glenn Hubbard, 2004; and W. Carl Kester, 1995. |
| (d) | Dr. Fabozzi, Ms. Egan, Dr. Kester, Ms. Lynch, Mr. Steinmetz and Mr. Perlowski are also trustees of the BlackRock Credit Strategies Fund and BlackRock Private Investments Fund. |
| (e) | Mr. Fairbairn and Mr. Perlowski are both “interested persons,” as defined in the 1940 Act, of the Fund based on their positions with BlackRock, Inc. and its affiliates. Mr. Fairbairn and Mr. Perlowski are also board members of the BlackRock Multi-Asset Complex. |
| (f) | Mr. Steinmetz is currently classified as a non-management interested Director based on his former directorship at another company that is not an affiliate of BlackRock, Inc. Mr. Steinmetz does not currently serve as an officer or employee of BlackRock, Inc. or its affiliates or own any securities of BlackRock, Inc. It is anticipated that Mr. Steinmetz will become an Independent Director effective January 19, 2024. |
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Director and Officer Information (continued)
| Officers Who Are Not Directors(a) | ||||
| Name Year of Birth(b) |
Position(s) Held (Length of Service) |
Principal Occupation(s) During Past 5 Years | ||
|
Jonathan Diorio 1980
|
Vice President (Since 2015)
|
Managing Director of BlackRock, Inc. since 2015; Director of BlackRock, Inc. from 2011 to 2015.
| ||
|
Trent Walker 1974
|
Chief Financial Officer (Since 2021)
|
Managing Director of BlackRock, Inc. since September 2019; Executive Vice President of PIMCO from 2016 to 2019; Senior Vice President of PIMCO from 2008 to 2015; Treasurer from 2013 to 2019 and Assistant Treasurer from 2007 to 2017 of PIMCO Funds, PIMCO Variable Insurance Trust, PIMCO ETF Trust, PIMCO Equity Series, PIMCO Equity Series VIT, PIMCO Managed Accounts Trust, 2 PIMCO-sponsored interval funds and 21 PIMCO-sponsored closed-end funds.
| ||
|
Jay M. Fife 1970
|
Treasurer (Since 2007)
|
Managing Director of BlackRock, Inc. since 2007.
| ||
|
Aaron Wasserman 1974
|
Chief Compliance Officer (Since 2023)
|
Managing Director of BlackRock, Inc. since 2018; Chief Compliance Officer of the BlackRock-advised funds in the BlackRock Multi-Asset Complex, the BlackRock Fixed-Income Complex and the iShares Complex since 2023; Deputy Chief Compliance Officer for the BlackRock-advised funds in the BlackRock Multi-Asset Complex, the BlackRock Fixed- Income Complex and the iShares Complex from 2014 to 2023.
| ||
|
Janey Ahn 1975
|
Secretary (Since 2012)
|
Managing Director of BlackRock, Inc. since 2018; Director of BlackRock, Inc. from 2009 to 2017.
| ||
| (a) The address of each Officer is c/o BlackRock, Inc., 50 Hudson Yards, New York, New York 10001. | ||||
| (b) Officers of the Fund serve at the pleasure of the Board. | ||||
Effective July 1, 2023, Aaron Wasserman replaced Charles Park as Chief Compliance Officer of the Fund.
Effective December 31, 2023, Frank Fabozzi retired as Director of the Fund.
Effective January 19, 2024, Arthur Steinmetz became an Independent Director of the Fund.
| D I R E C T O R A N D O F F I C E R I N F O R M A T I O N |
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Proxy Results
The Annual Meeting of Shareholders was held on July 12, 2023 for shareholders of record on May 15, 2023, to elect director nominees for BlackRock Enhanced Government Fund, Inc. There were no broker non-votes with regard to the Fund.
Shareholders elected the Class I Directors as follows:
|
|
Cynthia L. Egan | Lorenzo A. Flores | Stayce D. Harris | Catherine A. Lynch | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Fund Name | Votes For | Votes Withheld | Votes For | Votes Withheld | Votes For | Votes Withheld | Votes For | Votes Withheld | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| EGF |
2,173,443 | 65,719 | 2,229,196 | 9,966 | 2,228,946 | 10,216 | 2,229,970 | 9,192 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
For the Fund listed above, Directors whose term of office continued after the Annual Meeting of Shareholders because they were not up for election are Robert Fairbairn, J. Phillip Holloman, R. Glenn Hubbard, John M. Perlowski, Frank J. Fabozzi and W. Carl Kester.
Fund Certification
The Fund is listed for trading on the NYSE and has filed with the NYSE its annual chief executive officer certification regarding compliance with the NYSE’s listing standards. The Fund filed with the SEC the certification of its chief executive officer and chief financial officer required by Section 302 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act.
