John Hancock Funds has announced its eighth closed-end fund that invests in preferred securities, and its twelfth closed-end fund overall. John Hancock Preferred Income Fund III will aim for high current income consistent with capital appreciation by investing at least 80 percent of its total assets in a diversified portfolio of investment-grade-preferred and other fixed-income securities.

The fund will primarily be distributed through financial planners and broker-dealers, according to a spokesperson for the firm.

Hancock has filed a registration statement with the Securities and Exchange Commission, and is introducing the fund in a offering period that stretches from May 28 to June 24. UBS Warburg is lead manager for the offering, with Merrill Lynch serving as co-lead.

The new fund intends to emphasize investments in the utilities sector, and may invest more than 25 percent of its total assets within that sector. The fund's management team oversees five similarly structured Patriot Funds, as well as the John Hancock Preferred Income Fund and John Hancock Preferred Income Fund II, both introduced in 2002.

As of March 31, 2003, John Hancock Funds managed more than $2.7 billion in total preferred assets, according to a prepared release. 

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