$2,335,389 on the Statement of Operations related to investments in forward currency contracts.
Derivative instruments and hedging activities: Financial Accounting Standards Board Codification Topic 815 requires enhanced disclosure about an entity’s derivative and hedging activities.
The following table provides information about the effect of derivatives and hedging activities on the Fund’s Statement of Operations for the year ended October 31, 2012. The table provides additional detail about the amounts and sources of gains (losses) realized on derivatives during the year and the change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation) resulting from the Fund’s derivatives and hedging activities during the year.
The effect of derivative instruments on the Statement of Operations for the year ended October 31, 2012 was as follows:
| | | | | | | | | | |
Derivatives | | Statement of Operations Location | | Realized Gain on Derivatives | | Change in Unrealized Appreciation/ Depreciation on Derivatives | |
| | | | | | | |
Forward currency contracts | | Net realized loss on investments: Foreign currency transactions/Change in net unrealized appreciation/depreciation from: Foreign currency translations | | $ | 2,335,389 | | $ | — | |
| | | | | | | | | |
Total | | | | $ | 2,335,389 | | $ | — | |
| | | | | | | | | |
|
3. PURCHASES AND SALES OF SECURITIES: |
|
Purchases and sales of securities (excluding short term securities) for the year ended October 31, 2012 are as follows:
| | |
Purchases | | Sales |
| | |
$3,378,511,459 | | $3,340,421,876 |
| | |
The Fund did not have purchases and sales of U.S. Government obligations for the year ended October 31, 2012.
|
4. INVESTMENT ADVISORY AGREEMENT AND ADMINISTRATION AGREEMENT: |
|
Alpine Woods Capital Investors, LLC (“Alpine Woods”) serves as the Fund’s investment adviser pursuant to an Investment Advisory Agreement with the Fund. As compensation for its services to the Fund, Alpine Woods receives an annual investment advisory fee of 1.00% based on the Fund’s average daily Total Assets, computed daily and payable monthly.
State Street Bank and Trust Company (“SSBT”) serves as the Fund’s administrator pursuant to an Administration Agreement with the Fund. As compensation for its services to the Fund, SSBT receives an annual administration fee of 0.02% of total net assets on the first $5 billion and 0.015% on total net assets exceeding $5 billion, computed daily and payable monthly.
|
5. INCOME TAX INFORMATION: |
|
Classification of Distributions: Net investment income (loss) and net realized gain (loss) may differ for financial statement and tax purposes. The character of distributions made during the year from net investment income or net realized gains may differ from its ultimate characterization for federal income tax purposes.
The tax character of the distributions paid by the Fund during the year ended October 31, 2012 was as follows:
| | | | |
Distributions paid from: | | | | |
Ordinary Income | | $ | 145,880,132 | |
| | | | |
Total | | $ | 145,880,132 | |
| | | | |
Tax components of distributable earnings are determined in accordance with income tax regulations which may differ from the composition of net assets reported under GAAP. Accordingly, for the year ended October 31, 2012, the effects of certain differences were reclassified. The Fund decreased undistributed net investment income by $2,110,457 and increased accumulated net realized loss by $2,110,457. These differences were primarily due to the differing tax treatment of foreign currency and certain other investments. Net assets of the Fund were unaffected by the reclassifications and the calculation of net investment income per share in the Financial Highlights excludes these adjustments.
At October 31, 2012, the Fund had available for tax purposes unused capital loss carryovers of $164,214,963, expiring October 31, 2015, unused capital loss carryovers of $1,575,094,244, expiring October 31, 2016, unused capital loss carryovers of $896,144,160, expiring October 31, 2017, unused capital loss carryovers of $342,916,726, expiring October 31, 2018 and unused capital loss carryovers of $24,530,686, expiring October 31, 2019.
Under the Regulated Investment Company (“RIC”) Modernization Act of 2010 (the “Modernization Act”), post-enactment capital losses that are carried forward will retain their character as either short-term or long-term capital losses rather than being considered all short-term as under previous law. However, any losses incurred during those future taxable years will be required to be utilized prior to the losses incurred in pre-enactment taxable years, which carry an expiration date. As a result of this ordering rule, pre-enactment capital loss carryovers may be more likely to expire unused.
