Webinar | Putnam closed-end funds update: PIM, PPT, PMO, and PMM | May 2, 2023

Master Intermediate Income Trust (Class A)  (NYSE: PIM)

A closed-end fund seeking high current income and relative stability of net asset value by investing in a wide variety of fixed income securities globally

Highlights

Objective

The fund seeks, with equal emphasis, high current income and relative stability of net asset value. It allocates assets to the U.S. investment-grade sector, high-yield sector, and international sector.

Strategy and process

  • Broad diversification The fund seeks multiple sources of return outside the constraints of its benchmark, investing across traditional and alternative bond markets.
  • Flexible risk allocations The fund takes a unique approach to asset allocation, dynamically establishing diversified risk exposures rather than sector exposures.
  • Active duration management As the fund's duration is independent of any index, the fund employs strategies that seek to reduce interest-rate risk.

Daily pricing and assets as of 03/28/24

Ticker NYSE: PIM
Net asset value $3.45
Net asset value change 0.00
Market price $3.20
Market price change 0.00
Discount/Premium -7.24%
Dividend rate at net asset value 7.65%
Dividend rate at market price 8.25%
Net assets and outstanding shares Download CSV

Fund facts as of 02/29/24

Inception date
04/29/88
Total net assets
$166.35M
Dividend frequency
Monthly
Number of holdings
724
Product status
Trades on secondary market
Common share CUSIP
746909100
Ticker
NYSE: PIM
Fiscal year-end
September
Category
Closed End
Turnover (fiscal year end)
1,295%
AMT
N/A

Management team

Chief Investment Officer, Fixed Income
Head of Portfolio Construction
Portfolio Manager
Co-Head of Structured Credit
Head of Corporate and Tax-Exempt Credit


Literature

Fund documents

Fact Sheet (PDF)
Annual Report (PDF)
Semiannual Report (PDF)

Why Gaza war has not yet caused an oil price spike
The calamity of war in Gaza since early October has so far had a more muted impact on oil prices than might have been expected. We analyze the market and share our outlook.
Sticky inflation and Treasury supply likely to push yields higher
Stay informed on fixed income markets in the fourth quarter. Get timely updates on currency, credit, and the yield curve.
Sticky inflation is likely if there is no recession
Trends from the labor market and continued wealth imbalance are setting the stage for sticky inflation. Read the October Macro Report.

Performance

  • Performance as of 03/31/24

  • Annual performance as of 03/31/24

Last month Last quarter Year to date 1 yr. 3 yrs. 5 yrs. 10 yrs.
Net asset value 0.93% 1.35% 1.35% 6.50% -1.45% 0.68% 1.69%
Market price 1.33% 2.38% 2.38% 9.31% -2.43% 0.64% 2.38%

Data is historical. Current performance may be lower or higher than the quoted past performance, which cannot guarantee future results. Investment return at both net asset value and market price as well as principal value will fluctuate, and you may have a gain or a loss when you sell your shares. Performance assumes reinvestment of distributions and does not account for taxes. Performance at net asset value reflects the deduction of all management and administrative fees. 12b-1 (distribution) fees are not applicable to this fund.

Performance snapshot

  Net asset value Market price
1 mt. 0.93% 1.33%
as of 03/31/24
YTD 1.35% 2.38%
as of 03/31/24

Lipper rankings as of 02/29/24

Time period Rank/Funds in category Percentile ranking
1 yr. 56/64 87%
3 yrs. 49/53 91%
5 yrs. 41/42 96%
10 yrs. 23/25 89%
Lipper category: General Bond Funds

Distribution history (past 12 mts.)

Ex-distribution date Distribution amount
per common share
03/22/24 $00.022
02/23/24 $00.022
01/24/24 $00.022
12/22/23 $00.022
11/24/23 $00.022
10/24/23 $00.022
09/22/23 $00.022
08/24/23 $00.022
07/24/23 $00.022
06/23/23 $00.022
05/24/23 $00.022
04/24/23 $00.022

Distributions may be comprised of ordinary income, net capital gains and/or a return of capital of your investment in the Fund. Distribution rates represent the latest declared regular distribution, annualized, relative to the most recent market price and NAV. Special distributions, including special capital gains distributions, are not included in the calculation.

