UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
WASHINGTON, D.C. 20549

FORM N-Q

QUARTERLY SCHEDULE OF PORTFOLIO HOLDINGS OF REGISTERED
MANAGEMENT INVESTMENT COMPANY

Investment Company Act file number 811-0266

Tri-Continental Corporation
(Exact name of Registrant as specified in charter)

50606 Ameriprose Financial Center
Minneapolis, Minnesota 55474
(Address of principal executive offices) (Zip code)

Lawrence P. Vogel
100 Park Avenue
New York, New York 10017
(Name and address of agent for service)

Registrant’s telephone number, including area code: (212) 850-1864

Date of fiscal year end: 12/31

Date of reporting period: 3/31/09

 


FORM N-Q

ITEM 1. SCHEDULE OF INVESTMENTS.

Tri-Continental Corporation
Portfolio of Investments (unaudited)
March 31, 2009

 
Shares or
   
 
Principal Amount
 
Value
COMMON STOCKS 98.2%              
 
AEROSPACE AND          
    DEFENSE 1.0%
           
Boeing Company           67,909
 shs.
  $            2,416,201
General Dynamics Corporation 68,387       2,844,215
United Technologies Corporation 37,005       1,590,475
          6,850,891
 
AIR FREIGHT AND          
     LOGISTICS 0.2%
         
C.H. Robinson Worldwide, Inc. 26,764       1,220,706
 
AIRLINES 0.1%          
Southwest Airlines Co. 123,560       782,135
 
AUTO COMPONENTS 0.2%          
Johnson Controls, Inc. 136,811       1,641,732
 
BEVERAGES 3.8%          
Brown-Forman Corporation          
     (Class B)
20,369       790,928
Coca-Cola Company (The) 269,870       11,860,787
PepsiCo, Inc. 286,843       14,766,678
          27,418,393
 
BIOTECHNOLOGY 2.8%          
Amgen Inc.* 285,235       14,124,837
Celgene Corporation* 37,890       1,682,316
Cephalon, Inc. 17,339       1,180,786
Gilead Sciences, Inc.* 63,714       2,951,232
          19,939,171
 
BUILDING PRODUCTS 0.2%          
Masco Corporation 173,038       1,207,805
 
CAPITAL MARKETS 2.1%          
Charles Schwab Corporation 119,572       1,853,366
Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (The) 16,649       1,765,127
Morgan Stanley 405,709       9,237,994
State Street Corporation 61,120       1,881,274
          14,737,761
           
CHEMICALS 1.6%          
Dow Chemical Company 950,569       8,013,297
E. I. du Pont de Nemours          
     and Company 70,716       1,579,088
PPG Industries, Inc. 43,664       1,611,202
          11,203,587
 
COMMERCIAL BANKS 1.3%          
BB&T Corporation 127,103       2,150,583
Comerica Incorporated 50,712       928,537
Fifth Third Bancorp 253,453       740,083
KeyCorp 123,471       971,717
Marshall & Ilsley Corporation 140,663       791,933
People’s United Financial, Inc. 50,052       899,434
SunTrust Banks, Inc. 109,671       1,287,538
Wells Fargo & Company 93,945       1,337,777
          9,107,602
 
COMMERCIAL SERVICES          
     AND SUPPLIES 0.6%          
Republic Services, Inc. 81,844       1,403,625
Waste Management, Inc. 125,535       3,213,696
          4,617,321
 
COMMUNICATIONS          
     EQUIPMENT 2.1%          
Cisco Systems, Inc.* 217,878       3,653,814
Corning Incorporated 326,269       4,329,590
Motorola, Inc. 406,815       1,720,827
QUALCOMM Inc. 137,914       5,366,234
          15,070,465
 
COMPUTERS AND          
     PERIPHERALS 3.9%          
Dell Inc.* 351,031       3,327,774
International Business Machines          
     Corporation 232,905       22,566,165
Lexmark International Inc.          
     (Class A)* 64,655       1,090,730
QLogic Corp.* 74,089       823,870
          27,808,539
           
CONSTRUCTION AND          
     ENGINEERING 0.1%          
Fluor Corporation 25,350       875,842
 
CONSUMER FINANCE 0.4%          
American Express Company 29,059       396,074
Capital One Financial          
     Corporation 110,776       1,355,898
Discover Financial Services 99,564       628,249
SLM Corporation* 129,265       639,862
          3,020,083
 