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Notes to Financial Statements | ![(ALPINE LOGO)](https://capedge.com/proxy/N-CSR/0000930413-13-000117/c71227003_v1.jpg)
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| |
October 31, 2012 | |
Capital loss carryovers as of October 31, 2012 with no expiration are as follows:
| | |
Short Term | | Long Term |
| | |
$172,192,738 | | $— |
| | |
As of October 31, 2012, the components of distributable earnings on a tax basis were as follows:
| | | | |
Undistributed Ordinary Income | | $ | 15,045,809 | |
Accumulated Capital Loss | | | (3,175,093,517 | ) |
Unrealized Appreciation | | | 100,297,481 | |
| | | | |
Total | | $ | (3,059,750,227 | ) |
| | | | |
As of October 31, 2012, net unrealized appreciation/(depreciation) of investments, excluding foreign currency, based on federal tax costs was as follows:
| | | | |
Gross appreciation on investments (excess of value over tax cost) | | $ | 117,325,762 | |
Gross depreciation on investments (excess of tax cost over value) | | | (16,380,318 | ) |
| | | | |
Net unrealized appreciation | | | 100,945,444 | |
| | | | |
Cost of investments for income tax purposes | | $ | 974,450,456 | |
| | | | |
The differences between book and tax net unrealized appreciation and cost were primarily due to deferral of losses from wash sales and to the different tax treatment of certain other investments.
On December 1, 2010, the Fund executed a Prime Brokerage Agreement with BNP Paribas Prime Brokerage International Ltd and also executed a Committed Facility Agreement which allows the Fund to borrow on a secured and committed basis. During the year ended October 31, 2012, the maximum commitment amounts were (i) $300,000,000 from November 1, 2011 through February 28, 2012; (ii) $700,000,000 from March 1, 2012 through May 31, 2012; and (iii) $300,000,000 from June 1, 2012 through October 31, 2012. As of October 31, 2012, the maximum commitment amount is $300,000,000 and will increase to $700,000,000 from March 31, 2013 through May 31, 2013, and revert back to $300,000,000 through the remainder of fiscal 2013, unless terminated with six months’ notice. The terms of the lending agreement indicate the rate to be the Fed Funds rate plus 0.95% per annum on amounts borrowed. The BNP Paribas Facility provides for secured, committed line of credit for the Fund where certain Fund assets are pledged against advances made to the Fund. The maximum amount of the line of credit available is the lesser of 33.33% of the total assets of the Fund or the amounts disclosed above, including the amount borrowed. During the year ended October 31, 2012, the average borrowing by the Fund was $40,051,735 with an average rate on borrowings of 1.08%. Interest expense related to the loan for the year ended October 31, 2012 was $440,343. At October 31, 2012 the
outstanding loan for the fund was $51,499,846. The line of credit outstanding as of October 31, 2012 approximates fair value and would be categorized at Level 2.
Distributions: The Fund paid a distribution of $12,156,677 or $0.055 per common share on November 30, 2012 to common shareholders of record on November 23, 2012.
The Fund will also pay a distribution of $0.055 per common share payable on December 31, 2012 to common shareholders of record on December 21, 2012.
On December 19, 2012, the Fund also declared a distribution of $0.055 per common share payable on January 31, 2013 to common shareholders of record on January 24, 2013.
Portfolio Management: Effective December 13, 2012, the Adviser announced a new team based approach to management of the Fund and that newly appointed co-portfolio managers Joshua Duitz and Brian Hennessey will lead the new investment team and will be responsible for the day-to-day management of the Fund.
The investment team also includes experienced Alpine portfolio managers and research analysts, who will provide analysis and recommendations regarding the sectors they cover. The team includes Samuel A. Lieber (C.E.O.), Stephen A. Lieber (C.I.O.) and Bruce Ebnother (Senior Investment Risk Strategist) who will provide strategic oversight. The previous co-portfolio managers are no longer part of the investment team.
