Mutual Funds: Global, Dividend Plays Don't Always Pay

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A global focus with an emphasis on dividends might seem like a strategy likely to provide some insulation from the impact of a bear market. But it hasn't worked out that well for the half dozen closed-end funds to most recently receive grades from TheStreet.com Ratings.

The six funds on the accompanying list crumbled more than 35% over the past 12 months, and each also sports double-digit percentage declines in both the latest three-month period and the year to date. The lackluster performances earned each fund a mark in the lowest possible "E" range, a grade from TheStreet.com Ratings that corresponds with a "sell" rating.

Five of the six funds were recently priced at discounts from their respective net asset values per share, with three quoted at discounts of more than 10% from NAV.

The BlackRock EcoSolutions Investment Trust (BQR) seeks to achieve current income and capital gains by investing at least 80% of its assets in equity securities issued by companies that are engaged in one or more of the new energy, water resources and agriculture business segments. It uses an option strategy to enhance current gains and is 58% invested outside the U.S.

Although the stated objective of the Cornerstone Progressive Return Fund (CFP) permits investment outside the U.S., its holdings were recently totally domestic. Cornerstone states in its objective, "The fund seeks current income as a component of total return by investing in dividend paying equity securities and U.S. dollar denominated debt securities."

True to that philosophy, the fund's top portfolio holdings include perennial blue chip stocks Exxon Mobil (XOM), General Electric (GE), Wal-Mart Stores (WMT), Microsoft (MSFT) and Johnson & Johnson (JNJ).