Environmental, Social and Governance (“ESG”) Integration
Although the Fund does not seek to implement a specific sustainability objective, strategy or process unless otherwise disclosed, Fund management will consider ESG factors as part of the investment process for the Fund. Fund management views ESG integration as the practice of incorporating financially material ESG data or information into investment processes with the objective of enhancing risk-adjusted returns. These ESG considerations will vary depending on the Fund’s particular investment strategies and may include consideration of third-party research as well as consideration of proprietary BlackRock research across the ESG risks and opportunities regarding an issuer. The ESG characteristics utilized in the Fund’s investment process are anticipated to evolve over time and one or more characteristics may not be relevant with respect to all issuers that are eligible for investment. Certain of these considerations may affect the Fund’s exposure to certain companies or industries. While Fund management views ESG considerations as having the potential to contribute to the Fund’s long-term performance, there is no guarantee that such results will be achieved.
Dividend Policy
The Fund’s policy is to make monthly distributions to shareholders. In order to provide shareholders with a more stable level of dividend distributions, the Fund employs a managed distribution plan (the “Plan”), the goal of which is to provide shareholders with consistent and predictable cash flows by setting distribution rates based on expected long-term returns of the Fund.
The distributions paid by the Fund for any particular month may be more or less than the amount of net investment income earned by the Fund during such month. Furthermore, the final tax characterization of distributions is determined after the year-end of the Fund and is reported in the Fund’s annual report to shareholders. Distributions can be characterized as ordinary income, capital gains and/or return of capital. The Fund’s taxable net investment income and net realized capital gains (“taxable income”) may not be sufficient to support the level of distributions paid. To the extent that distributions exceed the Fund’s current and accumulated earnings and profits, the excess may be treated as a non-taxable return of capital.
A return of capital is a return of a portion of an investor’s original investment. A return of capital is not expected to be taxable, but it reduces a shareholder’s tax basis in his or her shares, thus reducing any loss or increasing any gain on a subsequent disposition by the shareholder of his or her shares. It is possible that a substantial portion of the distributions paid during a calendar year may ultimately be classified as return of capital for U.S. federal income tax purposes when the final determination of the source and character of the distributions is made.
Such distributions, under certain circumstances, may exceed the Fund’s total return performance. When total distributions exceed total return performance for the period, the difference reduces the Fund’s total assets and net asset value (“NAV”) per share and, therefore, could have the effect of increasing the Fund’s expense ratio and reducing the amount of assets the Fund has available for long term investment.
General Information
The Fund does not make available copies of its Statement of Additional Information because the Fund’s shares are not continuously offered, which means that the Statement of Additional Information of the Fund has not been updated after completion of the Fund’s offerings and the information contained in the Fund’s Statement of Additional Information may have become outdated.
The following information is a summary of certain changes since December 31, 2022. This information may not reflect all of the changes that have occurred since you purchased the Fund.
Except if noted otherwise herein, there were no changes to the Fund’s charter or by-laws that would delay or prevent a change of control of the Fund that were not approved by the shareholders. Except if noted otherwise herein, there have been no changes in the persons who are primarily responsible for the day-to-day management of the Fund’s portfolios.
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Additional Information (continued)
General Information (continued)
In accordance with Section 23(c) of the Investment Company Act of 1940, the Fund may from time to time purchase shares of its common stock in the open market or in private transactions.
Quarterly performance, semi-annual and annual reports, current net asset value and other information regarding the Fund may be found on BlackRock’s website, which can be accessed at blackrock.com. Any reference to BlackRock’s website in this report is intended to allow investors public access to information regarding the Fund and does not, and is not intended to, incorporate BlackRock’s website in this report.
Electronic Delivery
Shareholders can sign up for e-mail notifications of quarterly statements, annual and semi-annual shareholder reports by enrolling in the electronic delivery program. Electronic copies of shareholder reports are available on BlackRock’s website.
To enroll in electronic delivery:
Shareholders Who Hold Accounts with Investment Advisers, Banks or Brokerages:
Please contact your financial adviser. Please note that not all investment advisers, banks or brokerages may offer this service.
Householding
The Fund will mail only one copy of shareholder documents, annual and semi-annual reports, Rule 30e-3 notices and proxy statements, to shareholders with multiple accounts at the same address. This practice is commonly called “householding” and is intended to reduce expenses and eliminate duplicate mailings of shareholder documents. Mailings of your shareholder documents may be householded indefinitely unless you instruct us otherwise. If you do not want the mailing of these documents to be combined with those for other members of your household, please call the Fund at (800) 882-0052.
Availability of Quarterly Schedule of Investments
The Fund files its complete schedule of portfolio holdings with the SEC for the first and third quarters of each fiscal year as an exhibit to its reports on Form N-PORT. The Fund’s Form N-PORT is available on the SEC’s website at sec.gov. Additionally, the Fund makes its portfolio holdings for the first and third quarters of each fiscal year available at blackrock.com/fundreports.
