UNITED STATES SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION Washington, D.C. 20549 FORM N-Q QUARTERLY SCHEDULE OF PORTFOLIO HOLDINGS OF REGISTERED MANAGEMENT INVESTMENT COMPANIES INVESTMENT COMPANY ACT FILE NUMBER: 811-21484 EXACT NAME OF REGISTRANT AS SPECIFIED IN CHARTER: Calamos Strategic Total Return Fund ADDRESS OF PRINCIPAL EXECUTIVE OFFICES: 1111 East Warrenville Road, Naperville, Illinois 60563 NAME AND ADDRESS OF AGENT FOR SERVICE: James S. Hamman, Jr., Secretary, Calamos Asset Management, Inc., 1111 East Warrenville Road, Naperville, Illinois 60563-1493 REGISTRANT'S TELEPHONE NUMBER, INCLUDING AREA CODE: (630) 245-7200 DATE OF FISCAL YEAR END: October 31, 2004 DATE OF REPORTING PERIOD: May 1, 2004 through July 31, 2004 ITEM 1. SCHEDULE OF INVESTMENTS JULY 31, 2004 (UNAUDITED) PRINCIPAL AMOUNT VALUE -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- CORPORATE BONDS (53.6%) CONSUMER DISCRETIONARY (14.9%) $ 4,678,000 Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. 8.000%, 03/15/14 $ 4,420,641 7,485,000 Aztar Corp.(a) 7.875%, 06/15/14 7,606,310 Beazer Homes USA, Inc.(c) 10,624,000 8.375%, 04/15/12 11,420,340 2,007,000 8.625%, 05/15/11 2,157,343 Boise Cascade Corp.(c) 12,088,000 7.350%, 02/01/16 13,784,476 1,871,000 7.000%, 11/01/13 2,105,067 758,000 9.450%, 11/01/09 926,488 4,678,000 Boyd Gaming Corp. 7.750%, 12/15/12 4,841,655 4,678,000 Cadmus Communications Corp.(a) 8.375%, 06/15/14 4,865,044 Charter Communications Holdings 12,163,000 10.000%, 04/01/09 9,638,869 10,338,000 9.625%, 11/15/09 7,908,738 9,356,000 11.125%, 01/15/11 7,461,294 7,952,000 GBP EMI Group, PLC 9.750%, 05/20/08 15,273,217 8,420,000 Hovnanian Enterprises, Inc.(c) 7.750%, 05/15/13 8,672,877 4,678,000 IMAX Corp.(a)(c) 9.625%, 12/01/10 4,397,252 Intrawest Corp. 8,888,000 7.500%, 10/15/13 8,888,062 3,742,000 10.500%, 02/01/10 4,060,441 7,119,000 Jarden Corp. 9.750%, 05/01/12 7,795,163 4,678,000 Kellwood Company 7.625%, 10/15/17 5,035,438 Mandalay Resort Group 20,157,000 10.250%, 08/01/07 22,626,445 6,081,000 7.625%, 07/15/13 6,134,517 12,163,000 Meritage Corp.(c) 7.000%, 05/01/14 11,736,920 5,614,000 NCL Holding, ASA(a) 10.625%, 07/15/14 5,732,800 4,678,000 Oxford Industries, Inc.(a) 8.875%, 06/01/11 5,005,382 Pinnacle Entertainment, Inc.(c) 8,420,000 8.250%, 03/15/12 8,125,560 4,814,000 8.750%, 10/01/13 4,813,587 9,370,000 Reader's Digest Association, Inc. 6.500%, 03/01/11 9,323,039 15,905,000 RH Donnelley Financial Corp.(c) 10.875%, 12/15/12 18,688,320 12,163,000 Royal Caribbean Cruises, Ltd. 7.250%, 03/15/18 12,040,985 7,952,000 Spanish Broadcasting System, Inc. 9.625%, 11/01/09 8,409,744 4,678,000 Speedway Motorsports, Inc.(a) 6.750%, 06/01/13 4,736,401 Standard Pacific Corp. 14,034,000 9.250%, 04/15/12 15,577,498 2,610,000 9.500%, 09/15/10 2,871,312 PRINCIPAL AMOUNT VALUE --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- $ 15,437,000 Steinway Musical Instruments, Inc. 8.750%, 04/15/11 $ 16,749,319 7,952,000 Stoneridge, Inc. 11.500%, 05/01/12 9,443,566 4,678,000 Vail Resorts, Inc. 6.750%, 02/15/14 4,654,538 Warner Music Group(a)(c) 17,308,000 7.375%, 04/15/14 16,615,998 2,339,000 GBP 8.125%, 04/15/14 4,029,990 ------------- 318,574,636 ------------- CONSUMER STAPLES (3.2%) 7,952,000 Central Garden & Pet Company 9.125%, 02/01/13 8,588,675 10,759,000 Del Monte Foods Company 8.625%, 12/15/12 11,781,360 Herbalife International, Inc. 9,356,000 11.750%, 07/15/10 10,642,285 7,485,000 9.500%, 04/01/11 7,858,918 11,227,000 Jean Coutu Group, Inc.(a) 8.500%, 08/01/14 11,184,924 5,614,000 Rayovac Corp. 8.500%, 10/01/13 5,964,357 Rite Aid Corp.