NEW YORK, NY -- (Marketwire) -- 02/08/13 -- Cornerstone Progressive Return Fund (NYSE MKT: CFP) (the "Fund"), a closed-end management investment company, today announced that in keeping with its previously adopted monthly distribution policy, the Fund is declaring the following distributions:
Record Date Payable Date Per Share CFP April 15, 2013 April 30, 2013 $0.0854 CFP May 15, 2013 May 31, 2013 $0.0854 CFP June 14, 2013 June 28, 2013 $0.0854
The Board of Trustees (the "Board") believes that the Fund's shareholders are well served by regular distributions which increase liquidity and provide flexibility to individual shareholders in managing their investment. Accordingly, it is the intention of the Board that the Fund will make continuous monthly distributions. The monthly distributions will be reviewed by the Board and declared periodically throughout the year. From time to time, the Board may consider resetting the distribution amount.
It should be noted that the distributions made pursuant to this policy are not tied to the Fund's investment income or capital gains and do not represent yield or investment return on the Fund's portfolio. The distribution policy will be reviewed and approved at least annually by the Board and can be modified at their discretion for the benefit of the Fund and its shareholders. The Board remains convinced that a managed distribution policy of this kind enhances flexibility for shareholders in managing their investment in the Fund. Shareholders have the option of reinvesting all or a portion of these distributions in additional shares of the Fund through the Fund's reinvestment plan or receiving them in cash. Shareholders should carefully read the description of the reinvestment plan contained in the Fund's report to shareholders, which may provide additional benefit to shareholders who participate in the plan.
Under the distribution policy, the Fund's distributions will consist either of (1) earnings, (2) capital gains, or (3) return-of-capital, also known as paid-in-capital, or some combination of one or more of the above. A return-of-capital is the return of a portion of the investor's original investment. Given the current economic environment and the composition of the Fund's portfolio, a substantial portion of the Fund's distributions made during the current calendar year is expected to consist principally of a return of the investor's capital. Accordingly, these distributions should not be confused with yield or investment return on the Fund's portfolio. The final composition of the distributions for 2013 cannot be determined until after the end of the year and is subject to change depending on market conditions during the year and the magnitude of income and realized gains for the year.
In any given year, there can be no guarantee that the Fund's investment returns will exceed the amount of the net distributions. To the extent that the amount of distributions taken in cash exceeds the total net investment returns of the Fund, the assets of the Fund will decline. If the total net investment returns exceed the amount of cash distributions, the assets of the Fund will increase. Distributions designated as return-of-capital are not taxed as ordinary income dividends and are sometimes referred to as tax-free dividends or nontaxable distributions. A return-of-capital distribution reduces the cost basis of an investor's shares in the Fund. Shareholders can expect to receive tax-reporting information for 2013 distributions by the middle of February 2014 indicating the exact composition per share of the distributions received during the calendar year. Shareholders should consult their tax advisor for proper tax treatment of the Fund's distributions.
Volatility in the world economy helps to create what Cornerstone Advisors, Inc. (the "Advisor") views as significant opportunities through investments in closed-end funds. In addition to holding closed-end funds that invest substantially all of their assets in equity securities, the Advisor may also choose to take advantage of situations in funds that invest in fixed income or other investment categories. Closed-end funds, with their broadly diversified holdings, enhance diversification within the Fund's portfolio.
Investing in other investment companies involves substantially the same risks as investing directly in the underlying instruments, but the total return on such investments at the investment company level is reduced by the operating expenses and fees of such other investment companies, including advisory fees. To the extent the Fund invests its assets in investment company securities, those assets will be subject to the risks of the purchased investment company's portfolio securities, and a shareholder in the Fund will bear not only his proportionate share of the expenses of the Fund, but also, indirectly the expenses of the purchased investment company. There can be no assurance that the investment objective of any investment company in which the Fund invests will be achieved.
The Fund makes monthly distributions to shareholders at a rate that may include periodic distributions of its net income and net capital gains, ("Net Earnings"), or from return-of-capital. If, for any fiscal year where total cash distributions exceeded Net Earnings (the "Excess"), the Excess would decrease the Fund's total assets and, as a result, would have the likely effect of increasing the Fund's expense ratio. There is a risk that the total Net Earnings from the Fund's portfolio would not be great enough to offset the amount of cash distributions paid to Fund shareholders. If this were to be the case, the Fund's assets would be depleted, and there is no guarantee that the Fund would be able to replace the assets. In addition, in order to make such distributions, the Fund may have to sell a portion of its investment portfolio at a time when independent investment judgment might not dictate such action. Furthermore, such assets used to make distributions will not be available for investment pursuant to the Fund's investment objective.
Cornerstone Progressive Return Fund is traded on the NYSE MKT under the trading symbol "CFP". The Fund's Advisor serves as investment adviser to two other closed-end funds, Cornerstone Strategic Value Fund, Inc. (NYSE MKT: CLM) and Cornerstone Total Return Fund, Inc. (NYSE MKT: CRF).
Past performance is no guarantee of future performance. An investment in the Fund is subject to certain risks, including market risk. In general, shares of closed-end funds often trade at a discount from their net asset value and at the time of sale may be trading on the exchange at a price that is more or less than the original purchase price or the net asset value. An investor should carefully consider the Fund's investment objective, risks, charges and expenses. Please read the Fund's disclosure documents before investing.
In addition to historical information, this release contains forward-looking statements which may concern, among other things, domestic and foreign markets, industry and economic trends and developments and government regulation and their potential impact on the Fund's investment portfolio. These statements are subject to risks and uncertainties, including the factors set forth in the Fund's disclosure documents, filed with the SEC, and actual trends, developments and regulations in the future, and their impact on the Fund could be materially different from those projected, anticipated or implied. The Fund has no obligation to update or revise forward-looking statements.