DISTRIBUTORS 0.1%          
Genuine Parts Company 29,421       878,511
 
DIVERSIFIED CONSUMER          
     SERVICES 1.1%          
H&R Block, Inc. 292,301       7,769,361
 
DIVERSIFIED FINANCIAL          
     SERVICES 2.7%          
Bank of America Corporation 1,472,802       10,044,510
CIT Group Inc. 137,161       390,909
Citigroup Inc. 2,617,393       6,622,004
JPMorgan Chase & Co. 142,636       2,594,549
          19,651,972
 
DIVERSIFIED          
     TELECOMMUNICATION          
     SERVICES 0.1%          
Frontier Communications          
     Corporation 80,589       578,629
 
ELECTRIC UTILITIES 0.7%          
FirstEnergy Corp. 45,940       1,773,284
Southern Company 109,694       3,358,830
          5,132,114
 
ELECTRICAL EQUIPMENT 0.3%        
Emerson Electric Co. 68,399       1,954,843
 
ELECTRONIC EQUIPMENT,          
     INSTRUMENTS AND          
     COMPONENTS 0.3%          
FLIR Systems, Inc. 39,880       816,742
Jabil Circuit, Inc. 166,965       928,325
Tyco Electronics Ltd. 62,962       695,100
          2,440,167
           
ENERGY EQUIPMENT          
     AND SERVICES 2.1%          
Baker Hughes Incorporated 67,743       1,934,063
BJ Services Company 96,118       956,374
ENSCO International          
     Incorporated 65,568       1,730,995
Halliburton Company 202,292       3,129,457
Nabors Industries Ltd.* 94,703       946,083
National Oilwell Varco Inc. 76,799       2,204,899
Noble Corporation 62,178       1,497,868
Weatherford International Ltd.* 263,152       2,913,093
          15,312,832
 
FOOD AND STAPLES          
     RETAILING 5.9%          
Sysco Corporation 75,211       1,714,811
Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. 739,830       38,545,143
Walgreen Company 82,882       2,151,617
          42,411,571
 
FOOD PRODUCTS 1.8%          
General Mills, Inc. 177,518       8,854,598
J. M. Smucker Company 26,839       1,000,290
Kellogg Company 42,466       1,555,530
Sara Lee Corporation 178,073       1,438,830
          12,849,248
 
HEALTH CARE EQUIPMENT          
     AND SUPPLIES 0.6%          
Becton Dickinson & Company 27,125       1,823,885
Covidien Limited 83,527       2,776,437
          4,600,322
 
HEALTH CARE PROVIDERS          
     AND SERVICES 0.8%          
Cardinal Health, Inc. 57,345       1,805,221
CIGNA Corporation 125,553       2,208,477
DaVita, Inc. 14,798       650,372
Quest Diagnostics Inc. 22,724       1,078,936
UnitedHealth Group          
     Incorporated 14,829       310,371
          6,053,377
           
HOTELS, RESTAURANTS          
     AND LEISURE 1.8%          
McDonald’s Corporation 236,932       12,929,379
 
HOUSEHOLD DURABLES 0.1%          
Leggett & Platt, Incorporated 56,843       738,391
 
HOUSEHOLD PRODUCTS 3.0%          
Kimberly-Clark Corporation 35,420       1,633,216
Procter & Gamble          
     Company (The) 425,397       20,031,945
          21,665,161
 
INDEPENDENT POWER          
     PRODUCERS AND          
     ENERGY TRADERS 0.1%          
Constellation Energy Group Inc. 35,925       742,211
 
INDUSTRIAL          
     CONGLOMERATES 2.3%          
3M Company 83,858       4,169,420
General Electric Company 858,792       8,682,387
Tyco International Ltd. 197,708       3,867,168
          16,718,975
 
INSURANCE 4.6%          
Aflac, Inc. 55,592       1,076,261
Allstate Corporation 437,131       8,371,059
AON Corporation 41,732       1,703,500
Chubb Corporation 59,901       2,535,010
Hartford Financial Services          
     Group, Inc. 61,987       486,598
Lincoln National Corporation 49,430       330,687
Marsh & McLennan          
     Companies, Inc. 227,891       4,614,793
MetLife, Inc. 37,621       856,630
Progressive Corporation 393,088       5,283,103
Prudential Financial, Inc. 31,793       604,703
Torchmark Corporation 41,023       1,076,033
Travellers Companies, Inc. 152,125       6,182,360
          33,120,737
           
