NEW YORK, June 8, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- The Swiss
Helvetia Fund, Inc. (NYSE: SWZ), a non-diversified registered
closed-end investment company, announced today that Institutional
Shareholder Services, Inc. (ISS) and Glass, Lewis & Co., LLC
(Glass Lewis), two leading independent corporate governance
analysis firms, released their voting recommendations for the
Fund's Annual Meeting of Stockholders, which is scheduled to be
held at 9:30 a.m., on Tuesday, June 19, 2018, at the offices of
Proskauer Rose LLP, Eleven Times Square, 27th Floor, New York, New York 10036.
ISS—which spoke with representatives of the Fund's Board of
Directors and management, as well as with representatives of
Bulldog Investors, LLC, who launched a proxy contest against the
Fund—and Glass Lewis each recommends that the Fund's stockholders
vote using the Fund's WHITE proxy card as follows:
- "FOR" each of the Board's nominees for Director: Brian A. Berris and Jean
E. Hoysradt; and
- "AGAINST" the proposal submitted by Full Value Partners, L.P.,
an affiliate of Bulldog, requesting the Fund's Board of Directors
approve a tender offer for at least 50% of the Fund's shares.
In addition, Glass Lewis recommends that the Fund's stockholders
vote "AGAINST" a separate stockholder proposal requesting that the
Board reduce the ownership threshold required for stockholders to
call a special meeting of stockholders. ISS, consistent with
its U.S. proxy voting guidelines, has recommended that the Fund's
stockholders vote "FOR" this proposal.
ISS and Glass Lewis each recommend that stockholders do not vote
using the GREEN proxy card submitted to them by Bulldog.
About The Swiss Helvetia Fund, Inc.
The Fund (www.swzfund.com) is a non-diversified, closed-end
investment company seeking long-term capital appreciation through
investment in equity and equity-linked securities of Swiss
companies. Its shares are listed on the NYSE under the symbol
"SWZ." The Fund seeks to achieve its investment objective by
investing generally in Swiss equity and equity-linked securities
that are traded on a Swiss stock exchange, traded at the pre-bourse
level of one or more Swiss stock exchanges, traded through a market
maker or traded over the counter in Switzerland. The Fund
also may invest in Swiss equity and equity-linked securities of
Swiss companies that are traded on other major European stock
exchanges.
Closed-end funds, unlike open-end funds, are not continuously
offered. Typically, shares of closed-end funds are sold in
the open market through a stock exchange. Shares of
closed-end funds frequently trade at a discount to net asset
value. The price of the Fund's shares is determined by a
number of factors, several of which are beyond the control of the
Fund. Therefore, the Fund cannot predict whether its shares
will trade at, below or above net asset value.
The Fund is managed by Schroder Investment Management North
America Inc. and Schroder Investment Management North America
Limited.
About Schroder Investment Management North America
Inc.
Schroder Investment Management North America Inc. and Schroder
Investment Management North America Limited, investment advisors
registered with the U.S. SEC, are units of Schroders plc (SDR.L), a
global asset management company with approximately $614.6 billion under management and
administration as of March 31,
2018. Schroder's clients include major financial institutions
including banks and insurance companies, as well as local and
public authorities, public and private pension funds, endowments
and foundations, intermediaries and advisors, as well as high net
worth individuals and retail investors. The firm has built
one of the largest networks of offices of any dedicated asset
management company with more than 500 portfolio managers and
analysts covering the world's investment markets, offering a
comprehensive range of products and services.
Schroder Investment Management North America Inc. provides asset
management products and services to clients in the U.S. and
Canada. Schroder Investment Management North America Inc. is
an indirect, wholly-owned subsidiary of Schroders plc, a U.K.
public company with shares listed on the London Stock Exchange.
This press release shall not constitute an offer to sell or a
solicitation to buy, nor shall there be any sale of the Fund's
shares in any state or jurisdiction in which such offer or
solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or
qualification under the laws of such state or jurisdiction.
Contact:
Jennifer Brogadir
212-641-3863
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SOURCE The Swiss Helvetia Fund, Inc.