BLACKROCK HEALTH SCIENCES TRUST

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: 811-21702

Name of Fund:    BlackRock Health Sciences Trust (BME)

Fund Address:    100 Bellevue Parkway, Wilmington, DE 19809

Name and address of agent for service: John M. Perlowski, Chief Executive Officer, BlackRock Health Sciences Trust, 55 East 52nd Street, New York, NY 10055

Registrant’s telephone number, including area code: (800) 882-0052, Option 4

Date of fiscal year end: 10/31/2014

Date of reporting period: 01/31/2014

Item 1 – Schedule of Investments

Schedule of Investments January 31, 2014 (Unaudited)      BlackRock Health Sciences Trust (BME)   
     (Percentages shown are based on Net Assets)   

 

Common Stocks    Shares      Value  

Biotechnology — 31.6%

      

ACADIA Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (a)(b)

      31,795       $ 740,824   

Acceleron Pharma, Inc. (a)

      9,000         417,150   

Acorda Therapeutics, Inc. (a)(b)

      40,600         1,191,610   

Actelion Ltd.

      19,100         1,794,871   

Aegerion Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (a)

      18,400         1,103,632   

Agios Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (a)

      5,400         142,830   

Alexion Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (a)(b)

      44,560         7,073,009   

Alkermes PLC (a)(b)

      72,800         3,543,904   

Amgen, Inc. (b)

      46,700         5,554,965   

Array BioPharma, Inc. (a)

      88,100         423,761   

Biogen Idec, Inc. (a)(b)

      33,700         10,535,968   

BioMarin Pharmaceutical, Inc. (a)(b)

      51,700         3,561,096   

Biota Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (a)

      38,100         190,881   

Bluebird Bio, Inc. (a)

      9,300         206,181   

Celgene Corp. (a)(b)

      62,543         9,502,158   

Conatus Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (a)

      8,700         91,959   

Dicerna Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (a)

      5,100         209,712   

Epizyme, Inc. (a)

      11,600         352,640   

Exelixis, Inc. (a)(b)

      34,600         238,048   

Gilead Sciences, Inc. (a)(b)

      142,221         11,470,120   

Incyte Corp. Ltd. (a)(b)

      56,900         3,728,088   

Infinity Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (a)

      52,700         677,195   

Intra-Cellular Therapies, Inc. (a)

      27,500         533,500   

Intra-Cellular Therapies, Inc.
(Acquired 10/18/13, Cost $245,733) (c)

      38,681         750,411   

Isis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (a)(b)

      42,900         2,190,474   

Karyopharm Therapeutics, Inc. (a)

      23,957         836,339   

MacroGenics, Inc. (a)

      5,300         210,993   

Medivation, Inc. (a)(b)

      30,000         2,388,000   

Momenta Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (a)(b)

      27,200         486,880   

Neurocrine Biosciences, Inc. (a)

      60,062         1,026,460   

Protalix BioTherapeutics, Inc. (a)

      122,100         518,925   

PTC Therapeutics, Inc. (a)

      4,800         125,136   

Puma Biotechnology, Inc. (a)(b)

      12,800         1,513,088   

Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (a)(b)

      12,658         3,652,972   

Seattle Genetics, Inc. (a)(b)

      74,367         3,336,104   

Synageva BioPharma Corp. (a)(b)

      7,903         715,854   

Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical, Inc. (a)

      7,600         321,100   

Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical, Inc.
(Acquired 12/18/12, Cost $384,116) (c)

      44,249         1,776,063   

Verastem, Inc. (a)

      21,800         273,808   

Vertex Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (a)(b)

      44,205         3,493,963   
     

 

 

  
                86,900,672   

Chemicals — 0.5%

      

Sigma-Aldrich Corp.