Risk characteristics 

Average effective maturity 5.82
Average stated maturity N/A
Average effective duration
without leverage
N/A
Average effective duration
with leverage
4.39
Average yield to maturity 6.09
Average coupon 6.41

Data is historical. Current performance may be lower or higher than the quoted past performance, which cannot guarantee future results. Investment return at both net asset value and market price as well as principal value will fluctuate, and you may have a gain or a loss when you sell your shares. Performance assumes reinvestment of distributions and does not account for taxes. Performance at net asset value reflects the deduction of all management and administrative fees. 12b-1 (distribution) fees are not applicable to this fund.

Lipper rankings are based on total return without sales charge relative to all share classes of funds with similar objectives as determined by Lipper. Past performance is not indicative of future results.

Morningstar Ratings for the specific share classes only; other classes may have different performance characteristics.

The Morningstar Rating™ for funds, or "star rating", is calculated for managed products (including mutual funds, variable annuity and variable life subaccounts, exchange-traded funds, closed-end funds, and separate accounts) with at least a 3-year history. Exchange-traded funds and open-ended mutual funds are considered a single population for comparative purposes. It is calculated based on a Morningstar Risk-Adjusted Return measure that accounts for variation in a managed product's monthly excess performance, placing more emphasis on downward variations and rewarding consistent performance. The Morningstar Rating does not include any adjustment for sales loads. The top 10% of products in each product category receive 5 stars, the next 22.5% receive 4 stars, the next 35% receive 3 stars, the next 22.5% receive 2 stars, and the bottom 10% receive 1 star. The Overall Morningstar Rating for a managed product is derived from a weighted average of the performance figures associated with its 3-, 5-, and 10-year (if applicable) Morningstar Rating metrics. The weights are: 100% 3-year rating for 36–59 months of total returns, 60% 5-year rating/40% 3-year rating for 60–119 months of total returns, and 50% 10-year rating/30% 5-year rating/20% 3-year rating for 120 or more months of total returns. While the 10-year overall star rating formula seems to give the most weight to the 10-year period, the most recent 3-year period actually has the greatest impact because it is included in all three rating periods.

Some of Morningstar's proprietary calculations, including the Morningstar Rating™, are not customarily calculated based on adjusted historical returns. However, for new share classes/channels, Morningstar may calculate an extended performance Morningstar Rating that is based, in part, on adjusted historical (or "pre-inception") returns for periods prior to the inception of the share class of the fund shown herein ("Report Share Class").

The extended performance is calculated by creating a performance stream consisting of the Report Share Class and older share class(s). Morningstar adjusts the historical total returns of the older share class(es) of a fund to reflect higher expenses in the Report Share Class. Morningstar does not hypothetically adjust returns upwards for lower expenses.

The extended performance Morningstar Risk-Adjusted Return is then calculated for 3-, 5-, and 10-year time periods and used to determine the extended performance Morningstar Rating. The extended performance Morningstar Rating for this fund does not affect the retail fund data published by Morningstar, as the bell curve distribution on which the ratings are based includes only funds with actual returns. The Overall Morningstar Rating for multi-share open-end funds will be either based on actual performance only or extended performance only. Once the share class turns three years old, the Overall Morningstar Rating will be based on actual ratings only. The Overall Morningstar Rating for multi-share variable annuities is based on a weighted average of any ratings that are available.

While the inclusion of pre-inception data, in the form of extended performance, can provide valuable insight into the probable long-term behavior of newer share classes of a fund, investors should be aware that an adjusted historical return can only provide an approximation of that behavior. For example, the fee structures of a retail share class will vary from that of an institutional share class, as retail shares tend to have higher operating expenses and sales charges. These adjusted historical returns are not actual returns. The underlying investments in the share classes used to calculate the pre-performance string will likely vary from the underlying investments held in the fund after inception. Calculation methodologies utilized by Morningstar may differ from those applied by other entities, including the fund itself.

© 2023 Morningstar. All Rights Reserved. The information contained herein: (1) is proprietary to Morningstar and/or its content providers; (2) may not be copied or distributed; and (3) is not warranted to be accurate, complete or timely. Neither Morningstar nor its content providers are responsible for any damages or losses arising from any use of this information. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.

The up-market capture ratio is used to evaluate how well an investment manager performed relative to an index during periods when that index has risen. The ratio is calculated by dividing the manager’s returns by the returns of the index during the up-market, and multiplying that factor by 100. The down-market capture ratio is used to evaluate how well an investment manager performed relative to an index during periods when that index has dropped. The ratio is calculated by dividing the manager’s returns by the returns of the index during the down-market and multiplying that factor by 100.