Availability of Proxy Voting Policies, Procedures and Voting Records
A description of the policies and procedures that the Fund uses to determine how to vote proxies relating to portfolio securities and information about how the Fund voted proxies relating to securities held in the Fund’s portfolio during the most recent 12-month period ended June 30 is available without charge, upon request (1) by calling (800) 882-0052; (2) on the BlackRock website at blackrock.com; and (3) on the SEC’s website at sec.gov.
Availability of Fund Updates
BlackRock will update performance and certain other data for the Fund on a monthly basis on its website in the “Closed-end Funds” section of blackrock.com as well as certain other material information as necessary from time to time. Investors and others are advised to check the website for updated performance information and the release of other material information about the Fund. This reference to BlackRock’s website is intended to allow investors public access to information regarding the Fund and does not, and is not intended to, incorporate BlackRock’s website in this report.
Fundamental Periodic Repurchase Policy
The Fund has adopted an “interval fund” structure pursuant to Rule 23c-3 under the 1940 Act as a fundamental policy. As an interval fund, the Fund will make annual repurchase offers at net asset value (less a repurchase fee not to exceed 2%) to all Fund shareholders. The percentage of outstanding shares that the Fund can repurchase in each offer will be established by the Fund’s Board shortly before the commencement of each offer and will be between 5% and 25% of the Fund’s then outstanding shares.
The Fund has adopted the following fundamental policies regarding periodic repurchases:
(a) The Fund will make repurchase offers at periodic intervals pursuant to Rule 23c-3 under the 1940 Act.
(b) The periodic interval between repurchase request deadlines will be approximately 12 months.
(c) The maximum number of days between a repurchase request deadline and the next repurchase pricing date will be 14 days; provided that if the 14th day after a repurchase request deadline is not a business day, the repurchase pricing date shall be the next business day.
The Board may place such conditions and limitations on a repurchase offer as may be permitted under Rule 23c-3. Repurchase offers may be suspended or postponed under certain circumstances, as provided in Rule 23c-3.
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Additional Information (continued)
Fundamental Periodic Repurchase Policy (continued)
During the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023, the Fund conducted repurchase offer for up to 5% of its outstanding Common Shares, pursuant to Rule 23c-3 under the 1940 Act, as summarized in the following table:
| Number of Repurchase Offers |
Number of Shares Repurchased |
Number of Shares Tendered |
||||||||||||||
| 1 | 196,760 | 196,760 | ||||||||||||||
BlackRock Privacy Principles
BlackRock is committed to maintaining the privacy of its current and former fund investors and individual clients (collectively, “Clients”) and to safeguarding their non-public personal information. The following information is provided to help you understand what personal information BlackRock collects, how we protect that information and why in certain cases we share such information with select parties.
If you are located in a jurisdiction where specific laws, rules or regulations require BlackRock to provide you with additional or different privacy-related rights beyond what is set forth below, then BlackRock will comply with those specific laws, rules or regulations.
BlackRock obtains or verifies personal non-public information from and about you from different sources, including the following: (i) information we receive from you or, if applicable, your financial intermediary, on applications, forms or other documents; (ii) information about your transactions with us, our affiliates, or others; (iii) information we receive from a consumer reporting agency; and (iv) from visits to our websites.
BlackRock does not sell or disclose to non-affiliated third parties any non-public personal information about its Clients, except as permitted by law or as is necessary to respond to regulatory requests or to service Client accounts. These non-affiliated third parties are required to protect the confidentiality and security of this information and to use it only for its intended purpose.
We may share information with our affiliates to service your account or to provide you with information about other BlackRock products or services that may be of interest to you. In addition, BlackRock restricts access to non-public personal information about its Clients to those BlackRock employees with a legitimate business need for the information. BlackRock maintains physical, electronic and procedural safeguards that are designed to protect the non-public personal information of its Clients, including procedures relating to the proper storage and disposal of such information.
Fund and Service Providers
Investment Adviser
BlackRock Advisors, LLC
Wilmington, DE 19809
Accounting Agent and Custodian
State Street Bank and Trust Company
Boston, MA 02114
Transfer Agent
Computershare Trust Company, N.A.
Canton, MA 02021
Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm
Deloitte & Touche LLP
Boston, MA 02116
Legal Counsel
Willkie Farr & Gallagher LLP
New York, NY 10019
Address of the Fund
100 Bellevue Parkway
Wilmington, DE 19809
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Glossary of Terms Used in this Report
| Currency Abbreviation | ||
| USD | United States Dollar | |
|
Portfolio Abbreviation | ||
| CLO | Collateralized Loan Obligation | |
|
SOFR |
Secured Overnight Financing Rate | |
|
TBA |
To-Be-Announced | |
|
G L O S S A R Y O F T E R M S U S E D I N T H I S R E P O R T |
45 |
Want to know more?
blackrock.com | 800-882-0052
This report is intended for current holders. It is not a prospectus. Past performance results shown in this report should not be considered a representation of future performance. Statements and other information herein are as dated and are subject to change.