      14,400         1,338,768   

Diversified Consumer Services — 0.6%

      

Service Corp. International

      86,100         1,523,970   

Health Care Equipment & Supplies — 16.4%

      

Abbott Laboratories (b)

      101,500         3,720,990   

Alere, Inc. (a)

      35,100         1,330,290   

AtriCure, Inc. (a)

      25,262         517,871   
Common Stocks    Shares      Value  

Health Care Equipment & Supplies (concluded)

      

Baxter International, Inc. (b)

      18,700       $ 1,277,210   

Becton Dickinson and Co. (b)

      18,800         2,032,656   

Boston Scientific Corp. (a)(b)

      371,500         5,026,395   

CareFusion Corp. (a)(b)

      54,900         2,238,273   

Coloplast A/S, Class B

      24,600         1,845,756   

The Cooper Cos., Inc. (b)

      11,000         1,367,080   

Covidien PLC (b)

      82,400         5,622,976   

DENTSPLY International, Inc. (b)

      22,400         1,033,536   

Edwards Lifesciences Corp. (a)

      27,300         1,777,776   

Medtronic, Inc. (b)

      58,800         3,325,728   

PW Medtech Group Ltd. (a)

      928,400         402,987   

St. Jude Medical, Inc.

      54,500         3,309,785   

Stryker Corp. (b)

      77,500         6,014,000   

Varian Medical Systems, Inc. (a)

      28,600         2,325,466   

Zimmer Holdings, Inc. (b)

      20,900         1,963,973   
     

 

 

  
                45,132,748   

Health Care Providers & Services — 11.8%

      

Aetna, Inc. (b)

      31,911         2,180,479   

AmerisourceBergen Corp. (b)

      9,900         665,478   

Cardinal Health, Inc. (b)

      50,130         3,409,843   

Cigna Corp. (b)

      28,900         2,494,359   

Envision Healthcare Holdings, Inc. (a)

      38,100         1,259,586   

Express Scripts Holding Co. (a)(b)

      20,576         1,536,821   

HCA Holdings, Inc. (a)(b)

      74,800         3,760,196   

Humana, Inc. (b)

      8,200         797,860   

McKesson Corp. (b)

      20,600         3,592,846   

Phoenix Healthcare Group Co. (a)

      50,500         83,388   

Premier, Inc., Class A (a)

      30,800         1,068,452   

Team Health Holdings, Inc. (a)(b)

      28,600         1,234,376   

UnitedHealth Group, Inc. (b)

      78,134         5,647,526   

Universal Health Services, Inc., Class B (b)

      39,600         3,247,992   

WellPoint, Inc. (b)

      16,200         1,393,200   
     

 

 

  
                32,372,402   

Health Care Technology — 0.7%

      

Cerner Corp. (a)(b)

      35,000         1,991,150   

Life Sciences Tools & Services — 5.5%

      

Agilent Technologies, Inc. (b)

      56,200         3,268,030   

Charles River Laboratories International, Inc. (a)

      36,100         2,040,733   

ICON PLC (a)

      23,000         966,230   

Illumina, Inc. (a)(b)

      32,900         5,000,800   

Life Technologies Corp. (a)

      5,200         395,564   

Thermo Fisher Scientific, Inc. (b)

      29,700         3,419,658   
     

 

 

  
                15,091,015   

Pharmaceuticals — 32.3%

      

AbbVie, Inc. (b)

      162,984         8,023,702   

Actavis PLC (a)(b)

      15,400         2,910,292   

Allergan, Inc. (b)

      16,300         1,867,980   

AstraZeneca PLC

      21,200         1,344,380   

Bayer AG

      55,500         7,304,170   

Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. (b)

      90,400         4,517,288   
 
Portfolio Abbreviations        
To simplify the listings of portfolio holdings in the Schedule of Investments, the names and descriptions of many of the securities have been abbreviated according to the following list:  

ADR     American Depositary Receipt

CHF     Swiss Franc

DKK     Danish Krone

EUR     Euro

  

GBP     British Pound

JPY      Japanese Yen

USD     US Dollar

 

 

          JANUARY 31, 2014    1

Schedule of Investments (continued)      BlackRock Health Sciences Trust (BME)   
     (Percentages shown are based on Net Assets)   

 

Common Stocks    Shares      Value  

Pharmaceuticals (concluded)

      

Chugai Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd.