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| Additional Information (unaudited) |
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| October 31, 2012 |
|
DIVIDEND REINVESTMENT PLAN |
|
Unless the registered owner of common shares elects to receive cash by contacting Boston Financial Data Services, Inc. (“Plan Administrator”), all dividends or other distributions (together, “Dividends” and each, a “Dividend”) declared on common shares will be automatically reinvested by the Plan Administrator for shareholders in the Fund’s Dividend Reinvestment Plan (the “Plan”), in additional common shares of the Fund. Shareholders that are not permitted to participate through their broker or nominee or who elect not to participate in the Plan will receive all Dividends in cash paid by check mailed directly to the shareholder of record (or, if the common shares are held in street or other nominee name, then to such nominee) by the Plan Administrator, as dividend disbursing agent. You may elect not to participate in the Plan and to receive all Dividends in cash by contacting the Plan Administrator, as dividend disbursing agent, at the address set forth below. Participation in the Plan is completely voluntary and may be terminated or resumed at any time without penalty by notice if received and processed by the Plan Administrator prior to the dividend record date; otherwise such termination or resumption will be effective with respect to any subsequently declared Dividend. If you hold your shares through a broker, and you wish for all Dividends declared on your common shares to be automatically reinvested pursuant to the Plan, please contact your broker. |
The Plan Administrator will open an account for each shareholder under the Plan in the same name in which such shareholder’s common shares are registered. Whenever the Fund declares a Dividend payable in cash, non-participants in the Plan will receive cash and participants in the Plan will receive the equivalent in common shares. The common shares will be acquired by the Plan Administrator for the participants’ accounts, depending upon the circumstances described below, either (i) through receipt of additional unissued but authorized common shares from the Fund (“Newly Issued common shares”) or (ii) by purchase of outstanding common shares on the open market (“Open-Market Purchases”) on the NYSE or elsewhere. If, on the payment date for any Dividend, the closing market price plus estimated brokerage commissions per share is equal to or greater than the NAV per share, the Plan Administrator will invest the Dividend amount in Newly Issued common shares on behalf of the participants. The number of Newly Issued common shares to be credited to each participant’s account will be determined by dividing the dollar amount of the Dividend by the NAV per share on the payment date; provided that, if the NAV is less than or equal to 95% of the closing market value on the payment date, the dollar amount of the Dividend will be divided by 95% of the closing market price per share on the payment date. If, on the payment date for any Dividend, the NAV per share is greater than the closing market value plus estimated brokerage commissions, the Plan Administrator will invest the Dividend amount in common shares acquired on behalf of the participants in Open-Market Purchases.
In the event of a market discount on the payment date for any Dividend, the Plan Administrator will have until the last business day before the next date on which the common shares trade on an “ex-
dividend” basis or 30 days after the payment date for such Dividend, whichever is sooner (the “Last Purchase Date”), to invest the Dividend amount in common shares acquired in Open-Market Purchases. If, before the Plan Administrator has completed its Open-Market Purchases, the market price per share exceeds the NAV per share, the average per share purchase price paid by the Plan Administrator may exceed the NAV of the common shares, resulting in the acquisition of fewer common shares than if the Dividend had been paid in Newly Issued common shares on the Dividend payment date. Because of the foregoing difficulty with respect to Open-Market Purchases, the Plan provides that if the Plan Administrator is unable to invest the full Dividend amount in Open-Market Purchases during the purchase period or if the market discount shifts to a market premium during the purchase period, the Plan Administrator may cease making Open-Market Purchases and may invest the uninvested portion of the Dividend amount in Newly Issued common shares at the NAV per share at the close of business on the Last Purchase Date provided that, if the NAV is less than or equal to 95% of the then current market price per share, the dollar amount of the Dividend will be divided by 95% of the market price on the payment date for purposes of determining the number of shares issuable under the Plan.
The Plan Administrator maintains all shareholders’ accounts in the Plan and furnishes written confirmation of all transactions in the accounts, including information needed by shareholders for tax records. Common shares in the account of each Plan participant will be held by the Plan Administrator on behalf of the Plan participant, and each shareholder proxy will include those shares purchased or received pursuant to the Plan. The Plan Administrator will forward all proxy solicitation materials to participants and vote proxies for shares held under the Plan in accordance with the instructions of the participants.
In the case of the Fund’s shareholders such as banks, brokers or nominees which hold shares for others who are the beneficial owners, the Plan Administrator will administer the Plan on the basis of the number of common shares certified from time to time by the record shareholder’s name and held for the account of beneficial owners who participate in the Plan.
There will be no brokerage charges with respect to common shares issued directly by the Fund. However, each participant will pay a pro rata share of brokerage commissions incurred in connection with Open-Market Purchases. The automatic reinvestment of Dividends will not relieve participants of any U.S. federal, state or local income tax that may be payable (or required to be withheld) on such Dividends. See “Federal and Other Income Taxes.” Participants that request a sale of common shares through the Plan Administrator are subject to brokerage commissions.
Shareholders participating in the Plan may receive benefits not available to shareholders not participating in the Plan. If the market price plus commissions of the Fund’s shares is higher than the NAV, participants in the Plan will receive shares of the Fund for less than they could otherwise purchase them and will have shares with a cash
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Annual Report | October 31, 2012 | 23 |
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Additional Information (unaudited) | ![(ALPINE LOGO)](https://capedge.com/proxy/N-CSR/0000930413-13-000117/c71227003_v1.jpg)
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October 31, 2012 | |
value greater than the value of any cash distribution they would have received on their shares. If the market price plus commissions is below the net asset value, participants receive distributions of shares with a NAV greater than the value of any cash distribution they would have received on their shares. However, there may be insufficient shares available in the market to make distributions in shares at prices below the NAV. Also, because the Fund does not redeem its shares, the price on resale may be more or less than the NAV.