(c) 4,912,000 11.250%, 07/01/08 5,452,124 3,742,000 6.875%, 08/15/13 3,442,955 3,508,000 9.250%, 06/01/13 3,692,639 ------------- 68,608,237 ------------- ENERGY (6.4%) Chesapeake Energy Corp.(c) 6,549,000 6.875%, 01/15/16 6,483,607 3,742,000 7.500%, 06/15/14(a) 3,957,527 3,742,000 Comstock Resources, Inc. 6.875%, 03/01/12 3,695,563 13,847,000 Giant Industries, Inc. 8.000%, 05/15/14 14,296,682 4,678,000 Houston Exploration Company 7.000%, 06/15/13 4,724,707 4,678,000 KCS Energy, Inc.(a) 7.125%, 04/01/12 4,701,317 936,000 Lone Star Technologies, Inc. 9.000%, 06/01/11 987,043 Overseas Shipholding Group, Inc. 7,485,000 7.500%, 02/15/24 6,923,333 1,871,000 8.750%, 12/01/13 2,011,509 9,356,000 Paramount Resources, Ltd. 7.875%, 11/01/10 9,075,179 Petrobras International Finance Company(c) 15,437,000 9.125%, 07/02/13 16,209,018 5,146,000 8.375%, 12/10/18 4,914,163 Premcor, Inc.(c) 7,485,000 7.750%, 02/01/12 7,989,900 6,549,000 7.500%, 06/15/15 6,942,044 10,596,000 Swift Energy Company 9.375%, 05/01/12 11,443,146 4,678,000 Tesoro Petroleum Corp.(c) 9.625%, 04/01/12 5,367,922 7,064,000 Whiting Petroleum Corp. 7.250%, 05/01/12 7,098,989 18,712,000 Williams Companies, Inc.(c) 8.125%, 03/15/12 20,536,101 ------------- 137,357,750 ------------- See accompanying Notes to Schedule of Investments CALAMOS STRATEGIC TOTAL RETURN FUND SCHEDULE OF INVESTMENTS JULY 31, 2004 (UNAUDITED) PRINCIPAL AMOUNT VALUE ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- FINANCIALS (1.9%) $ 14,034,000 Leucadia National Corp. 7.000%, 08/15/13 $ 13,823,275 14,969,000 LNR Property Corp. 7.625%, 07/15/13 15,044,214 9,824,000 Senior Housing Properties Trust 8.625%, 01/15/12 10,781,453 -------------- 39,648,942 -------------- HEALTH CARE (3.7%) 4,678,000 Alpharma, Inc.(a) 8.625%, 05/01/11 4,853,350 4,678,000 Ameripath, Inc. 10.500%, 04/01/13 4,771,486 3,415,000 Bausch & Lomb, Inc. 7.125%, 08/01/28 3,499,210 13,098,000 Beverly Enterprises, Inc.(a)(c) 7.875%, 06/15/14 13,229,179 5,146,000 Curative Health Services, Inc.(a) 10.750%, 05/01/11 4,682,605 5,614,000 Leiner Health Products Group, Inc.(a) 11.000%, 06/01/12 5,866,121 10,291,000 MedCath Corp.(a) 9.875%, 07/15/12 10,522,998 8,420,000 Psychiatric Solutions, Inc. 10.625%, 06/15/13 9,472,803 4,678,000 Quintiles Transnational Corp. 10.000%, 10/01/13 4,829,960 17,776,000 Service Corp. International(a) 6.750%, 04/01/16 16,865,098 -------------- 78,592,810 -------------- INDUSTRIALS (6.1%) 15,905,000 EUR AGCO Corp. 6.875%, 04/15/14 18,526,439 6,222,000 AMR Corp.(a) 7.250%, 02/05/09 5,879,453 2,807,000 Armor Holdings, Inc. 8.250%, 08/15/13 3,031,297 15,437,000 CNH Global, NV(a) 9.250%, 08/01/11 16,787,912 12,630,000 Cummins, Inc. 9.500%, 12/01/10 14,588,117 8,888,000 General Cable Corp. 9.500%, 11/15/10 9,732,428 15,905,000 Hutchison Whampoa International, Ltd.(a) 6.250%, 01/24/14 15,686,085 9,356,000 Jacuzzi Brands, Inc. 9.625%, 07/01/10 10,151,102 Manitowoc Company, Inc. 4,912,000 EUR 10.375%, 05/15/11 6,593,656 4,678,000 10.500%, 08/01/12 5,367,922 4,678,000 Monitronics International, Inc.(a) 11.750%, 09/01/10 5,069,704 5,614,000 Navistar International Corp.(c) 7.500%, 06/15/11 5,824,020 2,807,000 Orbital Sciences Corp. 9.000%, 07/15/11 3,101,466 4,678,000 Sequa Corp. 8.875%, 04/01/08 5,005,382 PRINCIPAL AMOUNT VALUE --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- $ 4,678,000 United Rentals, Inc.(c) 7.000%, 02/15/14 $ 4,291,998 ------------- 129,636,981 ------------- INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY (3.5%) 17,776,000 Avnet, Inc. 9.750%, 02/15/08 20,287,002 7,952,000 Celestica, Inc. 7.875%, 07/01/11 8,171,170 3,742,000 Freescale Semiconductor, Inc.(a) 7.125%, 07/15/14 3,817,189 15,905,000 Sanmina-Sci Corp. 10.375%, 01/15/10 18,091,884 4,678,000 Stratus Technologies, Inc.