      54,800       $ 1,243,126   

Eli Lilly & Co. (b)

      52,000         2,808,520   

Forest Laboratories, Inc. (a)(b)

      39,500         2,618,850   

Johnson & Johnson (b)

      114,670         10,144,855   

Mallinckrodt PLC (a)

      40,200         2,324,766   

Merck & Co., Inc. (b)

      116,500         6,171,005   

Mylan, Inc. (a)(b)

      69,200         3,142,372   

Novartis AG

      87,800         6,939,787   

Perrigo Co. PLC (b)

      26,300         4,093,858   

Pfizer, Inc. (b)

      291,000         8,846,400   

Roche Holding AG

      23,800         6,529,904   

Shire PLC — ADR (b)

      19,100         2,857,742   

Valeant Pharmaceuticals International, Inc. (a)(b)

      30,800         4,177,712   

Zoetis, Inc.

      26,900         816,684   
     

 

 

  
                88,683,393   

Total Long-Term Investments

(Cost — $200,613,218) — 99.4%

               273,034,118   
     
                  
Short-Term Securities    Shares      Value  

BlackRock Liquidity Funds, TempFund, Institutional Class, 0.03% (d)(e)

      3,884,083       $ 3,884,083   

Total Short-Term Securities

(Cost — $3,884,083) — 1.4%

               3,884,083   
     

Total Investments Before Options Written

(Cost — $204,497,301*) — 100.8%

            276,918,201  
     
Options Written                

(Premiums Received — $2,311,415) — (1.1)%

               (2,954,971 ) 

Total Investments Net of Options Written — 99.7%

         273,963,230   

Other Assets Less Liabilities — 0.3%

         820,197   
     

 

 

  

Net Assets — 100.0%

       $ 274,783,427   
     

 

 

  
 
Notes to Schedule of Investments

 

* As of January 31, 2014, gross unrealized appreciation and gross unrealized depreciation based on cost for federal income tax purposes were as follows:

 

Tax cost

    $ 207,049,081   
  

 

 

  

Gross unrealized appreciation

    $ 71,232,048   

Gross unrealized depreciation

      (1,362,928 ) 
  

 

 

  

Net unrealized appreciation

    $ 69,869,120   
  

 

 

  

 

(a) Non-income producing security.

 

(b) All or a portion of security has been pledged/segregated as collateral in connection with outstanding options written.

 

(c) Restricted security as to resale. As of January 31, 2014 the Trust held 0.9% of its net assets, with current market value of $2,526,474 and the original cost of $629,849, in these securities.

 

(d) Represents the current yield as of report date.

 

(e) Investments in issuers considered to be an affiliate of the Trust during the period ended January 31, 2014, for purposes of Section 2(a)(3) of the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended, were as follows:

 

Affiliate   

Shares Held at

October 31, 2013

     

Net

Activity

     

Shares Held at

January 31, 2014

      Income  

BlackRock Liquidity Funds, TempFund, Institutional Class

      1,144,662         2,739,421         3,884,083       $ 146   

 

Ÿ  

For Trust compliance purposes, the Trust’s industry classifications refer to any one or more of the industry sub-classifications used by one or more widely recognized market indexes or ratings group indexes, and/or as defined by the investment advisor. These definitions may not apply for purposes of this report, which may combine industry sub-classifications for reporting ease.

 

Ÿ  

Exchange-traded options written as of January 31, 2014 were as follows:

 

Description    Put/
Call		     

Strike

Price

     

Expiration

Date

      Contracts     

Market

Value

  

Aetna, Inc.

      Call         USD         71.00         2/07/14         112       $ (4,368 ) 

Amgen, Inc.

      Call         USD         117.00         2/07/14         200         (58,100 ) 

Gilead Sciences, Inc.

      Call         USD         84.00         2/07/14         85         (9,732 ) 

Medtronic, Inc.

      Call         USD         60.00         2/07/14         250         (500 ) 

Pfizer, Inc.

      Call         USD         31.50         2/14/14         149         (1,192 ) 

AmerisourceBergen Corp.