The Fund reserves the right to amend or terminate the Plan. There is no direct service charge to participants with regard to purchases in the Plan; however, the Fund reserves the right to amend the Plan to include a service charge payable by the participants.
All correspondence or questions concerning the Plan should be directed to the Plan Administrator, Boston Financial Data Services Inc. c/o Alpine Closed-End Funds, PO Box 8128, Boston, MA 02266-8128 or by calling toll-free 1 (800) 617.7616.
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FUND PROXY VOTING POLICIES & PROCEDURES |
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Policies and procedures used in determining how to vote proxies relating to portfolio securities and a summary of proxies voted by the Fund are available without a charge, upon request, by contacting the Fund at 1(800) 617.7616 and on the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (“Commission”) web site at http://www.sec.gov. |
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PORTFOLIO HOLDINGS |
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The Fund files its complete schedule of portfolio holdings with the Commission for the first and third quarters of each fiscal year on Form N-Q within 60 days after the end of the period. Copies of the Fund’s Forms N-Q are available without a charge, upon request, by contacting the Fund at 1(800)617.7616 and on the Commission’s web site at http://www.sec.gov. You may also review and copy Form N-Q at the Commission’s Public Reference Room in Washington, D.C. For more information about the operation of the Public Reference Room, please call the Commission at 1(800)SEC.0330. |
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DESIGNATION REQUIREMENTS |
|
Of the distributions paid by the Fund from ordinary income for the year ended October 31, 2012, the following percentages met the requirements to be treated as qualifying for the corporate dividends received deduction and qualified dividend income, respectively. |
| | | | |
Dividends Received Deduction | | 12.15 | % | |
Qualified Dividend Income | | 37.99 | % | |
|
SHAREHOLDER MEETING |
|
On June 8, 2012, the Fund held its Annual Meeting of Shareholders (the “Meeting”) for the purpose of voting on a proposal to re-elect one trustee of the Fund and to conduct other business. The results of the proposals below reflect the percentage of shares voted at the meeting and are as follows: |
Proposal 1: To elect Samuel A. Lieber as Trustee to the Board of Trustees for a term of three years to expire at the 2015 Annual Meeting and until his successor has been duly elected and qualified.
| | | | |
Samuel A. Lieber | |
For | | 94.07 | % | |
Withheld | | 5.93 | % | |
Proposal 2: To transact such other business as may properly come before the meeting or any adjournments or postponements thereof.
| | | | |
For | | 93.69 | % | |
Against | | 7.45 | % | |
Abstain | | 1.62 | % | |
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NOTICE |
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Notice is hereby given in accordance with Section 23(c) of the Investment Company Act of 1940 that the Fund may purchase at market prices from time to time its common shares in the open market. |
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![(ALPINE LOGO)](https://capedge.com/proxy/N-CSR/0000930413-13-000117/c71227003_v1.jpg)
| Additional Information (unaudited) |
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| October 31, 2012 |
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INDEPENDENT TRUSTEES* | | | | | |
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Name and Age | | Position(s) Held with the Fund | | Principal Occupation During Past Five Years | | # of Portfolios in Alpine Fund Complex** | | Other Directorships Held by Trustee |
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H. Guy Leibler (58) | | Independent Trustee | | Private investor since 2007, Vice Chair and Chief Operating Officer of L&L Acquisitions, LLC (2004-2007); President, Skidmore, Owings & Merrill LLP (2001-2004). | | 17 | | Chairman Emeritus, White Plains Hospital Center; Trustee, Alpine Family of Funds.* |
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Jeffrey E. Wacksman (52) | | Independent Trustee | | Partner, Loeb, Block & Partners LLP since 1994. | | 17 | | Director, International Succession Planning Association; Director, Bondi Icebergs Inc.; Director, MH Properties, Inc.; Trustee, Alpine Family of Funds.* |
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James A. Jacobson (67) | | Independent Trustee | | Retired (11/2008-Present); Vice Chairman and Managing Director, Spear Leeds & Kellogg Specialists, LLC (01/2003-11/2008). | | 17 | | Trustee, Alpine Family of Funds.* Trustee, Allianz Global Investors Multi- Funds. |
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Eleanor T.M. Hoagland (61) | | Independent Trustee | | Principal, VCS Advisory, LLC (since 2011); Chief Compliance Officer and Senior Managing Director of Magni Asset Management LLC (since 2011) and Park Fifth Capital Management LLC (since 2011); Vice President (2008-2010)and CCO (2009-2010), Ameriprise Financial Inc.; Managing Director (2000-2008) and CCO (2004-2008), J. & W. Seligman & Co. Incorporated. | | 17 | | Trustee of each of the Alpine Trusts.* |
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* | The Independent Trustees identified above are the members of the Board of Trustees for each of the Alpine Series Trust, Alpine Equity Trust and Alpine Income Trust, Alpine Global Dynamic Dividend Fund, Alpine Global Premier Properties Fund, and Alpine Total Dynamic Dividend Fund, (collectively, the “Alpine Family of Funds”). |