(a) 10.375%, 12/01/08 4,560,979 Xerox Corp.(c) 11,227,000 8.000%, 02/01/27 10,216,593 9,356,000 7.625%, 06/15/13 9,636,530 ------------- 74,781,347 ------------- MATERIALS (7.6%) 11,227,000 Arch Western Finance, LLC(a)(c) 7.250%, 07/01/13 11,451,566 6,783,000 Century Aluminum Company 11.750%, 04/15/08 7,639,348 14,717,000 Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold, Inc. 10.125%, 02/01/10 16,409,187 Georgia-Pacific Corp. 8,888,000 7.375%, 12/01/25 8,732,521 6,081,000 8.125%, 06/15/23 6,278,948 7,952,000 IMCO Recycling, Inc. 10.375%, 10/15/10 8,628,437 9,356,000 IPSCO, Inc. 8.750%, 06/01/13 10,525,337 15,437,000 Ispat International, NV(a)(c) 9.750%, 04/01/14 16,016,054 9,356,000 Phelps Dodge Corp. 9.500%, 06/01/31 12,918,808 4,678,000 Polyone Corp.(c) 10.625%, 05/15/10 5,028,772 7,952,000 Steel Dynamics, Inc.(c) 9.500%, 03/15/09 8,867,011 11,227,000 Texas Industries, Inc. 10.250%, 06/15/11 12,854,944 14,034,000 UCAR Finance, Inc. 10.250%, 02/15/12 15,788,005 Union Carbide Corp. 8,982,000 7.875%, 04/01/23 8,689,718 6,222,000 7.500%, 06/01/25 5,863,899 7,485,000 U. S. Concrete, Inc.(a) 8.375%, 04/01/14 7,596,954 ------------- 163,289,509 ------------- OTHER (1.7%) 18,712,000 Dow Jones TRAC-X North America High Yield Series 3 December 2009 Trust 3(a)(c) 8.000%, 12/29/09 18,197,138 18,712,000 Dow Jones TRAC-X North America High Yield Series 3 December 2009 Trust 4(a) 10.500%, 12/29/09 18,068,588 ------------- 36,265,726 See accompanying Notes to Schedule of Investments CALAMOS STRATEGIC TOTAL RETURN FUND SCHEDULE OF INVESTMENTS JULY 31, 2004 (UNAUDITED) PRINCIPAL AMOUNT VALUE ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- TELECOMMUNICATION SERVICES (2.6%) $ 12,163,000 Alamosa (Delaware), Inc.(a)(c) 8.500%, 01/31/12 $ 11,949,766 4,678,000 Alamosa Holdings, Inc. 11.000%, 07/31/10 5,157,415 25,261,000 AT&T Corp.(c) 8.750%, 11/15/31 25,208,745 4,210,000 IPCS Escrow Company(a) 11.500%, 05/01/12 4,357,489 9,356,000 Nextel Communications, Inc.(c) 7.375%, 08/01/15 9,870,427 -------------- 56,543,842 -------------- UTILITIES (2.0%) Calpine Corp.(c) 23,951,000 8.500%, 05/01/08 15,029,245 18,244,000 8.500%, 02/15/11 11,493,668 4,552,000 7.750%, 04/15/09 2,799,248 11,227,000 Edison International(c) 9.875%, 04/15/11 12,630,404 -------------- 41,952,565 -------------- TOTAL CORPORATE BONDS (Cost $1,158,085,880) 1,145,252,345 ============== CONVERTIBLE BONDS (6.1%) CONSUMER DISCRETIONARY (0.4%) 7,000,000 General Motors Corp. 6.250%, 07/15/33 7,873,600 -------------- ENERGY (0.8%) 15,000,000 Repsol Ypf, SA 4.500%, 01/26/11 16,368,255 -------------- FINANCIALS (0.4%) 8,700,000 Host Marriott Corp.(a) 3.250%, 04/15/24 8,667,375 -------------- INDUSTRIALS (0.7%) 13,000,000 Kaydon Corp. 4.000%, 05/23/23 15,210,000 -------------- INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY (3.1%) 33,000,000 Advanced Micro Devices, Inc.(c) 4.750%, 02/01/22 31,432,500 16,000,000 Fairchild Semiconductor International, Inc.(c) 5.000%, 11/01/08 15,960,000 22,000,000 LSI Logic Corp.(c) 4.000%, 05/15/10 20,185,000 -------------- 67,577,500 -------------- MATERIALS (0.7%) 10,700,000 Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold, Inc. 7.000%, 02/11/11 15,581,875 -------------- TOTAL CONVERTIBLE BONDS (Cost $144,838,642) 131,278,605 ============== SYNTHETIC CONVERTIBLE SECURITIES (4.3%) CORPORATE BONDS (3.7%) CONSUMER DISCRETIONARY (1.0%) 322,000 Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. 8.000%, 03/15/14 304,359 PRINCIPAL AMOUNT VALUE ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- $ 515,000 Aztar Corp.(a) 7.875%, 06/15/14 $ 523,690 Beazer Homes USA, Inc.(c) 731,000 8.375%, 04/15/12 786,284 138,000 8.625%, 05/15/11 148,532 Boise Cascade Corp.