EGF-12/23-AR
|
|
|
(b) Not Applicable
| Item 3 – | Audit Committee Financial Expert – The registrant’s board of directors (the “board of directors”), has determined that (i) the registrant has the following audit committee financial experts serving on its audit committee and (ii) each audit committee financial expert is independent: |
Frank J. Fabozzi
Lorenzo A. Flores
Catherine A. Lynch
Under applicable securities laws, a person determined to be an audit committee financial expert will not be deemed an “expert” for any purpose, including without limitation for the purposes of Section 11 of the Securities Act of 1933, as a result of being designated or identified as an audit committee financial expert. The designation or identification of a person as an audit committee financial expert does not impose on such person any duties, obligations, or liabilities greater than the duties, obligations, and liabilities imposed on such person as a member of the audit committee and board of directors in the absence of such designation or identification. The designation or identification of a person as an audit committee financial expert does not affect the duties, obligations, or liability of any other member of the audit committee or board of directors.
| Item 4 – | Principal Accountant Fees and Services |
The following table presents fees billed by Deloitte & Touche LLP (“D&T”) in each of the last two fiscal years for the services rendered to the Fund:
| (a) Audit Fees | (b) Audit-Related Fees1 | (c) Tax Fees2 | (d) All Other Fees | |||||||||||||
| Entity Name | Current Fiscal Year End |
Previous End |
Current Fiscal Year End |
Previous End |
Current Fiscal Year End |
Previous End |
Current Fiscal Year End |
Previous End | ||||||||
| BlackRock Enhanced Government Fund, Inc. | $37,230 | $35,802 | $0 | $0 | $13,208 | $12,700 | $407 | $431 | ||||||||
The following table presents fees billed by D&T that were required to be approved by the registrant’s audit committee (the “Committee”) for services that relate directly to the operations or financial reporting of the Fund and that are rendered on behalf of BlackRock Advisors, LLC ( the “Investment Adviser” or “BlackRock”) and entities controlling, controlled by, or under common control with BlackRock (not including any sub-adviser whose role is primarily portfolio management and is
2
subcontracted with or overseen by another investment adviser) that provide ongoing services to the Fund (“Affiliated Service Providers”):
| Current Fiscal Year End | Previous Fiscal Year End | |||
|
(b) Audit-Related Fees1 |
$0 | $0 | ||
| (c) Tax Fees2 |
$0 | $0 | ||
| (d) All Other Fees3 |
$2,154,000 | $2,098,000 |
1 The nature of the services includes assurance and related services reasonably related to the performance of the audit or review of financial statements not included in Audit Fees, including accounting consultations, agreed-upon procedure reports, attestation reports, comfort letters, out-of-pocket expenses and internal control reviews not required by regulators.
2 The nature of the services includes tax compliance and/or tax preparation, including services relating to the filing or amendment of federal, state or local income tax returns, regulated investment company qualification reviews, taxable income and tax distribution calculations.
3 Non-audit fees of $2,154,000 and $2,098,000 for the current fiscal year and previous fiscal year, respectively, were paid to the Fund’s principal accountant in their entirety by BlackRock, in connection with services provided to the Affiliated Service Providers of the Fund and of certain other funds sponsored and advised by BlackRock or its affiliates for a service organization review and an accounting research tool subscription. These amounts represent aggregate fees paid by BlackRock and were not allocated on a per fund basis.
(e)(1) Audit Committee Pre-Approval Policies and Procedures:
The Committee has adopted policies and procedures with regard to the pre-approval of services. Audit, audit-related and tax compliance services provided to the registrant on an annual basis require specific pre-approval by the Committee. The Committee also must approve other non-audit services provided to the registrant and those non-audit services provided to the Investment Adviser and Affiliated Service Providers that relate directly to the operations and the financial reporting of the registrant. Certain of these non-audit services that the Committee believes are (a) consistent with the SEC’s auditor independence rules and (b) routine and recurring services that will not impair the independence of the independent accountants may be approved by the Committee without consideration on a specific case-by-case basis (“general pre-approval”). The term of any general pre-approval is 12 months from the date of the pre-approval, unless the Committee provides for a different period. Tax or other non-audit services provided to the registrant which have a direct impact on the operations or financial reporting of the registrant will only be deemed pre-approved provided that any individual project does not exceed $10,000 attributable to the registrant or $50,000 per project. For this purpose, multiple projects will be aggregated to determine if they exceed the previously mentioned cost levels.