Holdings

Fnma Fn30 Tba Umbs 06.0000 03/01/2054 13.28%
Fnma Fn30 Tba Umbs 06.5000 03/01/2054 9.17%
Gnma Gii30 Tba 05.5000 03/01/2054 2.99%
Gnma Gii30 Tba 04.5000 03/01/2054 2.87%
Gnma Gii30 Tba 04.0000 03/01/2054 2.24%
Stacr 2016-Dna1 B 15.4361 07/25/2028 0.85%
Cas 2016-C02 1b 17.6861 09/25/2028 0.78%
Cwalt 2006-Oa10 4a1 05.8154 08/25/2046 0.76%
Lxs 2006-17 1a4a 05.7754 08/25/2046 0.70%
Fed Republic Of Brazil Usd 06.1250 03/15/2034 0.63%
Top 10 holdings, percent of portfolio 34.28%



Portfolio composition as of 02/29/24

  Cash investments Non-cash investments Total portfolio
  Weight Spread duration Weight Spread duration Weight Spread duration
Agency pass-through 0.27% 0.02 25.90% 0.83 26.17% 0.85
High-yield corporate bonds 13.55% 0.49 6.62% 0.26 20.17% 0.75
Agency CMO 13.80% 0.57 0.00% 0.00 13.80% 0.57
Residential MBS (non-agency) 12.81% 0.38 0.00% 0.00 12.81% 0.38
Emerging-market bonds 11.20% 0.54 1.18% 0.00 12.39% 0.54
Commercial MBS 10.75% 0.26 -0.59% -0.02 10.16% 0.23
Investment-grade corporate bonds 5.90% 0.21 0.00% 0.00 5.90% 0.21
Bank loans 5.16% 0.20 0.00% 0.00 5.16% 0.20
Convertible securities 3.01% 0.05 0.00% 0.00 3.01% 0.05
Asset-backed securities (ABS) 0.77% 0.00 0.00% 0.00 0.77% 0.00
Equity investments 0.01% 0.00 0.00% 0.00 0.01% 0.00
Interest rate swaps 0.00% 0.00 0.00% 0.04 0.00% 0.04
International Treasury/agency 0.00% 0.00 0.00% -0.11 0.00% -0.11
U.S. Treasury/agency 0.00% 0.00 0.00% 0.60 0.00% 0.60
Net cash 22.77% 0.00 0.00% 0.00 22.77% 0.00

Spread duration is displayed in years and reflects the contribution by sector to the portfolio's total spread duration with the exception of the Treasury and Interest-rate swap sectors where effective duration is displayed. Spread duration estimates the price sensitivity of a specific sector or asset class to a 100 basis-point movement, 1%, (either widening or narrowing) in its yield spread relative to Treasuries. Effective duration provides a measure of a portfolio's interest-rate sensitivity. The longer a portfolio's duration, the more sensitive the portfolio is to shifts in the interest rates. Allocations may not total 100% of net assets because the table includes the notional value of derivatives (the economic value for purposes of calculating periodic payment obligations), in addition to the market value of securities.

Maturity detail

0 - 1 yr. -2.84%
1 - 5 yrs. 53.43%
5 - 10 yrs. 47.80%
10 - 15 yrs. 1.81%
Over 15 yrs. -0.19%

Quality rating

AAA 15.89%
AA 1.56%
A 2.68%
BBB 9.47%
BB 20.53%
B 8.30%
CCC and Below 5.31%
Not Rated 13.48%
Net cash 22.77%

Fund characteristics will vary over time.

Due to rounding, percentages may not equal 100%.

Consider these risks before investing: Emerging market securities carry illiquidity and volatility risks. Lower-rated bonds may offer higher yields in return for more risk. Bond investments are subject to interest-rate risk (the risk of bond prices falling if interest rates rise) and credit risk (the risk of an issuer defaulting on interest or principal payments).

Interest-rate risk is generally greater for longer-term bonds, and credit risk is generally greater for below-investment-grade bonds. Unlike bonds, funds that invest in bonds have fees and expenses. The value of investments in the fund’s portfolio may fall or fail to rise over extended periods of time for a variety of reasons, including general economic, political, or financial market conditions; investor sentiment and market perceptions; government actions or geopolitical events or changes, and factors related to a specific issuer, geography, industry, or sector. These and other factors may lead to increased volatility and reduced liquidity in the fund’s portfolio holdings. Funds that invest in government securities are not guaranteed. Mortgage-backed securities are subject to prepayment risk and the risk that they may increase in value less when interest rates decline and decline in value more when interest rates rise. International investing involves currency, economic, and political risks. The fund's shares trade on a stock exchange at market prices, which may be lower than the fund's net asset value.