      Call         USD         72.60         2/22/14         69         (304 ) 

 

 

2         JANUARY 31, 2014     

Schedule of Investments (continued)      BlackRock Health Sciences Trust (BME)   

 

Ÿ  

Exchange-traded options written as of January 31, 2014 were as follows: (continued)

 

Description    Put/
Call		     

Strike

Price

     

Expiration

Date

      Contracts     

Market

Value

  

Abbott Laboratories

      Call         USD         39.00         2/24/14         17       $ (102 ) 

Abbott Laboratories

      Call         USD         40.00         2/24/14         338         (507 ) 

AbbVie, Inc.

      Call         USD         52.50         2/24/14         120         (3,300 ) 

AbbVie, Inc.

      Call         USD         55.00         2/24/14         570         (4,275 ) 

Acorda Therapeutics, Inc.

      Call         USD         30.00         2/24/14         142         (14,910 ) 

Actavis PLC

      Call         USD         170.00         2/24/14         56         (114,520 ) 

Agilent Technologies, Inc.

      Call         USD         62.50         2/24/14         196         (9,016 ) 

Alexion Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

      Call         USD         140.00         2/24/14         138         (270,480 ) 

Alkermes PLC

      Call         USD         49.00         2/24/14         254         (57,785 ) 

Biogen Idec, Inc.

      Call         USD         295.00         2/24/14         107         (228,445 ) 

BioMarin Pharmaceutical, Inc.

      Call         USD         75.00         2/24/14         184         (16,560 ) 

Boston Scientific Corp.

      Call         USD         13.00         2/24/14         44         (3,432 ) 

Bristol-Myers Squibb Co.

      Call         USD         55.00         2/24/14         344         (3,440 ) 

Cardinal Health, Inc.

      Call         USD         70.00         2/24/14         23         (1,208 ) 

CareFusion Corp.

      Call         USD         41.00         2/24/14         200         (31,500 ) 

Celgene Corp.

      Call         USD         170.00         2/24/14         218         (8,611 ) 

Cerner Corp.

      Call         USD         55.00         2/24/14         65         (20,150 ) 

Cerner Corp.

      Call         USD         60.00         2/24/14         65         (5,525 ) 

Cigna Corp.

      Call         USD         90.00         2/24/14         101         (8,232 ) 

The Cooper Cos., Inc.

      Call         USD         125.00         2/24/14         95         (20,188 ) 

Covidien PLC

      Call         USD         70.00         2/24/14         130         (6,175 ) 

DENTSPLY International, Inc.

      Call         USD         50.00         2/24/14         78         (1,170 ) 

Exelixis, Inc.

      Call         USD         9.00         2/24/14         220         (3,300 ) 

Express Scripts Holding Co.

      Call         USD         70.00         2/24/14         74         (39,590 ) 

Gilead Sciences, Inc.

      Call         USD         75.00         2/24/14         414         (284,621 ) 

HCA Holdings, Inc.

      Call         USD         50.00         2/24/14         260         (45,500 ) 

Humana, Inc.

      Call         USD         105.00         2/24/14         50         (3,375 ) 

Illumina, Inc.

      Call         USD         150.00         2/24/14         120         (81,600 ) 

Incyte Corp. Ltd.

      Call         USD         55.00         2/24/14         60         (70,500 ) 

Incyte Corp. Ltd.

      Call         USD         67.50         2/24/14         150         (51,750 ) 

Isis Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

      Call         USD         50.00         2/24/14         150         (61,500 ) 

Johnson & Johnson

      Call         USD         95.00         2/24/14         200         (1,200 ) 

McKesson Corp.

      Call         USD         165.00         2/24/14         95         (96,425 ) 

Medivation, Inc.

      Call         USD         75.00         2/24/14         100         (63,500 ) 

Medtronic, Inc.

      Call         USD         57.50         2/24/14         54         (3,834 ) 

Merck & Co., Inc.

      Call         USD         50.00         2/24/14         65         (20,962 ) 

Momenta Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

      Call         USD         20.00         2/24/14         95         (5,463 ) 

Mylan, Inc.

      Call         USD         47.00         2/24/14         250         (14,500 ) 

Perrigo Co. PLC

      Call         USD         160.00         2/24/14         100         (29,000 ) 

Pfizer, Inc.

