Virtus Dividend, Interest & Premium Strategy Fund Announces Increase to Quarterly Distribution and Discloses Sources of Distribution – Section 19(a) Notice

Virtus Dividend, Interest & Premium Strategy Fund (NYSE: NFJ) today announced it will increase its quarterly distribution from $0.280 per share to $0.305 per share, an increase of 9% or $0.025 per share, effective with the September distribution:

Ticker

New Distribution Amount

Ex-Date

Record Date

Payable Date

NFJ

$0.305

September 13, 2024

September 13, 2024

September 26, 2024

The Fund previously increased its quarterly distribution by $0.035 per share in March 2024, for a cumulative increase of 23% this year. This increase is part of the Fund’s ongoing efforts to enhance shareholder value by both seeking to provide a more attractive distribution rate and furthering its efforts to reduce the current discount to net asset value at which its shares currently trade.

This new distribution rate represents a per annum rate of approximately 9.5% based on the market price of the Fund’s shares of $12.83 as of the close of the New York Stock Exchange on Wednesday, August 28, 2024, and approximately 8.3% based on the Fund’s net asset value (NAV) of $14.75 as of the same date.

Under the terms of its Managed Distribution Plan, the Fund will seek to maintain a consistent distribution level that may be paid in part or in full, from net investment income and realized capital gains, or a combination thereof. Shareholders should note, however, that if the Fund's aggregate net investment income and net realized capital gains are less than the amount of the distribution level, the difference will be distributed from the Fund's assets and will constitute a return of the shareholder's capital. You should not draw any conclusions about the Fund’s investment performance from the amount of this distribution or from the terms of the Fund’s Managed Distribution Plan.

The Fund estimates that it has distributed more than its income and capital gains; therefore, a portion of your distribution may be a return of capital. A return of capital may occur, for example, when some or all of the money that you invested in the Fund is paid back to you. A return of capital distribution does not necessarily reflect the Fund’s investment performance and should not be confused with ‘yield’ or ‘income’.

The Fund provides this estimate of the sources of its distributions:

Distribution Estimates

September 2024 (QTD)

Fiscal Year-to-Date (YTD) (1)

 

 

(Sources)

Per Share

Amount

Percentage of Current Distribution

Per Share Amount

Percentage

of Current Distribution

Net Investment Income

$

0.061

20.1%

$

0.150

17.4%

Net Realized Short-Term Capital Gains

$

-

0.0%

$

0.082

9.4%

Net Realized Long-Term Capital Gains

$

0.132

43.1%

$

0.521

60.2%

Return of Capital (or other Capital Source)

$

0.112

36.8%

$

0.112

13.0%

Total Distribution

$

0.305

100.0%

$

0.865

100.0%

(1) Fiscal year started February 1, 2024.

Information regarding the Fund’s performance and distribution rates is set forth below. Please note that all performance figures are based on the Fund’s net asset value (NAV) and not the market price of the Fund’s shares. Performance figures are not meant to represent individual shareholder performance.

July 31, 2024

 

Average Annual Total Return on NAV for the 5-year period (2)

7.73%

Annualized Current Distribution Rate (3)

8.40%

Fiscal YTD Cumulative Total Return on NAV (4)

6.24%

Fiscal YTD Cumulative Distribution Rate (5)

5.95%

(2)

Average Annual Total Return on NAV is the annual compound return for the five-year period. It reflects the change in the Fund’s NAV and reinvestment of all distributions.

(3)

Annualized Current Distribution Rate is the current distribution rate annualized as a percentage of the Fund's NAV at month end.

(4)

Fiscal YTD Cumulative Total Return on NAV is the percentage change in the Fund's NAV from the first day of the fiscal year to this month end, including distributions paid and assuming reinvestment of those distributions.

(5)

Fiscal YTD Cumulative Distribution Rate is the dollar value of distributions expected to be paid from the first day of the fiscal year through the next calendar quarter end as a percentage of the Fund's NAV at month end.

The amounts and sources of distributions reported in this notice are estimates only and are not being provided for tax reporting purposes. The actual amounts and sources of the distributions for tax purposes will depend on the Fund’s investment experience during the remainder of its fiscal year and may be subject to changes based on tax regulations. The Fund or your broker will send you a Form 1099-DIV for the calendar year that will tell you what distributions to report for federal income tax purposes.

About the Fund

Virtus Dividend, Interest & Premium Strategy Fund is a diversified closed-end fund that seeks current income and gains, with long-term capital appreciation as a secondary objective. The Fund will generally invest approximately 75% of its total assets in equity securities and approximately 25% in convertible securities. The Fund will employ an option strategy of writing (selling) covered call options on equity securities held in the Fund. Virtus Investment Advisers, Inc. is the investment adviser to the Fund, and NFJ Investment Group and Voya Investment Management are its subadvisers.

For more information on the Fund, contact shareholder services at [phone], by email at [e-mail], or through the Closed-End Funds section of virtus.com.

Fund Risks

An investment in a fund is subject to risk, including the risk of possible loss of principal. A fund’s shares may be worth less upon their sale than what an investor paid for them. Shares of closed-end funds may trade at a premium or discount to their net asset value. For more information about the Fund’s investment objective and risks, please see the Fund’s annual report. A copy of the Fund’s most recent annual report may be obtained free of charge by contacting “Shareholder Services” as set forth at the end of this press release.

About Virtus Investment Partners, Inc.

Virtus Investment Partners (NYSE: VRTS) is a distinctive partnership of boutique investment managers singularly committed to the long-term success of individual and institutional investors. We provide investment management products and services from our affiliated managers, each with a distinct investment style and autonomous investment process, as well as select subadvisers. Investment solutions are available across multiple disciplines and product types to meet a wide array of investor needs. Additional information about our firm, investment partners, and strategies is available at virtus.com.

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For Further Information: Shareholder Services [phone] [e-mail]