IT SERVICES 1.5%          
Affiliated Computer          
     Services Inc.* 28,552       1,367,355
Automatic Data Processing, Inc. 103,230       3,629,567
Mastercard Inc. (Class A) 15,243       2,552,898
Paychex, Inc. 68,965       1,770,332
Western Union Company 137,733       1,731,304
          11,051,456
 
LEISURE EQUIPMENT          
     AND PRODUCTS 0.4%          
Hasbro, Inc. 62,061       1,555,869
Mattel, Inc. 120,930       1,394,323
          2,950,192
 
MACHINERY 0.8%          
Cummins, Inc. 36,900       939,105
Dover Corporation 32,990       870,276
Illinois Tool Works Inc. 67,069       2,069,079
Ingersoll-Rand Company Ltd.          
     (Class A) 108,637       1,499,191
          5,377,651
 
MEDIA 2.0%          
CBS Corp. (Class B) 202,002       775,688
Comcast Corporation (Class A) 803,105       10,954,352
DIRECTV Group Inc.* 82,626       1,883,047
Gannett Co., Inc. 234,802       516,564
          14,129,651
 
METALS AND MINING 0.7%          
Alcoa Inc. 60,562       444,525
Freeport-McMoRan Copper &          
     Gold, Inc. 28,588       1,089,489
Nucor Corporation 75,837       2,894,698
United States Steel Corporation 30,531       645,120
          5,073,832
 
MULTI-UTILITIES 0.1%          
PG&E Corporation 26,013       994,217
 
MULTILINE RETAIL 0.5%          
Family Dollar Stores Inc. 71,498       2,385,888
Kohl’s Corporation* 27,584       1,167,355
          3,553,243
           
OFFICE ELECTRONICS 0.1%          
Xerox Corporation 123,011       559,700
 
OIL, GAS AND          
     CONSUMABLE FUELS 13.6%          
Apache Corporation 63,178       4,049,078
Chesapeake Energy Corporation 98,597       1,682,065
Chevron Corporation 631,656       42,472,549
ConocoPhillips Company 257,806       10,095,683
CONSOL Energy Inc. 27,241       687,563
EOG Resources, Inc. 46,999       2,573,665
Exxon Mobil Corporation 99,497       6,775,746
Hess Corporation 53,467       2,897,911
Marathon Oil Corporation 160,201       4,211,684
Murphy Oil Corporation 34,239       1,532,880
Noble Energy, Inc. 33,557       1,808,051
Occidental Petroleum          
     Corporation
183,689       10,222,293
Peabody Energy Corporation 52,438       1,313,048
Southwestern Energy Company* 77,135       2,290,138
Spectra Energy Corporation 164,959       2,332,520
Sunoco, Inc. 24,149       639,466
Valero Energy Corporation 109,961       1,968,302
          97,552,642
 
PHARMACEUTICALS 13.2%          
Abbott Laboratories 36,220       1,727,694
Eli Lilly & Company 102,782       3,433,947
Forest Laboratories, Inc.* 114,465       2,513,651
Johnson & Johnson 671,478       35,319,743
King Pharmaceuticals, Inc. 191,692       1,355,262
Merck & Co. Inc. 234,337       6,268,515
Pfizer Inc. 2,293,822       31,241,856
Schering-Plough Corporation 352,988       8,312,867
Wyeth 112,068       4,823,407
          94,996,942
 
REAL ESTATE          
     INVESTMENT TRUSTS 0.4%          
Equity Residential 71,249       1,307,419
Public Storage 24,038       1,328,099
          2,635,518
           
ROAD AND RAIL 2.6%          
Burlington Northern Santa Fe          
     Corporation 58,604       3,525,031
CSX Corporation 118,556       3,064,673
Norfolk Southern Corporation 179,084       6,044,085
Union Pacific Corporation 154,292       6,342,944
          18,976,733
 
SEMICONDUCTORS AND          
     SEMICONDUCTOR          
     EQUIPMENT 2.7%          
Altera Corporation 130,779       2,295,171
Intel Corporation 743,067       11,183,158
Linear Technology Corporation 81,841       1,880,706
MEMC Electronic          
     Materials, Inc.* 75,552       1,245,852
Microchip Technology          
     Incorporated 48,510       1,027,927
Xilinx, Inc. 83,265       1,595,357
          19,228,171
 
SOFTWARE 3.6%          
BMC Software Inc.* 17,722       584,826
Intuit Inc. 30,777       830,979
Macrovision Solutions          
     Corporation* 1,189,153       21,155,032
Symantec Corporation* 214,023       3,197,504
          25,768,341
 