      Call         USD         32.00         2/24/14         498         (3,486 ) 

Puma Biotechnology, Inc.

      Call         USD         120.00         2/24/14         45         (29,700 ) 

Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

      Call         USD         310.00         2/24/14         45         (22,950 ) 

Seattle Genetics, Inc.

      Call         USD         45.00         2/24/14         308         (72,380 ) 

Shire PLC - ADR

      Call         USD         155.00         2/24/14         66         (14,850 ) 

Synageva BioPharma Corp.

      Call         USD         70.00         2/24/14         27         (59,535 ) 

UnitedHealth Group, Inc.

      Call         USD         75.00         2/24/14         32         (1,648 ) 

Valeant Pharmaceuticals International, Inc.

      Call         USD         120.00         2/24/14         44         (75,020 ) 

Valeant Pharmaceuticals International, Inc.

      Call         USD         145.00         2/24/14         63         (12,285 ) 

Zimmer Holdings, Inc.

      Call         USD         100.00         2/24/14         25         (438 ) 

Baxter International, Inc.

      Call         USD         70.00         2/28/14         65         (3,250 ) 

Team Health Holdings, Inc.

      Call         USD         48.00         2/28/14         100         (912 ) 

 

 

          JANUARY 31, 2014    3

Schedule of Investments (continued)      BlackRock Health Sciences Trust (BME)   

 

Ÿ  

Exchange-Traded options written as of January 31, 2014 were as follows: (concluded)

 

Description    Put/
Call		     

Strike

Price

     

Expiration

Date

      Contracts     

Market

Value

  

UnitedHealth Group, Inc.

      Call         USD         73.50         2/28/14         241       $ (30,125 ) 

Vertex Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

      Call         USD         82.00         2/28/14         50         (13,125 ) 

Universal Health Services, Inc., Class B

      Call         USD         86.00         3/04/14         139         (9,816 ) 

ACADIA Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

      Call         USD         29.00         3/24/14         111         (8,603 ) 

Allergan, Inc.

      Call         USD         125.00         3/24/14         57         (10,545 ) 

Becton Dickinson and Co.

      Call         USD         115.00         3/24/14         45         (2,700 ) 

Cardinal Health, Inc.

      Call         USD         70.00         3/24/14         152         (16,340 ) 

Covidien PLC

      Call         USD         70.00         3/24/14         150         (15,000 ) 

Eli Lilly & Co.

      Call         USD         55.00         3/24/14         49         (4,116 ) 

Eli Lilly & Co.

      Call         USD         57.50         3/24/14         83         (2,241 ) 

Forest Laboratories, Inc.

      Call         USD         72.50         3/24/14         138         (13,110 ) 

Merck & Co., Inc.

      Call         USD         52.50         3/24/14         300         (48,300 ) 

Pfizer, Inc.

      Call         USD         32.00         3/24/14         149         (2,980 ) 

Stryker Corp.

      Call         USD         80.00         3/24/14         270         (28,350 ) 

Thermo Fisher Scientific, Inc.

      Call         USD         120.00         3/24/14         103         (17,253 ) 

WellPoint, Inc.

      Call         USD         90.00         3/24/14         55         (7,150 ) 

Boston Scientific Corp.

      Call         USD         14.00         5/19/14         400         (31,000 ) 

Intercept Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

      Put         USD         340.00         2/24/14         20         (100,200 ) 

Total

                   $ (2,437,755 ) 
                 

 

 

  

 

Ÿ  

Over-the-counter options written as of January 31, 2014 were as follows:

 

Description    Counterparty    Put/
Call		     

Strike

Price

     

Expiration

Date

      Contracts      Market
Value		  

Eli Lilly & Co.

    UBS AG      Call         USD         50.13         2/04/14         5,000       $ (19,403 ) 

Pfizer, Inc.

    Morgan Stanley & Co. International PLC      Call         USD         30.48         2/04/14         13,900         (1,627 ) 

Vertex Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

    Citibank N.A.      Call         USD         66.53         2/04/14         10,700         (133,919 ) 

Roche Holding AG

    Deutsche Bank AG      Call         CHF         246.98         2/05/14         10,800         (36,766 ) 

AstraZeneca PLC

    Credit Suisse International      Call         GBP         36.26         2/07/14         7,700         (29,579 ) 

Zimmer Holdings, Inc.

