Company Description
Royce Global Trust, Inc. (NYSE: RGT) is a closed-end diversified management investment company whose common shares are listed and traded on the New York Stock Exchange. The fund is part of the financial services sector and is classified in the asset management industry. It invests in both U.S. and non-U.S. common stocks, with a stated focus on companies that generally have market capitalizations up to $10 billion. As a closed-end fund, Royce Global Trust issues a fixed number of shares that trade on an exchange, and its portfolio is managed by Royce Investment Partners, which has served as the fund’s investment adviser since its inception.
According to company disclosures, Royce Global Trust invests across multiple sectors and geographies. Information from third-party descriptions notes that the fund has historically spread its investments across sectors such as information technology, consumer discretionary, health care, materials, consumer staples, and energy. Geographically, it has invested in markets that include the United Kingdom, Japan, the United States, Canada, France, Hong Kong, and Germany. This diversified approach is designed to give the fund exposure to a range of industries and regions through equity securities.
The fund’s structure as a closed-end diversified management investment company means that its investment objective and principal strategies are implemented through an actively managed portfolio of common stocks. Company communications state that the fund invests in both U.S. and non-U.S. common stocks, generally within a defined market capitalization range of up to $10 billion. This focus places the fund in the part of the equity market that includes smaller and mid-sized companies as well as some larger issuers that fall within that capitalization threshold.
Royce Global Trust periodically declares distributions on its common stock. Public announcements describe year-end or annual distributions that may be payable in additional shares of common stock or in cash, based on stockholder election. These distributions are typically characterized in terms of estimated sources such as net investment income and net realized capital gains. The fund emphasizes in its communications that the amounts and sources of distributions are estimates and are not provided for tax reporting purposes, and that stockholders receive Form 1099-DIV after the end of the calendar year that sets out the final tax character of those payments.
The fund’s governance is overseen by a board of directors. As described in its definitive proxy statement, Royce Global Trust holds annual meetings of stockholders at which directors are elected and other business may be conducted. The board is divided into classes with staggered terms, and stockholders of record as of a specified record date are entitled to vote at these meetings. The proxy materials explain that stockholders may vote by proxy or in person and that proxies can be revoked by following the procedures outlined in the proxy statement.
Royce Global Trust also uses corporate actions such as tender offers as part of its capital management. In prior public announcements, the fund has described conditional cash tender offers for a portion of its issued and outstanding shares of common stock. These tender offers have included details such as the percentage of shares subject to the offer, the expiration date, and the purchase price formula, which in one case was equal to 100% of the fund’s net asset value per share as of a specified trading day. The fund has reported preliminary and final results of such tender offers, including the number of shares tendered and the pro-ration factor applied when tenders exceeded the amount the fund offered to purchase.
In addition, Royce Global Trust has reported changes to certain non-fundamental investment policies. For example, the fund announced a change to the required minimum percentage of net assets to be invested in companies headquartered outside the United States, reducing that percentage to provide its investment adviser with greater flexibility in adjusting the relative allocation between U.S. and non-U.S. holdings. The fund has stated that this change was intended to align its non-U.S. investment policies more closely with those of other registered funds that pursue global investment mandates.
The relationship between Royce Global Trust and its investment adviser has also been the subject of stockholder votes. The fund has disclosed that stockholders approved a new investment advisory agreement with Royce Investment Partners at a special meeting. The fund noted that the new agreement did not increase the contractual investment advisory fee rate and did not change the fund’s investment objective, principal investment strategy, or investment restrictions. The fund has also indicated that Royce & Associates, LP, doing business as Royce Investment Partners, has served as the fund’s investment adviser since the fund’s inception.
As an exchange-listed closed-end fund, Royce Global Trust’s shares trade on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol RGT. Investors in the fund gain exposure to a professionally managed portfolio of U.S. and non-U.S. common stocks, generally within a specified market capitalization range, and can review the fund’s activities through its public announcements, distributions, tender offer documents, and proxy materials.