NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Fitch Ratings has withdrawn the 'F1' short-term ratings assigned to Variable Rate Demand Preferred Shares (VRDP Shares) issued by 11 municipal closed-end funds managed by BlackRock Advisors, LLC (the Funds). A complete list of the 11 funds affected follows at the end of this press release.
Fitch is withdrawing the short-term ratings following the commencement of a special rate period on the VRDP Shares issued by the 11 Funds on June 21, 2012 (the Special Rate Period). The Special Rate Period will be in effect for approximately three years, during which the VRDP Shares will not be not subject to optional or mandatory tender events and will not be remarketed by a remarketing agent pursuant to such events.
Fitch's 'AAA' long-term ratings on the VRDP Shares issued by the Funds have not been affected.
FUTURE REMARKETINGS
After June 2015, holder(s) of VRDP Shares and the Funds may mutually elect to extend the Special Rate Period. If the Special Rate Period is, however, not extended, the VRDP Shares will revert to remarketable securities available for purchase by qualified third party investors. At that point, the VRDP Shares are expected to benefit from an unconditional and irrevocable purchase obligation by the liquidity provider upon optional or mandatory tender events, similar to other Fitch-rated VRDP Shares issued by Blackrock closed-end funds.
In this event, Fitch would expect to assign a short-term rating to the VRDP Shares based on the rating of the liquidity provider, which is currently Citibank, N.A. ('A/F1', Outlook Stable). However, the rating of the designated liquidity provider may be subject to change in the future and thus Fitch's short-term rating on the VRDP Shares could change as a function of that.
FUNDS AFFECTED
BlackRock MuniYield California Quality Fund, Inc. (NYSE: MCA)
--VRDP Shares, series W-7, due May 2041, with a liquidation preference of $100,000 per share;
BlackRock MuniEnhanced Fund, Inc. (NYSE: MEN)
--VRDP Shares, series W-7, due June 2041, with a liquidation preference of $100,000 per share;
BlackRock MuniYield Michigan Quality Fund, Inc. (NYSE: MIY)
--VRDP Shares, series W-7, due May 2041, with a liquidation preference of $100,000 per share;
BlackRock MuniYield Pennsylvania Quality Fund (NYSE: MPA)
--VRDP Shares, series W-7, due June 2041, with a liquidation preference of $100,000 per share;
BlackRock MuniYield California Fund, Inc. (NYSE: MYC)
--VRDP Shares, series W-7, due June 2041, with a liquidation preference of $100,000 per share;
BlackRock MuniYield Investment Fund (NYSE: MYF)
--VRDP Shares, series W-7, due June 2041, with a liquidation preference of $100,000 per share;
BlackRock MuniYield Quality Fund III, Inc. (NYSE: MYI)
--VRDP Shares, series W-7, due June 2041; with a liquidation preference of $100,000 per share;
BlackRock MuniYield New Jersey Fund, Inc. (NYSE: MYJ)
--VRDP Shares, series W-7, due May 2041, with a liquidation preference of $100,000 per share;
BlackRock MuniYield Michigan Quality Fund II, Inc. (NYSE: MYM)
--VRDP Shares, series W-7, due June 2041, with a liquidation preference of $100,000 per share;
BlackRock MuniYield New York Quality Fund, Inc. (NYSE: MYN)
--VRDP Shares, series W-7, due May 2041, with a liquidation preference of $100,000 per share;
BlackRock MuniYield Arizona Fund, Inc. (NYSE: MZA)
--VRDP Shares, series W-7, due June 2041, with a liquidation preference of $100,000 per share.
For additional information about Fitch rating guidelines applicable to debt and preferred stock issued by closed-end funds, please review the criteria referenced below, which can be found on Fitch's web site at 'www.fitchratings.com'.
To opt in to Fitch's complimentary closed-end fund research, follow the
link below:
http://forms.fitchratings.com/forms/FAMCEFOptinform
Additional information is available at 'www.fitchratings.com'. The ratings above were solicited by, or on behalf of, the issuer, and therefore, Fitch has been compensated for the provision of the ratings.
The sources of information used to assess this rating were the public domain and BlackRock Advisors, LLC.
Applicable Criteria and Related Research:
--'Municipal CEFs Refinance Pre-Crisis ARPS' (May 3, 2012);
--'Leveraged Taxable CEFs: Bank Funding Drives ARPS' (May 3, 2012);
--'2012 Outlook: Closed-End Fund Leverage' (Dec. 19, 2011);
--'Closed-End Funds: Derivatives Under Review' (Nov. 16, 2011);
--'Primer: CEF Variable-Rate Demand Preferred Shares' (Oct. 27, 2011);
--'Rating Closed-End Fund Debt and Preferred Stock' (Aug. 16, 2011).
Applicable Criteria and Related Research:
Leveraged Taxable CEFs: Bank Funding Drives ARPS
http://www.fitchratings.com/creditdesk/reports/report_frame.cfm?rpt_id=677332
Municipal CEFs Refinance Pre-Crisis ARPS
http://www.fitchratings.com/creditdesk/reports/report_frame.cfm?rpt_id=677576
Rating Closed-End Fund Debt and Preferred Stock
http://www.fitchratings.com/creditdesk/reports/report_frame.cfm?rpt_id=648840
Primer: CEF Variable-Rate Demand Preferred Shares (Closed-End Fund VRDPs Target Short-Term, Money Market Investors)
http://www.fitchratings.com/creditdesk/reports/report_frame.cfm?rpt_id=654295
Closed-End Funds: Derivatives Under Review (Increased Use and Limited Transparency Are Key Considerations)
http://www.fitchratings.com/creditdesk/reports/report_frame.cfm?rpt_id=656591
2012 Outlook: Closed-End Fund Leverage
http://www.fitchratings.com/creditdesk/reports/report_frame.cfm?rpt_id=660709
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