Portfolio Update

BLACKROCK NORTH AMERICAN INCOME TRUST plc (LEI: 549300WWOCXSC241W468)
All information is at 31 July 2018 and unaudited.

Performance at month end with net income reinvested

	One Month	Three Months	Six Months	One Year	Three Years	Five years
Net asset value	4.9%	9.9%	7.3%	11.2%	61.8%	83.0%
Share price	0.0%	13.3%	7.8%	15.1%	68.0%	75.5%
Russell 1000 Value Index	4.6%	10.1%	6.7%	10.1%	56.2%	86.5%

Source: BlackRock

At month end
Net asset value – capital only:	178.89p
Net asset value – cum income:	180.15p
Share price:	173.00p
Discount to cum income NAV:	4.0%
Net yield¹:	4.6%
Total assets including current year revenue:	£124.1m
Gearing:	Nil
Options overwrite:	15.2%
Ordinary shares in issue²:	68,874,044
Ongoing charges³:	1.1%

¹ In line with the dividend policy announced in the Annual Report on 13 December 2017 of dividends amounting to 8.00p per share for the year ending 31 October 2018 and based on the share price as at close of business on 31 July 2018.

² Excluding 31,487,261 ordinary shares held in treasury.

³ Ongoing charges represent the management fee and all other operating expenses excluding interest as a % of average shareholders’ funds for the year ended 31 October 2017.

Benchmark Sector Analysis	Total Assets (%)
Financials	26.8
Health Care	17.1
Energy	12.3
Information Technology	10.9
Industrials	7.8
Consumer Staples	7.0
Utilities	4.6
Consumer Discretionary	3.6
Telecommunication Services	3.1
Materials	2.2
Net current assets	4.6
	-----
	100.0
	=====

Country Analysis	Total Assets (%)
USA	79.0
United Kingdom	5.4
Canada	3.1
Ireland	2.7
Netherlands	2.5
France	1.0
Denmark	0.8
Germany	0.6
China	0.3
Net current assets	4.6
	-----
	100.0
	=====

Ten Largest Investments
Company	Country of Risk	Total Assets (%)
JPMorgan Chase	USA	4.2
Pfizer	USA	3.8
Bank of America	USA	3.5
Citigroup	USA	3.4
Wells Fargo	USA	3.2
Verizon Communications	USA	2.9
Oracle	USA	2.8
Suncor Energy	Canada	2.5
Anthem	USA	2.4
Microsoft	USA	2.4

Tony DeSpirito, Franco Tapia and David Zhao, representing the Investment Manager, noted:

For the one-month period ended 31 July 2018, the Company’s NAV increased by 4.9% while the share price remained unchanged at 0.0% (all in sterling terms). The Company’s benchmark, the Russell 1000 Value Index, rose by 4.6% during the period.

The largest contributor to relative performance was stock selection and allocation decisions in the information technology sector. Notably, stock selection in semiconductors and semiconductor equipment proved beneficial, as did our overweight to the software industry. In financials, a combination of stock selection and an overweight to the banks industry boosted relative returns. Other notable contributors included a combination of stock selection and an underweight to consumer discretionary and an underweight to the real estate sector.

The largest detractor from relative performance was stock selection in the industrials sector. Notably, selection decisions in the professional services and aerospace and defence industries weighed on relative results. The portfolio’s cash allocation, which averaged 4.9% during the period, also hurt relative returns. Other modest detractors from relative performance included stock selection in the health care and utilities sectors.

The portfolio’s option overwriting strategy detracted from absolute returns in July.

Transactions/Options

Transactions: In July we initiated a new position in Johnson Controls International plc and increased our existing allocations to Verizon Communications, The Williams Companies and Altria Group. Conversely, we trimmed our existing position in Bank of America Corporation and exited our positions in Keurig Dr Pepper, Philip Morris International and AT&T.

Options:  As of 31 July 2018, the Company’s options exposure was 15.2% and the delta of the options was 87.0. 

Positioning
 

As of the period end, the Company’s largest overweight positions relative to the benchmark were in the health care, financials and energy sectors. The Company’s largest underweight positions relative to the benchmark were in the real estate, consumer discretionary and industrials sectors.

Source: BlackRock as at 31 July 2018.

15 August 2018

Latest information is available by typing blackrock.co.uk/brna on the internet, "BLRKINDEX" on Reuters, "BLRK" on Bloomberg or "8800" on Topic 3 (ICV terminal).  Neither the contents of the Manager’s website nor the contents of any website accessible from hyperlinks on the Manager’s website (or any other website) is incorporated into, or forms part of, this announcement.