(c) 832,000 7.350%, 02/01/16 949,053 129,000 7.000%, 11/01/13 144,933 52,000 9.450%, 11/01/09 63,788 322,000 Boyd Gaming Corp. 7.750%, 12/15/12 333,345 322,000 Cadmus Communications Corp.(a) 8.375%, 06/15/14 334,956 Charter Communications Holdings 837,000 10.000%, 04/01/09 663,631 712,000 9.625%, 11/15/09 544,512 644,000 11.125%, 01/15/11 513,706 548,000 GBP EMI Group, PLC 9.750%, 05/20/08 1,051,552 580,000 Hovnanian Enterprises, Inc.(c) 7.750%, 05/15/13 597,123 322,000 IMAX Corp.(a)(c) 9.625%, 12/01/10 302,748 Intrawest Corp. 612,000 7.500%, 10/15/13 611,938 258,000 10.500%, 02/01/10 279,559 490,000 Jarden Corp. 9.750%, 05/01/12 536,692 322,000 Kellwood Company 7.625%, 10/15/17 346,687 Mandalay Resort Group 1,388,000 10.250%, 08/01/07 1,557,818 419,000 7.625%, 07/15/13 422,358 837,000 Meritage Corp.(c) 7.000%, 05/01/14 808,080 386,000 NCL Holding, ASA(a) 10.625%, 07/15/14 394,700 322,000 Oxford Industries, Inc.(a) 8.875%, 06/01/11 344,618 Pinnacle Entertainment, Inc.(c) 580,000 8.250%, 03/15/12 559,440 331,000 8.750%, 10/01/13 331,413 645,000 Reader's Digest Association, Inc. 6.500%, 03/01/11 641,886 1,095,000 RH Donnelley Financial Corp.(c) 10.875%, 12/15/12 1,286,680 837,000 Royal Caribbean Cruises, Ltd. 7.250%, 03/15/18 829,015 548,000 Spanish Broadcasting System, Inc. 9.625%, 11/01/09 579,006 322,000 Speedway Motorsports, Inc.(a) 6.750%, 06/01/13 326,099 See accompanying Notes to Schedule of Investments CALAMOS STRATEGIC TOTAL RETURN FUND SCHEDULE OF INVESTMENTS JULY 31, 2004 (UNAUDITED) PRINCIPAL AMOUNT VALUE ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Standard Pacific Corp. $ 966,000 9.250%, 04/15/12 $ 1,072,502 180,000 9.500%, 09/15/10 197,688 1,063,000 Steinway Musical Instruments, Inc. 8.750%, 04/15/11 1,153,181 548,000 Stoneridge, Inc. 11.500%, 05/01/12 650,184 322,000 Vail Resorts, Inc. 6.750%, 02/15/14 320,462 Warner Music Group(a)(c) 1,192,000 7.375%, 04/15/14 1,144,002 161,000 GBP 8.125%, 04/15/14 277,463 -------------- 21,933,683 -------------- CONSUMER STAPLES (0.2%) 548,000 Central Garden & Pet Company 9.125%, 02/01/13 591,325 741,000 Del Monte Foods Company 8.625%, 12/15/12 811,140 Herbalife International, Inc. 644,000 11.750%, 07/15/10 732,715 515,000 9.500%, 04/01/11 541,082 773,000 Jean Coutu Group, Inc.(a) 8.500%, 08/01/14 770,076 386,000 Rayovac Corp. 8.500%, 10/01/13 410,643 Rite Aid Corp.(c) 338,000 11.250%, 07/01/08 375,376 258,000 6.875%, 08/15/13 237,045 242,000 9.250%, 06/01/13 254,236 -------------- 4,723,638 -------------- ENERGY (0.5%) Chesapeake Energy Corp.(c) 451,000 6.875%, 01/15/16 446,393 258,000 7.500%, 06/15/14(a) 272,473 258,000 Comstock Resources, Inc. 6.875%, 03/01/12 254,437 953,000 Giant Industries, Inc. 8.000%, 05/15/14 984,318 322,000 Houston Exploration Company 7.000%, 06/15/13 325,293 322,000 KCS Energy, Inc.(a) 7.125%, 04/01/12 323,683 64,000 Lone Star Technologies, Inc. 9.000%, 06/01/11 67,957 Overseas Shipholding Group, Inc. 515,000 7.500%, 02/15/24 476,667 129,000 8.750%, 12/01/13 138,491 644,000 Paramount Resources, Ltd. 7.875%, 11/01/10 624,821 Petrobras International Finance Company(c) 1,063,000 9.125%, 07/02/13 1,115,982 354,000 8.375%, 12/10/18 338,337 Premcor, Inc. (c) 515,000 7.750%, 02/01/12 550,100 451,000 7.500%, 06/15/15 477,956 729,000 Swift Energy Company 9.375%, 05/01/12 787,854 322,000 Tesoro Petroleum Corp.(c) 9.625%, 04/01/12 369,578 PRINCIPAL AMOUNT VALUE ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- $ 486,000 Whiting Petroleum Corp. 7.250%, 05/01/12 $ 488,761 1,288,000 Williams Companies, Inc.