Any proposed services exceeding the pre-approved cost levels will require specific pre-approval by the Committee, as will any other services not subject to general pre-approval (e.g., unanticipated but permissible services). The Committee is informed of each service approved subject to general pre-approval at the next regularly scheduled in-person board meeting. At this meeting, an analysis of such services is presented to the Committee for ratification. The Committee may delegate to the Committee Chairman the authority to approve the provision of and fees for any specific engagement of permitted non-audit services, including services exceeding pre-approved cost levels.
(e)(2) None of the services described in each of Items 4(b) through (d) were approved by the Committee pursuant to the de minimis exception in paragraph (c)(7)(i)(C) of Rule 2-01 of Regulation S-X.
(f) Not Applicable
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(g) The aggregate non-audit fees, defined as the sum of the fees shown under “Audit-Related Fees,” “Tax Fees” and “All Other Fees,” paid to the accountant for services rendered by the accountant to the registrant, the Investment Adviser and the Affiliated Service Providers were:
| Entity Name |
Current Fiscal Year End |
Previous Fiscal Year End | ||
| BlackRock Enhanced Government Fund, Inc. | $13,615 | $13,131 |
Additionally, the amounts billed by D&T in connection with services provided to the Affiliated Service Providers of the Fund and of other funds sponsored or advised by BlackRock or its affiliates during the current and previous fiscal years for a service organization review and an accounting research tool subscription were:
| Current Fiscal Year End |
Previous Fiscal Year End | |
|
$2,154,000 |
$2,098,000 |
These amounts represent aggregate fees paid by BlackRock and were not allocated on a per fund basis.
(h) The Committee has considered and determined that the provision of non-audit services that were rendered to the Investment Adviser, and the Affiliated Service Providers that were not pre-approved pursuant to paragraph (c)(7)(ii) of Rule 2-01 of Regulation S-X is compatible with maintaining the principal accountant’s independence.
(i) – Not Applicable
(j) – Not Applicable
| Item 5 – | Audit Committee of Listed Registrant |
(a) The following individuals are members of the registrant’s separately designated standing audit committee established in accordance with Section 3(a)(58)(A) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (15 U.S.C. 78c(a)(58)(A)):
Frank J. Fabozzi
Lorenzo A. Flores
J. Phillip Holloman
Catherine A. Lynch
(b) Not Applicable
| Item 6 – | Investments |
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(a) The registrant’s Schedule of Investments is included as part of the Report to Stockholders filed under Item 1(a) of this Form.
(b) Not Applicable due to no such divestments during the semi-annual period covered since the previous Form N-CSR filing.
| Item 7 – | Disclosure of Proxy Voting Policies and Procedures for Closed-End Management Investment Companies – The board of directors has delegated the voting of proxies for the Fund’s portfolio securities to the Investment Adviser pursuant to the Investment Adviser’s proxy voting guidelines. Under these guidelines, the Investment Adviser will vote proxies related to Fund securities in the best interests of the Fund and its stockholders. From time to time, a vote may present a conflict between the interests of the Fund’s stockholders, on the one hand, and those of the Investment Adviser, or any affiliated person of the Fund or the Investment Adviser, on the other. In such event, provided that the Investment Adviser’s Equity Investment Policy Oversight Committee, or a sub-committee thereof (the “Oversight Committee”) is aware of the real or potential conflict or material non-routine matter and if the Oversight Committee does not reasonably believe it is able to follow its general voting guidelines (or if the particular proxy matter is not addressed in the guidelines) and vote impartially, the Oversight Committee may retain an independent fiduciary to advise the Oversight Committee on how to vote or to cast votes on behalf of the Investment Adviser’s clients. If the Investment Adviser determines not to retain an independent fiduciary, or does not desire to follow the advice of such independent fiduciary, the Oversight Committee shall determine how to vote the proxy after consulting with the Investment Adviser’s Portfolio Management Group and/or the Investment Adviser’s Legal and Compliance Department and concluding that the vote cast is in its client’s best interest notwithstanding the conflict. A copy of the Fund’s Proxy Voting Policy and Procedures are attached as Exhibit 99.PROXYPOL, a copy of the Fund’s Global Corporate Governance & Engagement Principles are attached as Exhibit 99.GLOBAL.CORP.GOV and a copy of the Fund’s Corporate Governance and Proxy Voting Guidelines for U.S. Securities are attached as Exhibit 99.US.CORP.GOV. Information on how the Fund voted proxies relating to portfolio securities during the most recent 12-month period ended June 30 is available without charge, (i) at www.blackrock.com and (ii) on the SEC’s website at http://www.sec.gov. |
| Item 8 – | Portfolio Managers of Closed-End Management Investment Companies |
(a)(1) As of the date of filing this Report:
The registrant is managed by Scott MacLellan, CFA, CMT, Managing Director at BlackRock and Akiva Dickstein, Managing Director at BlackRock. Messrs. MacLellan and Dickstein are the Fund’s portfolio managers and are responsible for the day-to-day management of the Fund’s portfolio and the selection of its investments. Messrs. MacLellan and Dickstein have been part of the registrant’s portfolio management team since 2018 and 2020, respectively.
