iShares adds 2018, 2019 ETFs to iShares S&P AMT-Free Municipal series

By Toni Weeks

San Diego, June 22 - iShares announced that it has filed registration statements with the Securities and Exchange Commission to expand its suite of iShares S&P AMT-Free Municipal Series ETFs to include funds with 2018 and 2019 end dates, according to a press release from sponsor BlackRock, Inc.

The two new exchange-traded funds will add to iShares' lineup of AMT-free ETFs, which currently have end dates ranging from 2012 to 2017.

The company also announced that the iShares 2012 S&P AMT-Free Municipal Series ETF will mature on Aug. 15. Individual bonds in the ETF portfolio have begun to mature, and the fund will be transitioning into short-term, tax-exempt instruments and cash through Aug. 15, at which time the ETF will close and cease trading on the NYSE Arca. Remaining shareholders will receive their proceeds in cash on or after Aug. 21.

Between Aug. 16 and Aug. 21, existing shareholders may reinvest their dividends and distributions in other iShares funds, the company said in a 497 filing with the SEC. Shareholders wishing to sell their holdings before Aug. 16 may be subject to customary brokerage commissions associated with the sale of fund shares.

"The iShares S&P AMT-Free Muni Series was created to offer investors a bond-like experience via a tradeable ETF," Matthew Tucker, head of iShares Fixed Income Strategy at BlackRock, said in the release. "Fund shareholders receive monthly income distributions and a maturity distribution with the added benefits found in the ETF structure, such as a diversified portfolio of bonds, transparency of holdings and pricing and trading flexibility. As the iShares 2012 Municipal Series ETF is the first of the series to reach maturity, we plan to introduce additional ETFs to the iShares series."

The six existing funds offer investors access to benefits of both ETFs and bonds. Like an ETF, each fund contains a diversified set of securities tracking a corresponding index and can be bought and sold daily on an exchange. Like a bond, each fund has a pre-determined date when the fund will close and distribute all proceeds to shareholders and is designed to provide a yield-to-maturity profile comparable to that of the underlying bond portfolio.

iShares is a Jersey City-based provider of exchange-traded funds. BlackRock Fund Advisors is the San Francisco-based investment adviser to the iShares ETFs.

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