(c) 8.125%, 03/15/12 1,413,899 --------------- 9,457,000 --------------- FINANCIALS (0.1%) 966,000 Leucadia National Corp. 7.000%, 08/15/13 951,725 1,031,000 LNR Property Corp. 7.625%, 07/15/13 1,035,786 676,000 Senior Housing Properties Trust 8.625%, 01/15/12 742,297 --------------- 2,729,808 --------------- HEALTH CARE (0.3%) 322,000 Alpharma, Inc.(a) 8.625%, 05/01/11 334,150 322,000 Ameripath, Inc. 10.500%, 04/01/13 328,514 235,000 Bausch & Lomb, Inc. 7.125%, 08/01/28 240,919 902,000 Beverly Enterprises, Inc.(a)(c) 7.875%, 06/15/14 910,821 354,000 Curative Health Services, Inc.(a) 10.750%, 05/01/11 322,395 386,000 Leiner Health Products Group, Inc.(a) 11.000%, 06/01/12 403,879 709,000 MedCath Corp.(a) 9.875%, 07/15/12 724,502 580,000 Psychiatric Solutions, Inc. 10.625%, 06/15/13 652,197 322,000 Quintiles Transnational Corp. 10.000%, 10/01/13 332,540 1,224,000 Service Corp. International(a) 6.750%, 04/01/16 1,161,152 --------------- 5,411,069 --------------- INDUSTRIALS (0.4%) 1,095,000 EUR AGCO Corp. 6.875%, 04/15/14 1,275,535 428,000 AMR Corp.(a) 7.250%, 02/05/09 404,797 193,000 Armor Holdings, Inc. 8.250%, 08/15/13 208,703 1,063,000 CNH Global, NV(a) 9.250%, 08/01/11 1,155,838 870,000 Cummins, Inc. 9.500%, 12/01/10 1,004,383 612,000 General Cable Corp. 9.500%, 11/15/10 670,072 1,095,000 Hutchison Whampoa International, Ltd.(a) 6.250%, 01/24/14 1,079,978 644,000 Jacuzzi Brands, Inc. 9.625%, 07/01/10 698,898 Manitowoc Company, Inc. 338,000 EUR 10.375%, 05/15/11 453,969 322,000 10.500%, 08/01/12 369,578 322,000 Monitronics International, Inc.(a) 11.750%, 09/01/10 349,046 See accompanying Notes to Schedule of Investments CALAMOS STRATEGIC TOTAL RETURN FUND SCHEDULE OF INVESTMENTS JULY 31, 2004 (UNAUDITED) PRINCIPAL AMOUNT VALUE ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- $ 386,000 Navistar International Corp.(c) 7.500%, 06/15/11 $ 400,980 193,000 Orbital Sciences Corp. 9.000%, 07/15/11 213,534 322,000 Sequa Corp. 8.875%, 04/01/08 344,618 322,000 United Rentals, Inc.(c) 7.000%, 02/15/14 295,502 --------------- 8,925,431 --------------- INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY (0.2%) 1,224,000 Avnet, Inc. 9.750%, 02/15/08 1,396,748 548,000 Celestica, Inc. 7.875%, 07/01/11 562,580 258,000 Freescale Semiconductor, Inc.(a) 7.125%, 07/15/14 262,811 1,095,000 Sanmina-Sci Corp. 10.375%, 01/15/10 1,245,616 322,000 Stratus Technologies, Inc.(a) 10.375%, 12/01/08 314,021 Xerox Corp.(c) 773,000 8.000%, 02/01/27 703,407 644,000 7.625%, 06/15/13 663,470 --------------- 5,148,653 --------------- MATERIALS (0.6%) 773,000 Arch Western Finance, LLC(a)(c) 7.250%, 07/01/13 788,434 467,000 Century Aluminum Company 11.750%, 04/15/08 525,965 1,013,000 Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold, Inc. 10.125%, 02/01/10 1,129,763 Georgia-Pacific Corp. 612,000 7.375%, 12/01/25 601,229 419,000 8.125%, 06/15/23 432,302 548,000 IMCO Recycling, Inc. 10.375%, 10/15/10 594,063 644,000 IPSCO, Inc. 8.750%, 06/01/13 724,663 1,063,000 Ispat International, NV(a)(c) 9.750%, 04/01/14 1,102,696 644,000 Phelps Dodge Corp. 9.500%, 06/01/31 889,452 322,000 Polyone Corp.(c) 10.625%, 05/15/10 346,228 548,000 Steel Dynamics, Inc.(c) 9.500%, 03/15/09 610,489 773,000 Texas Industries, Inc. 10.250%, 06/15/11 885,056 966,000 UCAR Finance, Inc. 10.250%, 02/15/12 1,086,995 Union Carbide Corp. 618,000 7.875%, 04/01/23 598,282 428,000 7.500%, 06/01/25 403,726 515,000 U. S. Concrete, Inc.(a) 8.375%, 04/01/14 523,046 --------------- 11,242,389 --------------- PRINCIPAL AMOUNT VALUE ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ OTHER (0.1%) $ 1,288,000 Dow Jones TRAC-X North America High Yield Series 3 December 2009 Trust 3(a)(c) 8.000%, 12/29/09 $ 1,252,862 1,288,000 Dow Jones TRAC-X North America High Yield Series 3 December 2009 Trust 4(a) 10.500%, 12/29/09 1,244,012 ----------------- 2,496,874 ----------------- TELECOMMUNICATION SERVICES (0.2%) 837,000 Alamosa (Delaware), Inc.