    Citibank N.A.      Call         USD         92.33         2/07/14         5,000         (9,677 ) 

Zoetis, Inc.

    Citibank N.A.      Call         USD         32.24         2/07/14         9,400         (81 ) 

Boston Scientific Corp.

    Barclays Bank PLC      Call         USD         12.44         2/10/14         38,500         (44,891 ) 

Varian Medical Systems, Inc.

    Goldman Sachs International      Call         USD         83.52         2/26/14         10,000         (9,079 ) 

Charles River Laboratories International, Inc.

    Deutsche Bank AG      Call         USD         58.45         2/27/14         8,500         (7,511 ) 

St. Jude Medical, Inc.

    Bank of America N.A.      Call         USD         67.48         3/03/14         17,800         (1,589 ) 

Chugai Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd.

    Goldman Sachs International      Call         JPY         2,347.97         3/05/14         19,100         (10,759 ) 

Bayer AG

    Credit Suisse International      Call         EUR         103.63         3/07/14         18,500         (22,569 ) 

Coloplast A/S, Class B

    Goldman Sachs International      Call         DKK         387.43         3/07/14         8,600         (49,367 ) 

Mallinckrodt PLC

    Morgan Stanley & Co. International PLC      Call         USD         52.99         3/07/14         14,000         (73,871 ) 

Novartis AG

    Morgan Stanley & Co. International PLC      Call         CHF         74.59         3/07/14         31,100         (4,534 ) 

Actelion Ltd.

    Credit Suisse International      Call         CHF         86.68         3/13/14         6,600         (20,199 ) 

Boston Scientific Corp.

    Barclays Bank PLC      Call         USD         13.26         3/14/14         50,000         (40,016 ) 

Johnson & Johnson

    Morgan Stanley & Co. International PLC      Call         USD         91.83         3/27/14         3,000         (1,779 ) 

Total

                      $ (517,216 ) 
                    

 

 

  

 

 

4         JANUARY 31, 2014     

Schedule of Investments (continued)      BlackRock Health Sciences Trust (BME)   

 

Ÿ  

Fair Value Measurements — Various inputs are used in determining the fair value of investments and derivative financial instruments. These inputs to valuation techniques are categorized into a disclosure hierarchy consisting of three broad levels for financial reporting purposes as follows:

 

  Ÿ  

Level 1 — unadjusted price quotations in active markets/exchanges for identical assets or liabilities that the Trust has the ability to access

 

  Ÿ  

Level 2 — other observable inputs (including, but not limited to, quoted prices for similar assets or liabilities in markets that are active, quoted prices for identical or similar assets or liabilities in markets that are not active, inputs other than quoted prices that are observable for the assets or liabilities (such as interest rates, yield curves, volatilities, prepayment speeds, loss severities, credit risks and default rates) or other market-corroborated inputs)

 

  Ÿ  

Level 3 — unobservable inputs based on the best information available in the circumstances, to the extent observable inputs are not available (including the Trust’s own assumptions used in determining the fair value of investments and derivative financial instruments)

The hierarchy gives the highest priority to unadjusted quoted prices in active markets for identical assets or liabilities (Level 1 measurements) and the lowest priority to unobservable inputs (Level 3 measurements). Accordingly, the degree of judgment exercised in determining fair value is greatest for instruments categorized in Level 3. The inputs used to measure fair value may fall into different levels of the fair value hierarchy. In such cases, for disclosure purposes, the fair value hierarchy classification is determined based on the lowest level input that is significant to the fair value measurement in its entirety.

Changes in valuation techniques may result in transfers into or out of an assigned level within the disclosure hierarchy. In accordance with the Trust’s policy, transfers between different levels of the fair value disclosure hierarchy are deemed to have occurred as of the beginning of the reporting period. The categorization of a value determined for investments and derivative financial instruments is based on the pricing transparency of the investment and derivative financial instrument and is not necessarily an indication of the risks associated with investing in those securities. For information about the Trust’s policy regarding valuation of investments and derivative financial instruments, please refer to the Trust’s most recent financial statements as contained in its annual report.