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** | Alpine Woods Capital Investors, LLC manages seventeen fund portfolios within the Alpine Family of Funds. Three of the Alpine Trusts are registered as an open-end management investment company. The Trustees oversee each of the seventeen portfolios within the Alpine Family of Funds. |
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Annual Report | October 31, 2012 | 25 |
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Additional Information (unaudited) | ![(ALPINE LOGO)](https://capedge.com/proxy/N-CSR/0000930413-13-000117/c71227003_v1.jpg)
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October 31, 2012 | |
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INTERESTED TRUSTEE | | | | | |
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Name and Age | | Position(s) Held with the Fund | | Principal Occupation During Past Five Years | | # of Portfolios in Alpine Fund Complex** | | Other Directorships Held by Trustee |
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Samuel A. Lieber* (56) | | Interested Trustee and President | | Chief Executive Officer of Alpine Woods Capital Investors, LLC since, November 1997. President of Alpine Trusts since 1998. | | 17 | | Trustee, Alpine Family of Funds. |
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* | Samuel A. Lieber has been a Trustee of the Fund since its inception. He is the son of Stephen A. Lieber. |
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** | Alpine Woods Capital Investors, LLC manages seventeen fund portfolios within the Alpine Family of Funds. Three of the Alpine Trusts are registered as open-end management investment companies. The Trustees oversee each of the seventeen portfolios within the Alpine Family of Funds. |
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![(ALPINE LOGO)](https://capedge.com/proxy/N-CSR/0000930413-13-000117/c71227003_v1.jpg)
| Additional Information (unaudited) |
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| October 31, 2012 |
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In addition to Mr. Samuel A. Lieber, the table below identifies the Fund’s executive officers. | |
Name and Age | | Position(s) Held with the Fund | | Principal Occupation During Past Five Years | | # of Portfolios in Alpine Fund Complex** | | Other Directorships Held by Trustee |
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Stephen A. Lieber (87)* | | Executive Vice President | | Chief Investment Officer, Alpine Woods Capital Investors, LLC since 2003. Chairman and Senior Portfolio Manager, Saxon Woods Advisors, LLC since 1999. | | 17 | | None |
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John M. Megyesi (52) | | Chief Compliance Officer | | Chief Compliance Officer, Alpine Woods Capital Investors, LLC since January 2010; Vice President and Manager, Trade Surveillance, Credit Suisse Asset Management, LLC (2006-2010); Manager, Trading and Surveillance, Allianz Global Investors (2004-2006). | | 17 | | None |
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Ronald Palmer (44) | | Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer | | Chief Financial Officer, Alpine Woods Capital Investors, LLC since January 2010; Independent Consultant (2008-2010); Vice President, Cash Management and Foreign Exchange, Macquarie Capital Management, LLC (2007-2008); Chief Operating Officer, Macquarie Fund Adviser, LLC (2004-2007). | | 17 | | None |
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Andrew Pappert (32) | | Secretary | | Director of Fund Operations, Alpine Woods Capital Investors, LLC since September 2008; Assistant Vice President, Mutual Fund Operations, Credit Suisse Asset Management, LLC (2003-2008). | | 17 | | None |
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* | Stephen A. Lieber is the father of Samuel A. Lieber. |
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** | Alpine Woods Capital Investors, LLC manages seventeen fund portfolios within the Alpine Family of Funds. Three of the Alpine Trusts are registered as an open-end management investment company. The Trustees oversee each of the seventeen portfolios within the Alpine Family of Funds. |
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Annual Report | October 31, 2012 | 27 |
(THIS PAGE INTENTIONALLY LEFT BLANK)
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INVESTOR | | | 1(800) 617.7616 www.alpinefunds.com |
INFORMATION | | |
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![(ALPINE LOGO)](https://capedge.com/proxy/N-CSR/0000930413-13-000117/c71227009_v1.jpg)
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INVESTMENT ADVISER |
Alpine Woods Capital Investors, LLC |
2500 Westchester Ave., Suite 215 |
Purchase, NY 10577 |
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ADMINISTRATOR & |
CUSTODIAN |
State Street Bank & Trust Company |
One Lincoln Street |
Boston, MA 02111 |
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TRANSFER AGENT |
Boston Financial Data Services, Inc. |
Two Heritage Drive |
North Quincy, MA 02171 |
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INDEPENDENTREGISTERED |
PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM |
Deloitte & Touche LLP |
500 College Road East |
Princeton, NJ 08540 |
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FUND COUNSEL |
Willkie Farr & Gallagher |
787 7th Ave. |
New York, NY 10019 |