(a)(c) 8.500%, 01/31/12 822,734 322,000 Alamosa Holdings, Inc. 11.000%, 07/31/10 355,085 1,739,000 AT&T Corp.(c) 8.750%, 11/15/31 1,735,608 290,000 IPCS Escrow Company(a) 11.500%, 05/01/12 300,011 644,000 Nextel Communications, Inc.(c) 7.375%, 08/01/15 679,573 ----------------- 3,893,011 ----------------- UTILITIES (0.1%) Calpine Corp.(c) 1,649,000 8.500%, 05/01/08 1,034,755 1,256,000 8.500%, 02/15/11 791,332 313,000 7.750%, 04/15/09 192,727 773,000 Edison International(c) 9.875%, 04/15/11 869,596 ----------------- 2,888,410 ----------------- TOTAL CORPORATE BONDS 78,849,966 ----------------- NUMBER OF CONTRACTS VALUE ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- OPTIONS (0.6%) CONSUMER DISCRETIONARY (0.3%) 3,400 Carnival Corp.(b) Call, 01/21/06, Strike 45 2,448,000 1,300 Nike, Inc.(b) Call, 01/21/06, Strike 80 721,500 3,400 Starbucks Corp.(b) Call, 01/21/06, Strike 40 3,842,000 ---------------- 7,011,500 ---------------- CONSUMER STAPLES (0.1%) 3,500 Altria Group, Inc.(b) Call, 01/21/06, Strike 55 1,190,000 2,513 Coca-Cola Company(b) Call, 01/21/06, Strike 50 439,775 1,840 Gillette Company(b) Call, 01/21/06, Strike 40 644,000 1,330 Kellogg Company(b) Call, 01/21/06, Strike 45 295,925 ---------------- 2,569,700 ---------------- FINANCIALS (0.0%) 1,300 Allstate Corp.(b) Call, 01/21/06, Strike 45 708,500 ---------------- HEALTH CARE (0.1%) 100 Bausch & Lomb, Inc.(b) Call, 01/21/06, Strike 65 75,000 See accompanying Notes to Schedule of Investments CALAMOS STRATEGIC TOTAL RETURN FUND SCHEDULE OF INVESTMENTS JULY 31, 2004 (UNAUDITED) NUMBER OF CONTRACTS VALUE ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1,400 Biogen, Inc.(b) Call, 01/21/06, Strike 70 $ 1,078,000 --------------- 1,153,000 --------------- INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY (0.1%) 2,400 QUALCOMM, Inc.(b) Call, 01/21/06, Strike 75 2,472,000 --------------- TOTAL OPTIONS 13,914,700 --------------- TOTAL SYNTHETIC CONVERTIBLE SECURITIES (Cost $94,323,715) 92,764,666 =============== NUMBER OF SHARES VALUE ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- CONVERTIBLE PREFERRED STOCKS (11.2%) CONSUMER DISCRETIONARY (3.0%) 1,205,000 Ford Motor Company Capital Trust II 6.500% 64,407,250 --------------- CONSUMER STAPLES (0.8%) 680,000 Albertson's, Inc. 7.250% 17,578,000 --------------- ENERGY (0.5%) 140,000 Amerada Hess Corp. 7.000% 10,570,000 --------------- FINANCIALS (2.7%) 335,000 Capital One Financial Corp. 6.250% 17,225,700 300,000 Chubb Corp. 7.000% 8,277,000 650,000 Genworth Financial, Inc. 6.000% 18,356,000 220,000 National Australia Bank, Ltd. 7.875% 7,240,200 35,000 State Street Corp. 6.750% 7,081,200 --------------- 58,180,100 --------------- HEALTH CARE (1.5%) 635,000 Baxter International, Inc. 7.000% 32,670,750 --------------- INDUSTRIALS (0.3%) 80,000 Cummins Capital Trust I 7.000% 6,250,000 --------------- INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY (1.5%) 255,000 Xerox Corp. 6.250% 32,448,750 --------------- TELECOMMUNICATION SERVICES (0.4%) 170,000 ALLTEL Corp. 7.750% 8,517,000 --------------- UTILITIES (0.5%) 150,000 Southern Union Company 5.750% 9,063,750 --------------- TOTAL CONVERTIBLE PREFERRED STOCKS (Cost $242,673,092) 239,685,600 =============== NUMBER OF SHARES VALUE --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- COMMON STOCKS (73.8%) CONSUMER DISCRETIONARY (6.9%) 2,000,000 AUD APN News & Media, Ltd. $ 5,938,546 2,000,000 GBP Enterprise Inns, PLC 19,384,673 1,865,000 Ford Motor Company 27,452,800 577,000 General Motors Corp. 24,891,780 