UNITED STATES | |||
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION | |||
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SCHEDULE 14A | |||
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Proxy Statement Pursuant to Section 14(a) of | |||
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Preliminary Proxy Statement | ||
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Confidential, for Use of the Commission Only (as permitted by Rule 14a-6(e)(2)) | ||
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Definitive Proxy Statement | ||
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Soliciting Material under §240.14a-12 | ||
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Saratoga Investment Corp. | |||
(Name of Registrant as Specified In Its Charter) | |||
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(Name of Person(s) Filing Proxy Statement, if other than the Registrant) | |||
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Fee computed on table below per Exchange Act Rules 14a-6(i)(1) and 0-11. | ||
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535 Madison Avenue, New York, NY 10022
YOUR IMMEDIATE ACTION IS REQUESTED
Please Vote Your Shares for the September 26th Annual Meeting Today!
September 12, 2013
Dear Saratoga Investment Corp. Stockholder:
We recently mailed to you proxy materials for the upcoming annual meeting of stockholders. Your vote is extremely important. At the annual meeting, stockholders are being asked to vote on three proposals. The first being the election of two directors to the Board, the second to approve a proposal that would give your Company the flexibility to sell its common shares at a price below net asset value (NAV), and the third to approve an adjournment of the annual meeting if necessary. The Board of Directors unanimously approves of each proposals and believes they are in the best interests of stockholders, and therefore recommends stockholders vote FOR each proposal on the ballot.
Why is Proposal 2 in Stockholders Best Interests?
Shareholders have approved this proposal the last two years and the Board recommends shareholders vote to approve the proposal again this year. The Board believes that if the Company were unable to access the capital markets when attractive investment opportunities arise, the Companys ability to grow over time and ultimately to pay dividends to stockholders could be adversely affected. Inability to access the capital markets could also have the effect of forcing the Company to sell assets that the Company would not otherwise sell and at disadvantageous times.
Stockholders are encouraged to read the proxy statement in its entirety as it expands in greater detail on the reasons why the Board recommends stockholders vote FOR Proposal 2 and other key stockholder considerations. The Board of Directors believes the following possible benefits could be realized by stockholders if they approve this proposal:
· Flexibility to Capitalize on Attractive Investment Opportunities - If the economy faced adverse market conditions once again, the Company and other companies in the financial services sector may not have access to sufficient debt and equity capital in order to take advantage of favorable investment opportunities. Additionally, debt capital that could be available, if any, may be at a higher cost and on less favorable terms and conditions in the future.
· Greater investment opportunities due to larger capital resources - The Companys Board of Directors believes additional capital raised through an offering of shares of its common stock may help generate additional deal flow.
· Higher market capitalization and liquidity may make the Companys common stock more attractive to investors- A larger market capitalization may make the Companys stock more attractive to a larger number of investors who have limitations on the size of companies in which they invest.
· Reduced expenses per share - An offering that increases the Companys total assets may reduce its expenses per share due to the spreading of fixed expenses over a larger asset base.
· Maintaining a favorable debt-to-equity ratio - The Company is dependent on its ability to raise capital through the sale of common stock. The Company generally must distribute substantially all of its earnings from dividends, interest and short-term gains to stockholders as dividends in order to achieve pass-through tax treatment, which prevents the Company from using those earnings to support new investment. In order to borrow money or issue preferred stock, the Company must maintain a debt to equity ratio of not more than 1:1. Exceeding the required 1:1 debt-to-equity ratio could have severe negative consequences for the Company, including an inability to pay future dividends, possible breaches of debt covenants and failure to qualify for pass through tax treatment.
The Leading Independent Institutional Proxy Advisory Firm Recommends
Saratoga Investment Corp Stockholders Vote FOR each Proposal at the Upcoming Annual Meeting
Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS) recently issued a report recommending that stockholders of Saratoga Investment Corp. vote FOR all of the proposals included in the proxy statement for the Companys 2013 Annual Meeting of Stockholders. The recommendations of ISS are relied upon by hundreds of major institutional investment firms, mutual funds and other fiduciaries.
The Company has no immediate plans to sell any shares of its common stock at a price below NAV and the authority granted under this proposal expires after one year. Additionally, stockholders are reminded that officers, directors and other insiders at the Company own more than 32% of the outstanding shares. Our interests are aligned with all stockholders. However, due to one of the voting requirements on Proposal 2, shares held by officers and directors are excluded from the calculation of the vote for this proposal. Therefore, it is imperative that stockholders vote their shares no matter how many or how few shares they own.
How to Vote
The voting instruction form or proxy card included with this letter contains a unique control number. You may use this control number to vote your shares by proxy via the telephone or Internet. With the September 26th Annual Meeting now only a short time away, we encourage you to vote by Internet or telephone today.
Your vote is needed, regardless of the number of shares you own. We encourage you to vote each proxy you receive in the mail via telephone or Internet. In the event that two proxies are received from you, the one bearing the latest date will be counted, as it automatically revokes all prior proxies.
Thank you for voting.
On behalf of the Board of Directors,
Chris Oberbeck, Chief Executive Officer
If you have questions or need assistance voting your shares, please contact:
Morrow & Co., LLC
Brokers call collect: (203) 658-9400
Stockholders call toll free: (800) 607-0088