SPECIALTY RETAIL 4.9%          
Abercrombie & Fitch Co.          
     (Class A) 42,922       1,021,544
AutoZone, Inc. 8,613       1,400,646
Bed Bath & Beyond Inc.* 79,348       1,963,863
Gap, Inc. 83,665       1,086,808
Home Depot, Inc. 1,028,999       24,243,216
Lowe’s Companies, Inc. 223,008       4,069,896
Sherwin-Williams Company 32,719       1,700,406
          35,486,379
 
TEXTILES, APPAREL AND          
     LUXURY GOODS 0.6%          
Coach, Inc.* 105,340       1,759,178
NIKE, Inc. 35,317       1,656,014
VF Corporation 19,467       1,111,760
          4,526,952
           
Altria Group, Inc. 446,561
 
    7,153,907
 
TRADING COMPANIES AND      
     DISTRIBUTORS 0.2%          
W.W. Grainger Inc. 14,908       1,046,243
 
 
WIRELESS          
     TELECOMMUNICATION          
     SERVICES 0.5%          
Sprint Nextel Corporation* 933,158       3,331,374
TOTAL COMMON STOCKS         705,442,978
 
 
LIMITED          
   PARTNERSHIP          
WCAS Capital          
     Partners II, L.P. $4,292,803       1,893,126
 
 
SHORT-TERM          
   HOLDINGS 1.5%          
 
EQUITY-LINKED NOTES†† 0.4%      
Lehman Brothers:          
     53.51%, 9/14/2008 (a)** 14,844,000       1,188,292
     39.5%, 10/2/2008 (b)** 14,844,000       1,471,337
TOTAL EQUITY LINKED          
     NOTES         2,659,629
 
MONEY MARKET FUND 1.1%      
SSgA U.S. Treasury Money          
     Market Fund 8,263,970
  shs.
    8,263,970
TOTAL SHORT-TERM          
     HOLDINGS         10,923,599
 
TOTAL          
     INVESTMENTS 100.0%         718,259,703
 
OTHER ASSETS LESS          
     LIABILITIES 0.0%         314,096
 
NET INVESTMENT          
     ASSETS 100.0%       $ 718,573,799

 

At March 31, 2009, the cost of investments for federal income tax purposes was $1,005,874,401. The tax basis gross unrealized appreciation and depreciation of portfolio securities were $14,633,206 and $302,247,904, respectively. Net unrealized depreciation was $287,614,698.
   
*     

Non-income producing security.

   
**     

Security in default and non-income producing.

 
At March 31, 2009, Tri-Continental Corporation owned one limited partnership investment that was purchased through a private offering and cannot be sold without prior registration under the Securities Act of 1933 or pursuant to an exemption therefrom. The investment is valued at fair value as determined in accordance with procedures approved by the Board of Directors of the Corporation. The acquisition dates of investment in the limited partnership, along with the cost and value at March 31, 2009, was as follows:
   
        Investment            Acquisition Dates       Cost       Value
  WCAS Capital Partners II, L.P.   12/11/90 to 3/24/98   $4,292,803   $1,893,126
   
     The security may be offered and sold only to a “qualified institutional buyer” under Rule 144A of the Securities Act of 1933. These notes are exchangeable at maturity, based on the terms of the respective notes, for shares of common stock of a company or cash at a maturity value which is generally determined as follows: The principal amount of the notes plus or minus the lowest return of the companies’ respective stock prices determined at maturity from the date of purchase of the notes:

(a) Delta Air Lines, Inc., Intel Corporation and Mylan Inc.

(b) Health Net, Inc., Kohl's Corporation and Prudential Financial, Inc.
   
ADR — American Depositary Receipts.
 

Security Valuation — Securities traded on an exchange are valued at the last sales price on the primary exchange or market on which they are traded. Securities not listed on an exchange or security market, or securities for which there is no last sales price, are valued at the mean of the most recent bid and asked prices or are valued by RiverSource Investments, LLC (“RiverSource” or the “Manager”) based on quotations provided by primary market makers in such securities. Securities for which market quotations are not readily available (or are otherwise no longer valid or reliable) are valued at fair value determined in accordance with procedures approved by the Board of Directors. This can occur in the event of, among other things, natural disasters, acts of terrorism, market disruptions, intra-day trading halts, and extreme market volatility. The determination of fair value involves subjective judgments. As a result, using fair value to price a security may result in a price materially different from the prices used by other investment companies to determine net asset value or the price that may be realized upon the actual sale of the security. Short-term holdings maturing in 60 days or less are valued at current market quotations or amortized cost if the Manager believes it approximates fair value. Short-term holdings that mature in more than 60 days are valued at current market quotations until the 60th day prior to maturity and are then valued as described above for securities maturing in 60 days or less. Investments in money market funds are valued at net asset value.