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![(ALPINE LOGO)](https://capedge.com/proxy/N-CSR/0000930413-13-000117/c71227010_v1.jpg)
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INVESTOR INFORMATION |
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1(800) 617.7616 |
www.alpinefunds.com |
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Item 2. | Code of Ethics. |
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| (a) The Registrant, as of the end of the period covered by the report, has adopted a code of ethics that applies to the Registrant’s principal executive officer, principal financial officer, principal accounting officer or controller or persons performing similar functions. |
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| (b) Not applicable. |
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| (c) There have been no amendments, during the period covered by this report, to a provision of the code of ethics that applies to the Registrant’s principal executive officer, principal financial officer, principal accounting officer or controller, or persons performing similar functions and that relates to any element of the code of ethics described in Item 2(b) of Form N-CSR. |
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| (d) The Registrant has not granted any waivers, including an implicit waiver, from a provision of the code of ethics that applies to the registrant’s principal executive officer, principal financial officer, principal accounting officer or controller, or persons performing similar functions that relates to any element of the code of ethics described in Item 2(b) of Form N-CSR. |
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| (e) Not applicable. |
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| (f) The Registrant’s Code of Ethics is attached as Exhibit 12(A)(1) hereto. |
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Item 3. | Audit Committee Financial Expert. |
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| (a)(1) The Board of Trustees of the Registrant has determined that the Registrant has at least one audit committee financial expert serving on its audit committee. |
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| (a)(2) The Board of Trustees has determined that James A. Jacobson and H. Guy Leibler are audit committee financial experts. Messrs. Jacobson and Leibler are “independent” as defined in paragraph (a)(2) of Item 3 to Form N-CSR. It has been determined that Mr. Jacobson qualifies as an audit committee financial expert based on his extensive experience in the financial services industry, including serving for more than 15 years as a senior executive at a New York Stock Exchange (“NYSE”) specialist firm and as a member of the NYSE Board of Directors (including terms as Vice Chair), his other board service, as well as his educational background. It has been determined that Mr. Leibler qualifies as an audit committee financial expert based on his substantial experience as a senior executive of an operating company actively supervising principal financial officers in the preparation of financial statements, other board service, as well as his educational background. |
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| (a)(3) Not applicable. |
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Item 4. | Principal Accountant Fees and Services. |
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(a) Audit Fees: The aggregate fees billed for each of the last two fiscal years for professional services rendered by the principal accountant for the audit of the registrant’s annual financial statements or services that are normally provided by the accountant in connection with statutory and regulatory filings or engagements for fiscal year 2011 was $68,333 and fiscal year 2012 was $86,116. |
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(b) Audit-Related Fees: The aggregate fees billed in each of the last two fiscal years for assurance and related services by the principal accountant that are reasonably related to the performance of the audit of the registrant’s financial statements and are not reported under paragraph (a) of this Item was $0 in fiscal year 2011 and $0 in fiscal year 2012. |
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(c) Tax Fees: The aggregate fees billed in each of the last two fiscal years for professional services rendered by the principal accountant for tax compliance, tax advice, and tax planning was $10,919 in fiscal year 2011 and $9,677 in fiscal year 2012. |
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(d) All Other Fees: The aggregate fees billed in each of the last two fiscal years for products and services provided by the principal accountant, other than the services reported in paragraphs (a) through (c) of this Item is $0 in fiscal year 2011 and $10,947 in fiscal year 2012. The fees were for consulting and advisory services regarding enterprise risk management. |
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(e)(1) Audit Committee Pre-Approval Policies and Procedures: All services to be performed by the Registrant’s principal auditors must be pre-approved by the Registrant’s audit committee, which may include the approval of certain services up to an amount determined by the audit committee. Any services that would exceed that amount would require additional approval of the audit committee. |
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(e)(2) No services described in paragraphs (b) through (d) were approved pursuant to paragraph (c)(7)(i)(C) of Rule 2-01 of Regulation S-X. |