The following tables summarize the Trust’s investments and derivative financial instruments categorized in the disclosure hierarchy as of January 31, 2014:

 

      Level 1   Level 2   Level 3    Total

Assets:

                  

Investments:

                  

Long-Term Investments:

                  

Common Stocks:

                  

Biotechnology

      $ 84,374,198       $ 1,776,063       $ 750,411        $ 86,900,672  

Chemicals

        1,338,768         —         —          1,338,768  

Diversified Consumer Services

        1,523,970         —         —          1,523,970  

Health Care Equipment & Supplies

        45,132,748         —         —          45,132,748  

Health Care Providers & Services

        32,372,402         —         —          32,372,402  

Health Care Technology

        1,991,150         —         —          1,991,150  

Life Sciences Tools & Services

        15,091,015         —         —          15,091,015  

Pharmaceuticals

        65,322,026         23,361,367         —          88,683,393  

Short-Term Securities

        3,884,083         —         —          3,884,083  

Total

      $ 251,030,360       $ 25,137,430       $ 750,411        $ 276,918,201  
    

 

 

  
                 
      Level 1   Level 2   Level 3    Total

Derivative Financial Instruments1

                  

Liabilities:

                  

Equity contracts

      $ (2,426,725 )     $ (528,246 )       —        $ (2,954,971 )

1    Derivative financial instruments are options written, which are shown at value.

       

 

 

          JANUARY 31, 2014    5

Schedule of Investments (continued)      BlackRock Health Sciences Trust (BME)   

 

The carrying amount for certain of the Trust’s assets and/or liablities approximates fair value for financial reporting purposes. As of January 31, 2014, such assets and/or liabilities are categorized within th edisclosure hierarchy as follows:

 

   

      Level 1    Level 2   Level 3    Total

Assets:

                   

Foreign currency at value

      $ 1,338          —         —        $ 1,338  

Cash pledged as collateral for options written

        2,606,100          —         —          2,606,100  

Liabilities:

                   

Bank overdraft

        —        $ (9,157 )       —          (9,157 )

Total

      $ 2,607,438        $ (9,157 )       —        $ 2,598,281  
    

 

 

  

 

 

6         JANUARY 31, 2014     

Schedule of Investments (concluded)      BlackRock Health Sciences Trust (BME)   

 

The Trust’s investments that are categorized as Level 3 were valued utilizing third party pricing information without adjustment. Such valuations are based on unobservable inputs. A significant change in third party information inputs could result in a significantly lower or higher value of such Level 3 investments.

There were no transfers between Levels during the period ended January 31, 2014.

 

 

          JANUARY 31, 2014    7

Item 2 –   Controls and Procedures
2(a) –   The registrant’s principal executive and principal financial officers, or persons performing similar functions, have concluded that the registrant’s disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in Rule 30a-3(c) under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “1940 Act”)) are effective as of a date within 90 days of the filing of this report based on the evaluation of these controls and procedures required by Rule 30a-3(b) under the 1940 Act and Rule 13a-15(b) under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended.
2(b) –   There were no changes in the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting (as defined in Rule 30a-3(d) under the 1940 Act) that occurred during the registrant’s last fiscal quarter that have materially affected, or are reasonably likely to materially affect, the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting.
Item 3 –   Exhibits
  Certifications – Attached hereto
 

 

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.

 

BlackRock Health Sciences Trust
By:         /s/ John M. Perlowski
  John M. Perlowski
  Chief Executive Officer (principal executive officer) of
  BlackRock Health Sciences Trust
Date: March 25, 2014

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 and in the capacities and on the dates indicated.

By:         /s/ John M. Perlowski
  John M. Perlowski
  Chief Executive Officer (principal executive officer) of
  BlackRock Health Sciences Trust
Date: March 25, 2014

 

By:         /s/ Neal J. Andrews
  Neal J. Andrews
  Chief Financial Officer (principal financial officer) of
  BlackRock Health Sciences Trust
Date: March 25, 2014