Fair Value Measurements — Statement of Financial Accounting Standards No. 157 (“SFAS 157”), “Fair Value Measurements,” establishes a three-tier hierarchy to classify the assumptions, referred to as inputs, used in valuation techniques (see Security Valuation above) to measure fair value of the Corporation’s investments and other financial instruments. These inputs are summarized in three broad levels: Level 1 – quoted prices in active markets for identical investments or financial instruments; Level 2 – other significant observable inputs (including quoted prices in inactive markets or for similar investments or financial instruments); and Level 3 – significant unobservable inputs (including the Corporation’s own assumptions in determining fair value). Observable inputs are those based on market data obtained from sources independent of the Corporation, and unobservable inputs reflect the Corporation’s own assumptions based on the best information available. The inputs or methodology used for valuing securities may not be an indication of the risk associated with investing in those securities.

The following is a summary of the value of the Corporation’s investments and other financial instruments as of March 31, 2009, based on the level of inputs used:

           
Other Financial
    Valuation Inputs                    
Investments
           
Instruments*
Level 1
 — 
Quoted Prices in Active Markets for              
 
Identical Investments   $713,706,948    
$
 
Level 2
Other Significant Observable Inputs   2,659,629       (62,833
)
Level 3
Significant Unobservable Inputs   1,893,126        
    Total   $718,259,703    
$
(62,833
)

*     

Represents futures, which are not reflected in the Portfolio of Investments and which are valued at the net unrealized appreciation (depreciation) on futures.

As required by SFAS 157, the following is a reconciliation of investments for which significant unobservable inputs (Level 3) were used to determine the fair value of investments classified as Level 3 at either the beginning or end of the period:

Balance as of December 31, 2008
$
1,893,126
Net change in unrealized depreciation  
Balance as of March 31, 2009
$
1,893,126
Net change in unrealized depreciation from    
     investments still held as of March 31, 2009 $

Risk — To the extent that the Corporation invests a substantial percentage of its assets in an industry, the Corporation’s performance may be negatively affected if that industry falls out of favor. Stocks of large-capitalization companies have at times experienced periods of volatility and negative performance. During such periods, the value of such stocks may decline and the Corporation’s performance may be negatively affected.

 


ITEM 2. CONTROLS AND PROCEDURES.

      a.     

The registrant's principal executive officer and principal financial officer have concluded, based upon their evaluation of the registrant's disclosure controls and procedures as conducted within 90 days of the filing date of this report, that these disclosure controls and procedures provide reasonable assurance that material information required to be disclosed by the registrant in the report it files or submits on Form N-Q is recorded, processed, summarized and reported, within the time periods specified in the Commission's rules and forms and that such material information is accumulated and communicated to the registrant's management, including its principal executive officer and principal financial officer, as appropriate, in order to allow timely decisions regarding required disclosure.

 
  b.     

The registrant’s principal executive officer and principal financial officer are aware of no changes in the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting that occurred during the registrant’s last fiscal quarter that has materially affected, or is reasonably likely to materially affect, the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting.

ITEM 3. EXHIBITS.

      (a)     

Certifications of principal executive officer and principal financial officer as required by Rule 30a-2(a) under the Investment Company Act of 1940.

 

SIGNATURES

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and the Investment Company Act of 1940, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized.

TRI-CONTINENTAL CORPORATION

By: /S/ PATRICK T. BANNIGAN
  Patrick T. Bannigan
  President and Chief Executive Officer
 
Date:      May 26, 2009

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and the Investment Company Act of 1940, this report has been signed below by the following persons on behalf of the registrant in the capacities and on the dates indicated.

By: /S/ PATRICK T. BANNIGAN
  Patrick T. Bannigan
  President and Chief Executive Officer
 
Date:      May 26, 2009
 
 
 
By: /S/ LAWRENCE P. VOGEL
  Lawrence P. Vogel
  Treasurer and Chief Financial Officer
 
Date: May 26, 2009

 



TRI-CONTINENTAL CORPORATION

EXHIBIT INDEX

(a)     

Certifications of principal executive officer and principal financial officer as required by Rule 30a-2(a) under the Investment Company Act of 1940.