First Trust Announces Shareholder Approval of First Trust Strategic High Income Fund II’s Merger into First Trust High Income Long/Short Fund

First Trust Advisors L.P. (“FTA”) announced today that shareholders of First Trust Strategic High Income Fund II (NYSE: FHY), a closed-end fund managed by FTA, have approved the fund’s merger with and into First Trust High Income Long/Short Fund (NYSE: FSD), a closed-end fund managed by FTA, at a Special Meeting of Shareholders on June 11, 2018. As previously announced, the merger was approved by the Board of Trustees of each of FHY and FSD on March 6, 2018. Subject to the satisfaction of certain customary closing conditions, the merger of FHY with and into FSD is expected to close during the second calendar quarter of 2018. It is currently expected that FSD will declare a dividend payable in July with a record date after the close of the proposed merger and that shareholders of FHY as of the effective time of the merger would receive such dividend if they hold their newly issued shares of FSD through the record date. No assurance can be given as to the exact timing of the closing of the transaction.

Upon the completion of the transaction, which is expected to be tax-free, the assets of FHY will be transferred to, and the liabilities of FHY will be assumed by, FSD, and shareholders of FHY will receive shares of FSD with a value equal to the aggregate net asset value of the FHY shares held by them.

FSD is a diversified, closed-end management investment company that seeks to provide current income. FSD has a secondary objective of capital appreciation. FSD seeks to achieve its investment objectives by investing, under normal market conditions, a majority of its assets in a diversified portfolio of U.S. and foreign (including emerging markets) high yield corporate fixed-income securities of varying maturities that are rated below-investment grade at the time of purchase.

FTA is a federally registered investment advisor and serves as the investment advisor of FHY and FSD. FTA and its affiliate First Trust Portfolios L.P. (“FTP”), a FINRA registered broker-dealer, are privately held companies that provide a variety of investment services. FTA is the investment advisor to exchange-traded funds, closed-end funds, mutual funds, separate managed accounts and provides supervisory services to FTP sponsored unit investment trusts. FTA’s assets under management were approximately $126 billion as of May 31, 2018. This includes the supervisory services FTA provides to FTP sponsored unit investment trusts, which are unmanaged. FTP is a sponsor of unit investment trusts and distributor of mutual fund shares and exchange-traded fund creation units. FTA and FTP are based in Wheaton, Illinois.

Additional Information / Forward-Looking Statements

This press release is not intended to, and shall not, constitute an offer to purchase or sell shares of FHY or FSD. Certain statements made in this news release that are not historical facts are referred to as “forward-looking statements” under the U.S. federal securities laws. Actual future results or occurrences may differ significantly from those anticipated in any forward- looking statements due to numerous factors. Generally, the words “believe,” “expect,” “intend,” “estimate,” “anticipate,” “project,” “will” and similar expressions identify forward-looking statements, which generally are not historical in nature. Forward-looking statements are subject to certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ from the historical experience of FTA and the funds managed by FTA and its present expectations or projections. You should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date they are made. FTA, FHY and FSD undertake no responsibility to update publicly or revise any forward-looking statements.

An investor should carefully consider the investment objectives, risks, charges and expenses of FHY or FSD, as applicable, before investing. The prospectuses for FHY and FSD contain this and other important information and are available free of charge by calling toll-free at 1-800-621-1675 or writing FHY or FSD at 120 East Liberty Drive, Suite 400, Wheaton, IL 60187. The prospectus should be read carefully before investing.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180612005886/en/