| Portfolio Manager
|
Biography
| |
| Scott MacLellan, CFA, CMT | Managing Director of BlackRock, Inc. since 2022; Director of BlackRock, Inc. from 2010 to 2021; Vice President of BlackRock, Inc. from 2007 to 2009. | |
| Akiva Dickstein | Managing Director of BlackRock since 2009; Managing Director of Merrill Lynch Investment Managers, L.P. from 2003 to 2009 and Head of the U.S. Rates & Structured Credit Research Group. | |
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(a)(2) As of December 31, 2023:
| (ii) Number of Other Accounts Managed and Assets by Account Type |
(iii)
Number of Other Accounts and Assets for Which Advisory Fee is Performance-Based | |||||||||||
| (i) Name of Portfolio Manager |
Other Registered Investment Companies |
Other Investment Vehicles |
Other Accounts |
Other Registered Investment Companies |
Other Investment Vehicles |
Other Accounts | ||||||
| Scott MacLellan, CFA, CMT |
12 | 17 | 131 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||||||
| $11.31 Billion | $3.60 Billion | $55.96 Billion | $0 | $0 | $912.2 Million | |||||||
| Akiva Dickstein |
23 | 24 | 216 | 0 | 0 | 4 | ||||||
| $23.99 Billion | $8.08 Billion | $91.07 Billion | $0 | $0 | $993.0 Million | |||||||
(iv) Portfolio Manager Potential Material Conflicts of Interest
BlackRock has built a professional working environment, firm-wide compliance culture and compliance procedures and systems designed to protect against potential incentives that may favor one account over another. BlackRock has adopted policies and procedures that address the allocation of investment opportunities, execution of portfolio transactions, personal trading by employees and other potential conflicts of interest that are designed to ensure that all client accounts are treated equitably over time. Nevertheless, BlackRock furnishes investment management and advisory services to numerous clients in addition to the Fund, and BlackRock may, consistent with applicable law, make investment recommendations to other clients or accounts (including accounts which are hedge funds or have performance or higher fees paid to BlackRock, or in which portfolio managers have a personal interest in the receipt of such fees), which may be the same as or different from those made to the Fund. In addition, BlackRock, Inc., its affiliates and significant shareholders and any officer, director, shareholder or employee may or may not have an interest in the securities whose purchase and sale BlackRock recommends to the Fund. BlackRock, Inc., or any of its affiliates or significant shareholders, or any officer, director, shareholder, employee or any member of their families may take different actions than those recommended to the Fund by BlackRock with respect to the same securities. Moreover, BlackRock may refrain from rendering any advice or services concerning securities of companies of which any of BlackRock, Inc.’s (or its affiliates’ or significant shareholders’) officers, directors or employees are directors or officers, or companies as to which BlackRock, Inc. or any of its affiliates or significant shareholders or the officers, directors and employees of any of them has any substantial economic interest or possesses material non-public information. Certain portfolio managers also may manage accounts whose investment strategies may at times be opposed to the strategy utilized for a fund. It should also be noted that Messrs. MacLellan and Dickstein may be managing hedge fund and/or long only accounts, or may be part of a team managing hedge fund and/or long only accounts, subject to incentive fees. Messrs. MacLellan and Dickstein may therefore be entitled to receive a portion of any incentive fees earned on such accounts.
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As a fiduciary, BlackRock owes a duty of loyalty to its clients and must treat each client fairly. When BlackRock purchases or sells securities for more than one account, the trades must be allocated in a manner consistent with its fiduciary duties. BlackRock attempts to allocate investments in a fair and equitable manner among client accounts, with no account receiving preferential treatment. To this end, BlackRock, Inc. has adopted policies that are intended to ensure reasonable efficiency in client transactions and provide BlackRock with sufficient flexibility to allocate investments in a manner that is consistent with the particular investment discipline and client base, as appropriate.
(a)(3) As of December 31, 2023:
Portfolio Manager Compensation Overview
The discussion below describes the portfolio managers’ compensation as of December 31, 2023.
BlackRock’s financial arrangements with its portfolio managers, its competitive compensation and its career path emphasis at all levels reflect the value senior management places on key resources. Compensation may include a variety of components and may vary from year to year based on a number of factors. The principal components of compensation include a base salary, a performance-based discretionary bonus, participation in various benefits programs and one or more of the incentive compensation programs established by BlackRock.
Base Compensation. Generally, portfolio managers receive base compensation based on their position with the firm.