425,000 Genuine Parts Company 16,035,250 731,000 May Department Stores Company 19,393,430 490,000 Maytag Corp. 10,045,000 980,000 Saks, Inc. 12,789,000 300,000 Sears Roebuck & Company 11,004,000 --------------- 146,934,479 --------------- CONSUMER STAPLES (4.9%) 644,000 Gillette Company 25,103,120 410,000 Kimberly-Clark Corp. 26,268,700 482,000 Procter & Gamble Company 25,136,300 951,000 Sara Lee Corp. 20,883,960 263,000 Supervalu, Inc. 7,511,280 --------------- 104,903,360 --------------- ENERGY (5.8%) 695,000 Chevrontexaco Corp. 66,476,750 366,000 Conocophillips 28,829,820 36,000 EUR OMV, AG 7,888,283 395,000 PetroChina Company, Ltd. 19,726,300 --------------- 122,921,153 --------------- FINANCIALS (20.0%) 732,900 Allstate Corp. 34,504,932 490,000 Bank Of America Corp. 41,654,900 1,372,000 Citigroup, Inc. 60,491,480 477,000 Federal National Mortgage Association 33,847,920 220,000 Fidelity National Corp. 7,975,000 803,700 General Growth Properties, Inc. 24,175,296 191,000 Independence Community Bank Corp. 7,131,940 176,000 Jefferson-Pilot Corp. 8,479,680 449,600 Mills Corp. 20,501,760 439,000 Morgan Stanley 21,655,870 1,395,100 New York Community Bancorp, Inc. 26,841,724 118,900 UnionBanCal Corp. 6,902,145 855,000 Wachovia Corp. 37,885,050 2,428,000 Washington Mutual, Inc. 94,206,400 --------------- 426,254,097 --------------- HEALTH CARE (12.8%) 4,146,000 Bristol-Myers Squibb Company 94,943,400 1,155,000 Johnson & Johnson 63,836,850 1,755,000 Merck & Company, Inc. 79,589,250 1,082,000 Pfizer, Inc. 34,580,720 --------------- 272,950,220 --------------- INDUSTRIALS (9.1%) 308,000 3M Company 25,366,880 315,000 Caterpillar, Inc. 23,149,350 439,000 Eaton Corp. 28,376,960 410,000 Emerson Electric Company 24,887,000 819,000 General Electric Company 27,231,750 724,000 Rockwell Automation, Inc. 27,084,840 1,346,000 Waste Management, Inc. 37,876,440 --------------- 193,973,220 --------------- See accompanying Notes to Schedule of Investments CALAMOS STRATEGIC TOTAL RETURN FUND SCHEDULE OF INVESTMENTS JULY 31, 2004 (UNAUDITED) NUMBER OF SHARES VALUE ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY (5.2%) 1,382,000 Intel Corp. $ 33,693,160 410,000 International Business Machines Corp. 35,698,700 614,000 QUALCOMM, Inc. 42,415,120 --------------- 111,806,980 --------------- MATERIALS (1.2%) 44,000 CHF Givaudan, SA 25,209,677 --------------- TELECOMMUNICATION SERVICES (7.9%) 1,850,000 Bellsouth Corp. 50,116,500 3,071,000 SBC Communications, Inc. 77,819,140 1,039,000 Verizon Communications, Inc. 40,043,060 --------------- 167,978,700 --------------- TOTAL COMMON STOCKS (Cost $1,609,475,942) 1,572,931,886 =============== PRINCIPAL AMOUNT VALUE ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- SHORT TERM INVESTMENTS (15.7%) $ 321,768,789 Bank of New York Institutional Cash Reserve Fund(d) current rate 1.340% 321,768,789 14,155,000 Exxon Mobil Corporation Commercial Paper 1.100%, 08/02/04 14,154,567 ----------------- TOTAL SHORT TERM INVESTMENTS (Cost $335,923,356) 335,923,356 ================= TOTAL INVESTMENTS (164.7%) 3,517,836,458 ================= (Cost $3,585,320,627) LIABILITIES, LESS OTHER ASSETS (-14.2%) (302,481,746) PREFERRED SHARES AT REDEMPTION VALUE INCLUDING DIVIDENDS PAYABLE (-50.5%) (1,080,000,000) ----------------- NET ASSETS APPLICABLE TO COMMON SHAREHOLDERS (100.0%) $ 2,135,354,712 ================= NOTES TO SCHEDULE OF INVESTMENTS Note: Market values for securities denominated in foreign currencies are shown in U.S. dollars. (a) 144A securities are those that are exempt from registration under Rule 144A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended. These securities are generally issued to qualified