John Hancock Preferred Income Fund II (HPF) reported a 3.85% total return at net asset value and an 8.51% return at market price for the year ended July 31, 2026. The corresponding returns were 4.14% for the ICE BofA U.S. All Capital Securities Index and 3.67% for the blended benchmark. Preferred securities were 88.0% of net assets as of July 31, 2026; their income offset much, but not all, of market-price declines as interest-rate expectations shifted.
Net investment income was $23,487,657, compared with $22,611,061 in fiscal 2025. The increase in net assets from operations was $13,019,909, versus $29,404,213, including $15,526,949 of net unrealized depreciation in 2026 compared with $9,930,303 of net unrealized appreciation in 2025. Net assets were $325,168,408 as of July 31, 2026, and credit-facility borrowings were $206,700,000 at a 4.38% interest rate. Distributions included $1.1362 per share from net investment income and $0.3458 per share of return of capital. The fiscal year-end changed to October 31, effective August 1, 2026.
JOHN HANCOCK PREFERRED INCOME FUND II director Christine Hurtsellers made multiple open-market purchases of the fund’s Common Shares of Beneficial Interest. On a single day, she bought a total of 743.961 shares at prices around $16.13 per share. Following these transactions, she directly owns 743.961 common shares of beneficial interest.
Kenneth J. Phelan, a director of John Hancock Preferred Income Fund (HPF), reported a small open-market purchase of fund shares. On 01/26/2026, he bought approximately 618.108 Common Shares of Beneficial Interest at an estimated price of $16.18 per share, as the final price and exact share count depend on the fund’s net asset value calculation timing.
Following this transaction, Phelan beneficially owns 618.108 common shares directly, and no derivative securities were reported. The filing notes that the figures are approximate because the fund’s net asset value and corresponding share amounts were not fully determined at the time of the report.
John Hancock Preferred Income Fund II, together with six affiliated John Hancock closed-end funds, is asking shareholders to elect six trustees at a joint annual meeting on February 17, 2026, in Boston. Shareholders of record as of November 25, 2025, get one vote per share.
The slate includes James R. Boyle, Kristie M. Feinberg, Grace K. Fey, Christine L. Hurtsellers, Hassell H. McClellan, and Kenneth J. Phelan, all of whom already serve as trustees. The board is staggered into three classes, so only part of the board is elected each year, and a super‑majority of members are independent. The proxy also describes board committee structures, trustee share ownership, trustee compensation, and confirms PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP as independent auditor, with detailed audit and tax fee disclosures for each fund.
John Hancock Preferred Income Fund II (HPF) reported a new director-level insider filing indicating that the reporting person serves as a director of the fund. The Form 3 states that as of the event date of 11/12/2025, the reporting person does not beneficially own any non-derivative or derivative securities of HPF. This filing simply establishes the insider’s reporting status under securities rules without reflecting any ownership position in the fund’s shares or related instruments.
John Hancock Preferred Income Fund II (HPF) filed an initial ownership report for a director-level reporting person effective 11/12/2025. The filing states that the reporting person does not beneficially own any securities of HPF as of the event date. This is an administrative disclosure confirming that the director position is held without any reported share or derivative security ownership in the fund.