Discretionary Incentive Compensation
Discretionary incentive compensation is a function of several components: the performance of BlackRock, Inc., the performance of the portfolio manager’s group within BlackRock, the investment performance, including risk-adjusted returns, of the firm’s assets under management or supervision by that portfolio manager relative to predetermined benchmarks, and the individual’s performance and contribution to the overall performance of these portfolios and BlackRock. In most cases, these benchmarks are the same as the benchmark or benchmarks against which the performance of the Funds or other accounts managed by the portfolio managers are measured. Among other things, BlackRock’s Chief Investment Officers make a subjective determination with respect to each portfolio manager’s compensation based on the performance of the funds and other accounts managed by each portfolio manager relative to the various benchmarks. Performance of fixed income funds is measured on a pre-tax and/or after-tax basis over various time periods including 1-, 3- and 5- year periods, as applicable. With respect to these portfolio managers, such benchmarks for the Fund and other accounts are:
| Portfolio Manager
|
Benchmark
| |
| Scott MacLellan, CFA, CMT | A combination of market-based indices (e.g., Bank of America Merrill Lynch U.S. Corporate & Government Index, 1-3 Years), certain customized indices and certain fund industry peer groups. | |
| Akiva Dickstein | A combination of market-based indices (e.g. Bloomberg US Aggregate Index, Bloomberg U.S. Universal Index and Bloomberg Intermediate Aggregate Index), certain customized indices and certain fund industry peer groups. | |
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Distribution of Discretionary Incentive Compensation. Discretionary incentive compensation is distributed to portfolio managers in a combination of cash, deferred BlackRock, Inc. stock awards, and/or deferred cash awards that notionally track the return of certain BlackRock investment products.
Portfolio managers receive their annual discretionary incentive compensation in the form of cash. Portfolio managers whose total compensation is above a specified threshold also receive deferred BlackRock, Inc. stock awards annually as part of their discretionary incentive compensation. Paying a portion of discretionary incentive compensation in the form of deferred BlackRock, Inc. stock puts compensation earned by a portfolio manager for a given year “at risk” based on BlackRock’s ability to sustain and improve its performance over future periods. In some cases, additional deferred BlackRock, Inc. stock may be granted to certain key employees as part of a long-term incentive award to aid in retention, align interests with long-term shareholders and motivate performance. Deferred BlackRock, Inc. stock awards are generally granted in the form of BlackRock, Inc. restricted stock units that vest pursuant to the terms of the applicable plan and, once vested, settle in BlackRock, Inc. common stock. The portfolio managers of this Fund have deferred BlackRock, Inc. stock awards.
For certain portfolio managers, a portion of the discretionary incentive compensation is also distributed in the form of deferred cash awards that notionally track the returns of select BlackRock investment products they manage, which provides direct alignment of portfolio manager discretionary incentive compensation with investment product results. Deferred cash awards vest ratably over a number of years and, once vested, settle in the form of cash. Only portfolio managers who manage specified products and whose total compensation is above a specified threshold are eligible to participate in the deferred cash award program.
Other Compensation Benefits. In addition to base salary and discretionary incentive compensation, portfolio managers may be eligible to receive or participate in one or more of the following:
Incentive Savings Plans — BlackRock, Inc. has created a variety of incentive savings plans in which BlackRock, Inc. employees are eligible to participate, including a 401(k) plan, the BlackRock Retirement Savings Plan (RSP), and the BlackRock Employee Stock Purchase Plan (ESPP). The employer contribution components of the RSP include a company match equal to 50% of the first 8% of eligible pay contributed to the plan capped at $5,000 per year, and a company retirement contribution equal to 3-5% of eligible compensation up to the Internal Revenue Service limit ($330,000 for 2023). The RSP offers a range of investment options, including registered investment companies and collective investment funds managed by the firm. BlackRock, Inc. contributions follow the investment direction set by participants for their own contributions or, absent participant investment direction, are invested into a target date fund that corresponds to, or is closest to, the year in which the participant attains age 65. The ESPP allows for investment in BlackRock, Inc. common stock at a 5% discount on the fair market value of the stock on the purchase date. Annual participation in the ESPP is limited to the purchase of 1,000
8
shares of common stock or a dollar value of $25,000 based on its fair market value on the purchase date. All of the eligible portfolio managers are eligible to participate in these plans.
