In plain terms — Franklin Premier Income Trust
Shares currently cost about 8.7% less than the value of the assets behind them (a discount).
Over the past year it has averaged a 6.1% discount, so today's level is unusually wide for this fund (Z-score -2.3). That describes the past; it does not predict where the discount goes next.
It pays regular distributions worth about 9.6% a year of the share price (8.8% of the assets). That is a payout rate, not a return: part of it may be capital being handed back.
Because the shares trade below the value of their assets, each dollar of reinvested distributions buys about $1.10 of assets — a ReinvestCapture™ rate of 10.6%, more than the payout rate itself. That is buying power, not a return.
The assets themselves grew 0.8% over the past year including distributions (NAV total return).
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Price and NAV, past year
Snapshot
Valuation vs. history
| Window | Average prem/disc | Std. dev. | Z-score | Observations |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 months | -7.09% | 1.01% | -1.90 | 55 |
| 6 months | -6.91% | 0.86% | -2.45 | 107 |
| 1 year | -6.07% | 1.27% | -2.32 | 208 |
| 3 years | -5.78% | — | — | — |
| 5 years | -6.07% | — | — | — |
Current contemporaneous premium/discount -9.01% (close Oct 14, 2026 vs NAV Oct 13, 2026). 1-year range -9.01% to -2.96%. A negative Z-score means a wider discount than the window average — not that the fund is undervalued.
Performance
| Series | 1M | 3M | YTD | 1Y | 3Y (ann.) | 5Y (ann.) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Market price return | -3.31% | -6.41% | -9.32% | -12.77% | -1.51% | -6.66% |
| Market price total return | -2.54% | -4.23% | -2.99% | -4.63% | +7.52% | +1.70% |
| NAV return | -1.39% | -4.05% | -6.33% | -7.31% | -1.19% | -4.72% |
| NAV total return | -0.67% | -1.97% | -0.22% | +0.78% | +7.32% | +3.26% |
Through Oct 14, 2026. Total return reinvests distributions at the series value on the ex-date. Cumulative ≤ 1 year, annualised beyond.
About the fund
Putnam Premier Income Trust is a closed ended fixed income mutual fund launched and managed by Putnam Investment Management, LLC. The fund is co-managed by Putnam Investments Limited. It invests in the public fixed income markets across the globe. The fund primarily invests in U.S. high-grade and high-yield bonds with an average credit quality of BBB by S&P Corporation. It benchmarks the performance of its portfolio against the Barclays Capital Government Bond Index. Putnam Premier Income Trust was formed on February 29, 1988 and is domiciled in the United States.
CEF Explorer research page for Franklin Premier Income Trust. Figures carry their own dates and sources; a discount to NAV does not guarantee convergence or any return. This is not investment advice.