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(f) Not applicable. |
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(g) The aggregate non-audit fees billed by the registrant’s accountant for services rendered to the registrant, and the registrant’s investment adviser, and any entity controlling, controlled by, or under common control with the adviser that provides ongoing services to the registrant was $0 in fiscal year 2011 and $109,474 in fiscal year 2012. |
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(h) Not applicable |
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Item 5. | Audit Committee of Listed Registrants. |
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| The Registrant has a separately designated standing audit committee established in accordance with Section 3(a)(58)(A) of the Exchange Act which is comprised of the following members: |
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| Eleanor T.M. Hoagland |
| H. Guy Leibler |
| Jeffrey E. Wacksman |
| James A. Jacobson |
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Item 6. | Schedule of Investments. |
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| (a) The Schedule of Investments is included as part of the Report to Stockholders filed under Item 1 of this form. |
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| (b) Not applicable. |
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Item 7. | Disclosure of Proxy Voting Policies and Procedures for Closed-End Management Investment Companies. |
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| The registrant’s proxy voting policies and procedures are attached hereto as Exhibit 12(a)(4). |
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Item 8. | Portfolio Managers of Closed-End Management Investment Companies. |
(a)(1) As of December 31, 2012
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Name | | Title | | Length of Service | | Business Experience 5 Years |
Joshua Duitz | | Portfolio Manager | | Since December 2012 | | Mr. Joshua Duitz joined Alpine in February 2007, after eight years at Bear Stearns, where Mr. Duitz was a Managing Director Principal who specialized in trading international equities. |
Brian Hennessey | | Portfolio Manager | | Since December 2012 | | Mr. Brian Hennessey joined Alpine in December 2008, bringing nine years of investment experience. Mr. Hennessey has previously worked at Tribeca Global Investments (a former unit of Citigroup) and Litespeed Partners, Partners Re Asset Management and Putnam Investments. |
(a)(2) Other Accounts Managed as of December 31, 2012
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| | | | | | | Advisory Fee Based on Performance | | |
Type of Accounts | | Number of Accounts | | | Total Assets ($ in millions) | | Number of Accounts | | Total Assets | | Material Conflicts if Any |
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Joshua Duitz | | | | | | | | | | | |
Registered Investment Companies | | 3 | | $ | 515.4 | | 0 | | 0 | | See below(1) |
Other Pooled Accounts | | 0 | | | 0 | | 0 | | 0 | | |
Other Accounts | | 1 | | | 7.5 | | 0 | | 0 | | |
Brian Hennessey | | | | | | | | | | | |
Registered Investment Companies | | 2 | | | $459.0 | | 0 | | 0 | | See below(1) |
Other Pooled Accounts | | 0 | | | 0 | | 0 | | 0 | | |
Other Accounts | | 1 | | | 7.5 | | 0 | | 0 | | |
(1)Conflicts of interest may arise because the Fund’s Portfolio Managers have day-to-day management responsibilities with respect to both the Fund and various other accounts. These potential conflicts include:
Limited Resources. The Portfolio Managers cannot devote their full time and attention to the management of each of the accounts that they manage. Accordingly, the Portfolio Managers may be limited in their ability to identify investment opportunities for each of the accounts that are as attractive as might be the case if the Portfolio Managers were to devote substantially more attention to the management of a single account. The effects of this potential conflict may be more pronounced where the accounts have different investment strategies.
Limited Investment Opportunities. Other clients of the Alpine Woods Capital Investors LLC (the “Adviser”) may have investment objectives and policies similar to those of the Fund. The Adviser may, from time to time, make recommendations which result in the purchase or sale of a particular security by its other clients simultaneously with the Fund. If transactions on behalf of more than one client during the same period increase the demand for securities being purchased or the supply of securities being sold, there may be an adverse effect on price or quantity. It is the policy of the Adviser to allocate advisory recommendations and the placing of orders in a manner that it believes is equitable to the accounts involved, including the Fund. When two or more clients of the Adviser are purchasing or selling the same security on a given day from the same broker-dealer, such transactions may be averaged as to price.
Different Investment Strategies. The accounts managed by the Portfolio Managers have differing investment strategies. If the Portfolio Managers determine that an investment opportunity may be appropriate for only some of the accounts or decide that certain of the accounts should take different positions with respect to a particular security, the Portfolio Managers may effect transactions for one or more accounts which may affect the market price of the security or the execution of the transaction, or both, to the detriment or benefit of one or more other accounts.
