BOSTON, Dec. 10, 2010 /PRNewswire/ -- John Hancock Funds
announced today that the unaudited tax information presented in the
annual reports for the John Hancock Preferred Income Fund (NYSE:
HPI), John Hancock Preferred Income Fund II (NYSE: HPF), and John
Hancock Preferred Income Fund III (NYSE: HPS) for the fiscal year
ended July 31, 2010 overstated the
percentage of the ordinary dividends that qualify for the corporate
dividends-received deduction ("DRD") as certain securities held by
the Funds that were treated as DRD eligible do not qualify for the
DRD. Corrected information has been posted on the Funds'
website at www.jhfunds.com in the "Tax Center" under the "Education
& Guidance" tab.
In addition, the Funds' distributions eligible for treatment as
qualified dividend income ("QDI") and the DRD for the 2010 calendar
year are expected to be substantially lower than the amounts
reported by the Funds for the 2009 calendar year given that certain
securities held by the Funds that were previously treated as QDI
and DRD eligible do not qualify for the QDI or the DRD.
Details on the Funds' 2010 distributions for federal income tax
purposes will be provided to the Funds' shareholders after the end
of the 2010 calendar year.
About John Hancock Funds
The Boston-based mutual fund
business unit of John Hancock Financial, John Hancock Funds,
manages more than $60.8 billion in
open-end funds, closed-end funds, private accounts, retirement
plans and related party assets for individual and institutional
investors at September 30, 2010.
About John Hancock Financial and Manulife Financial
Corporation
John Hancock Financial is a unit of Manulife Financial
Corporation, a leading Canadian-based financial services group
serving millions of customers in 22 countries and territories
worldwide. Operating as Manulife Financial in Canada and in most of Asia, and primarily as John Hancock in
the United States, Manulife
Financial Corporation offers clients a diverse range of financial
protection products and wealth management services through its
extensive network of employees, agents and distribution partners.
Funds under management by Manulife Financial and its subsidiaries
were Cdn$474 billion (US$460 billion) at September 30, 2010.
Manulife Financial Corporation trades as 'MFC' on the TSX, NYSE
and PSE, and under '945' on the SEHK. Manulife Financial can be
found on the Internet at www.manulife.com.
The John Hancock unit, through its insurance companies,
comprises one of the largest life insurers in the United States. John Hancock offers a broad range of financial
products and services, including life insurance, fixed and variable
annuities, fixed products, mutual funds, 401(k) plans, long-term
care insurance, college savings, and other forms of business
insurance. Additional information about John Hancock may be found
at www.johnhancock.com.
SOURCE John Hancock Funds