The share price is below what the fund owns - what that gap means
A closed-end fund's shares trade at whatever buyers pay, often 5% to 15% less than the value of its holdings. The gap is the reason large investors come knocking - and the reason buy-backs and closings pay out.
The papers call the gap a "discount" (or a "premium" when the price is higher) and the value of the holdings the "net asset value".
Why a gap exists
A regular mutual fund buys shares back at full value every day, so its price is its value. A closed-end fund does not: its shares are sold to other buyers on the exchange, and they pay what they like. Funds with high costs, falling payouts or unpopular holdings tend to trade further below the value; funds with a fixed high payout sometimes trade above it.
Why it matters to you
Buying below the value means a dollar of holdings for less than a dollar, and the fund's payout as a share of your price is higher than the holdings earn. It also means the gap can widen and you get less back when you sell. Every buy-back, closing and merger pays close to the value of the holdings - which is why they matter most to funds trading far below it.
What we can and cannot show
We do not have daily prices; the public filings carry the price and the value only at the fund's fiscal year end, and for some funds the highest and lowest gap each quarter for two years. That is what the fund pages show, always with the date. For today's gap, your broker's quote page shows the price; the fund's own website shows the value.
Funds whose shares traded furthest below the value at their last fiscal year end
- HFRO - Highland Opportunities & Income Fund
at its fiscal year end on Dec 31, 2025 the shares traded 47.5% below the value of the holdings: $5.98 a share for $11.39 of holdings. - GDL - GDL Fund
at its fiscal year end on Dec 31, 2025 the shares traded 19.8% below the value of the holdings: $8.47 a share for $10.56 of holdings. - CET - Central Securities Corp
at its fiscal year end on Dec 31, 2025 the shares traded 16.2% below the value of the holdings: $50.71 a share for $60.50 of holdings. - BTX - BlackRock Technology & Private Equity Term Trust
at its fiscal year end on Dec 31, 2025 the shares traded 15.9% below the value of the holdings: $6.59 a share for $7.84 of holdings. - TWN - Taiwan Fund
at its fiscal year end on Aug 31, 2025 the shares traded 15% below the value of the holdings: $50.25 a share for $59.13 of holdings.
From each fund's latest yearly report to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission - the price and value on one day, the fiscal year end, not today. Each line links to the fund's page. Checked Sept 18, 2026.
Check your own fund
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