Variation in Compensation. A conflict of interest may arise where the Adviser is compensated differently by the accounts that are managed by the Portfolio Managers. If certain accounts pay higher management fees or performance- based incentive fees, the Portfolio Managers might be motivated to prefer certain accounts over others. The Portfolio Managers might also be motivated to favor accounts in which they have a greater ownership interest or accounts that are more likely to enhance the Portfolio Managers’ performance record or to otherwise benefit the Portfolio Managers.
Selection of Brokers. The Portfolio Managers may select the brokers that execute securities transactions for the accounts that they supervise. In addition to executing trades, some brokers provide the Portfolio Managers with research and other services which may require the payment of higher brokerage fees than might otherwise be available. The Portfolio Managers’ decision as to the selection of brokers could yield disproportionate costs and benefits among the
accounts that they manage, since the research and other services provided by brokers may be more beneficial to some accounts than to others.
Where conflicts of interest arise between the Fund and other accounts managed by the Portfolio Managers, the Portfolio Managers will use good faith efforts so that the Fund will not be treated materially less favorably than other accounts. There may be instances where similar portfolio transactions may be executed for the same security for numerous accounts managed by the Portfolio Managers. In such instances, securities will be allocated in accordance with the Adviser’s trade allocation policy.
(a)(3) Portfolio Manager Compensation as of December 31, 2012
Portfolio manager compensation is comprised of a fixed base salary and a bonus. The base salary is not based on the value of assets managed, but rather on the individual portfolio manager’s experience and responsibilities. The bonus also varies by individual, and is based upon criteria that incorporate management’s assessment of the Fund’s performance relative to returns of comparable mutual funds tracked by Lipper Analytical Services, Inc., Morningstar or Bloomberg LLP, as well the portfolio manager’s corporate citizenship and overall contribution to the Firm.
(a)(4) Dollar Range of Securities Owned as of December 31, 2012
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Portfolio Manager | | Dollar Range of Equity Securities Held in Registrant 1 |
Joshua Duitz | | None |
Joshua Duitz | | None |
1 “Beneficial Ownership” is determined in accordance with Section 16a-1(a)(2) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended
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Item 9. | Purchases of Equity Securities by Closed-End Management Investment Company and Affiliated Purchasers. |
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| Not Applicable. |
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Item 10. | Submission of Matters to Vote of Security Holders. |
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| There have been no material changes to the procedures by which shareholders may recommend nominees to the Registrant’s Board of Trustees. |
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Item 11. | Controls and Procedures. |
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| (a) | The Registrant’s principal executive officer and principal financial officer have evaluated the Registrant’s disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in Rule 30a-3(c) under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended) within 90 days of this filing and have concluded that the registrant’s disclosure controls and procedures were effective, as of that date. |
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| (b) | There was no change in the Registrant’s internal control over financial reporting (as defined in Rule 30a-3(d) under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended) during the second fiscal quarter of the period covered by this report that |
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| | has materially affected, or is reasonably likely to materially affect, the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting. |
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Item 12. | Exhibits. |
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| (a)(1) The Code of Ethics that applies to the Registrant’s principal executive officer and principal financial officer is attached hereto as Exhibit 12.A.1. |
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| (a)(2) The certifications required by Rule 30a-2(a) of the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended, and Section 302 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 are attached hereto as Ex99.Cert. |
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| (a)(3) Not applicable. |
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| (a)(4) The Registrant’s Proxy Voting Policies and Procedures are attached hereto in response to Item 7. |
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| (b) The certifications by the Registrant’s Principal Executive Officer and Principal Financial Officer, as required by Rule 30a-2(b) of the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended, and Section 906 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 are attached hereto as Ex99.906Cert. |
SIGNATURES
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and the Investment Company Act of 1940, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized.
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Alpine Total Dynamic Dividend Fund |
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By: | /s/ Samuel A. Lieber | |
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| Samuel A. Lieber | |
| Chief Executive Officer (Principal Executive Officer) |
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Date: | January 7, 2013 | |
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and the Investment Company Act of 1940, this report has been signed below by the following persons on behalf of the registrant and in the capacities and on the dates indicated.
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By: | /s/ Samuel A. Lieber | |
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| Samuel A. Lieber | |
| Chief Executive Officer (Principal Executive Officer) |
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By: | /s/ Ronald G. Palmer, Jr. | |
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| Ronald G. Palmer, Jr. | |
| Chief Financial Officer (Principal Financial Officer) |
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Date: | January 7, 2013 | |