(a)(4) Beneficial Ownership of Securities – As of December 31, 2023.
| Portfolio Manager |
Dollar Range of Equity Securities of the Fund Beneficially Owned | |
| Scott MacLellan, CFA, CMT | $10,001 - $50,000 | |
| Akiva Dickstein | $50,001 - $100,000 |
(b) Not Applicable
| Item 9 – | Purchases of Equity Securities by Closed-End Management Investment Company and Affiliated Purchasers — Not Applicable due to no such purchases during the period covered by this report. |
| Period | (a) Total Number of Shares Purchased1 |
(b) Average Price Paid per Share |
(c) Total Number of Shares Purchased as Part of Publicly Announced Plans or Programs1 |
(d) Maximum Number of Shares that May Yet Be Purchased Under the Plans or Programs1,2 | ||||
| July 1-31, 2023 |
0 | $0 | 0 | 196,761 | ||||
| August 1-31, 2023 |
0 | $0 | 0 | 196,761 | ||||
| September 1-30, 2023 |
0 | $0 | 0 | 196,761 | ||||
| October 1-31, 2023 |
0 | $0 | 0 | 196,761 | ||||
|
November 1-30, 2023 |
02 | $02 | 02 | 196,761 | ||||
| December 1-31, 2023 |
0 | $0 | 0 | 186,923 | ||||
| Total: |
02 | $02 | 02 | 186,923 |
1 On September 8, 2022, the Fund announced a continuation of its open market share repurchase program. Commencing on December 1, 2022, the Fund may repurchase through November 30, 2023, up to 5% of its common shares outstanding as of the close of business on November 30, 2022, subject to certain conditions. On November 15, 2023, the Fund announced a further continuation of its open market share repurchase program. Commencing on December 1, 2023, the Fund may repurchase through November 30, 2024, up to 5% of its common shares outstanding as of the close of business on November 30, 2023, subject to certain conditions.
2The registrant conducts annual repurchases for between 5% and 25% of its outstanding shares pursuant to Rule 23c-3 under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended. On October 13, 2023, the annual repurchase offer was announced to repurchase up to 5% of outstanding shares. The expiration date of the offer was November 14, 2023. Shares reflected as repurchased under columns (a), (b) and (c) were repurchased pursuant to the Fund’s annual Rule 23c-3 repurchase offer. Shares reported under column (d) reflect only shares available for repurchase under the Fund’s open market share repurchase program described in footnote 1, and not shares that may be repurchased pursuant to the Fund’s annual repurchase offers.
| Item 10 – | Submission of Matters to a Vote of Security Holders – There have been no material changes to these procedures. |
| Item 11 – | Controls and Procedures |
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(a) The registrant’s principal executive and principal financial officers, or persons performing similar functions, have concluded that the registrant’s disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in Rule 30a-3(c) under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “1940 Act”)) are effective as of a date within 90 days of the filing of this report based on the evaluation of these controls and procedures required by Rule 30a-3(b) under the 1940 Act and Rule 13a-15(b) under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended.
(b) There were no changes in the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting (as defined in Rule 30a-3(d) under the 1940 Act) that occurred during the period covered by this report that have materially affected, or are reasonably likely to materially affect, the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting.
| Item 12 – | Disclosure of Securities Lending Activities for Closed-End Management Investment Companies –Not Applicable |
| Item 13 – | Recovery of Erroneously Awarded Compensation – Not Applicable |
| Item 14 – | Exhibits attached hereto |
(a)(1) Code of Ethics – See Item 2
(a)(2) Section 302 Certifications are attached
(a)(3) Any written solicitation to purchase securities under Rule 23c-1 – Not Applicable
(a)(4) Change in Registrant’s independent public accountant – Not Applicable
(b) Section 906 Certifications are attached
1 The Fund has received exemptive relief from the Securities and Exchange Commission permitting it to make periodic distributions of long-term capital gains with respect to its outstanding common stock as frequently as twelve times each year, and as frequently as distributions are specified by or in accordance with the terms of its outstanding preferred stock. This relief is conditioned, in part, on an undertaking by the Fund to make the disclosures to the holders of the Fund’s common shares, in addition to the information required by Section 19(a) of the 1940 Act and Rule 19a-1 thereunder. The Fund is likewise obligated to file with the SEC the information contained in any such notice to shareholders and, in that regard, has attached hereto copies of each such notice made during the period.
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Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and the Investment Company Act of 1940, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized.
BlackRock Enhanced Government Fund, Inc.
| By: | /s/ John M. Perlowski | |||
| John M. Perlowski | ||||
| Chief Executive Officer (principal executive officer) of | ||||
| BlackRock Enhanced Government Fund, Inc. |
Date: February 23, 2024
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and the Investment Company Act of 1940, this report has been signed below by the following persons on behalf of the registrant and in the capacities and on the dates indicated.
| By: | /s/ John M. Perlowski | |||
| John M. Perlowski | ||||
| Chief Executive Officer (principal executive officer) of | ||||
| BlackRock Enhanced Government Fund, Inc. |
Date: February 23, 2024
| By: | /s/ Trent Walker | |||
| Trent Walker | ||||
| Chief Financial Officer (principal financial officer) of | ||||
| BlackRock Enhanced Government Fund, Inc. |
Date: February 23, 2024
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