Our investment techniques, analyses, and judgments may not produce the outcome we intend. The investments we select for the fund may not perform as well as other securities that we do not select for the fund. We, or the fund’s other service providers, may experience disruptions or operating errors that could have a negative effect on the fund. You can lose money by investing in the fund.

Credit qualities are shown as a percentage of the fund's net assets. A bond rated BBB or higher (A-3 or higher, for short-term debt) is considered investment grade. This chart reflects the highest security rating provided by one or more of Standard & Poor’s, Moody’s, and Fitch. To-be-announced (TBA) mortgage commitments, if any, are included based on their issuer ratings. Ratings may vary over time. Cash, derivative instruments, and net other assets are shown in the not-rated category. Payables and receivables for TBA mortgage commitments are included in the not-rated category and may result in negative weights. The fund itself has not been rated by an independent rating agency.

Country allocation as of 02/29/24

United States 85.65%
Brazil 1.25%
Mexico 1.00%
Canada 0.89%
Dominican Republic 0.72%
Colombia 0.70%
France 0.62%
Romania 0.59%
Côte d'Ivoire 0.57%
 
Other
8.02%
Bermuda 0.56%
Vietnam 0.55%
Benin 0.51%
Serbia 0.50%
Egypt 0.50%
Germany 0.48%
Indonesia 0.39%
Sweden 0.39%
Chile 0.35%
India 0.35%
Austria 0.34%
South Africa 0.33%
Netherlands 0.29%
Israel 0.29%
Nigeria 0.25%
United Kingdom 0.25%
Paraguay 0.23%
Philippines 0.22%
Argentina 0.21%
Czech Republic 0.20%
Turkey 0.20%
Costa Rica 0.19%
Kenya 0.19%
Cayman Islands 0.19%
Gabon 0.18%
Cameroon 0.18%
Mongolia 0.16%
Ghana 0.15%
Mozambique 0.13%
Switzerland 0.13%
Tanzania 0.12%
Luxembourg 0.05%
Norway 0.04%
China 0.03%
New Zealand 0.01%
Thailand 0.01%
Japan -0.01%
Singapore -0.01%
Poland -0.02%
European Community -0.33%
Australia -0.77%

†The ICE BofA U.S. Treasury Bill Index is an unmanaged index that tracks the performance of U.S. dollar denominated U.S. Treasury Bills publicly issued in the U.S. domestic market. Qualifying securities must have a remaining term of at least one month to final maturity and a minimum amount outstanding of $1 billion. You cannot invest directly in an index.

Consider these risks before investing: Emerging market securities carry illiquidity and volatility risks. Lower-rated bonds may offer higher yields in return for more risk. Bond investments are subject to interest-rate risk (the risk of bond prices falling if interest rates rise) and credit risk (the risk of an issuer defaulting on interest or principal payments).

Interest-rate risk is generally greater for longer-term bonds, and credit risk is generally greater for below-investment-grade bonds. Unlike bonds, funds that invest in bonds have fees and expenses. The value of investments in the fund’s portfolio may fall or fail to rise over extended periods of time for a variety of reasons, including general economic, political, or financial market conditions; investor sentiment and market perceptions; government actions or geopolitical events or changes, and factors related to a specific issuer, geography, industry, or sector. These and other factors may lead to increased volatility and reduced liquidity in the fund’s portfolio holdings. Funds that invest in government securities are not guaranteed. Mortgage-backed securities are subject to prepayment risk and the risk that they may increase in value less when interest rates decline and decline in value more when interest rates rise. International investing involves currency, economic, and political risks. The fund's shares trade on a stock exchange at market prices, which may be lower than the fund's net asset value.

Our investment techniques, analyses, and judgments may not produce the outcome we intend. The investments we select for the fund may not perform as well as other securities that we do not select for the fund. We, or the fund’s other service providers, may experience disruptions or operating errors that could have a negative effect on the fund. You can lose money by investing in the fund.

Credit qualities are shown as a percentage of the fund's net assets. A bond rated BBB or higher (A-3 or higher, for short-term debt) is considered investment grade. This chart reflects the highest security rating provided by one or more of Standard & Poor’s, Moody’s, and Fitch. To-be-announced (TBA) mortgage commitments, if any, are included based on their issuer ratings. Ratings may vary over time. Cash, derivative instruments, and net other assets are shown in the not-rated category. Payables and receivables for TBA mortgage commitments are included in the not-rated category and may result in negative weights. The fund itself has not been rated by an independent rating agency.