institutional buyers ("QIBs"), such as the Fund. Any resale of these securities must generally be effected through a sale that is exempt from registration (e.g. a sale to another QIB), or the security must be registered for public sale. At July 31, 2004, the market value of 144A securities that cannot currently be exchanged to the registered form is $295,430,241 or 13.8% of net assets applicable to common shareholders of the Fund. (b) Non-income producing security. (c) Security, or portion of security, is on loan. At July 31, 2004, the Fund had securities valued at $311,125,413 on loan to brokers-dealers and banks. (d) Security is purchased with the cash collateral from securities loaned. FOREIGN CURRENCY ABBREVIATIONS AUD: Australian Dollar CHF: Swiss Franc EUR: European Monetary Unit GBP: British Pound Sterling CALAMOS STRATEGIC TOTAL RETURN FUND NOTE 1 PORTFOLIO VALUATION. In computing the net asset value of the Fund, portfolio securities, including options, that are traded on a national securities exchange are valued at the last reported sales price. Securities quoted on the NASDAQ National Market System are valued at the Nasdaq Official Closing Price ("NOCP"), as determined by Nasdaq, or lacking an NOCP, the last current reported sale price as of the time of valuation. Securities traded in the over-the-counter market and listed securities for which no sales were reported are valued at the mean of the most recently quoted bid and asked prices. Short-term securities with maturities of 60 days or less are valued at amortized cost, which approximates market value. When market quotations are not readily available or when the valuation methods mentioned above are not reflective of the fair value of the security, the security is valued at a fair value following procedures approved by the Board of Trustees or a committee appointed by the Board of Trustees. The Fund may also use fair value pricing, if the value of a security it holds is, in the opinion of the valuation committee or pursuant to Board of Trustees' guidelines, effected by events occurring after the close of the primary market or exchange on which the security is traded. These procedures may utilize valuations furnished by pricing services approved by the Board of Trustees, which may be based on market transactions for comparable securities and various relationships between securities that are generally recognized by institutional traders, a computerized matrix system, or appraisals derived from information concerning the securities or similar securities received from recognized dealers in those securities. When fair value pricing is employed, the value of the portfolio security used to calculate the Fund's net asset value may differ from quoted or published prices. Securities that are principally traded in a foreign market are valued as of the close of the appropriate exchange or other designated time. Trading in securities on European and Far Eastern securities exchanges and over-the-counter markets is normally completed at various times before the close of business on each day on which the New York Stock Exchange ("NYSE") is open. Trading of these securities may not take place on every NYSE business day. In addition, trading may take place in various foreign markets on Saturdays or on other days when the NYSE is not open and on which the Fund's net asset value is not calculated. As stated above, if the market prices are not readily available or are not reflective of the fair value of the security, the security will be valued at a fair value following procedures approved by the Board of Trustees or a committee appointed by the Board of Trustees. INVESTMENT TRANSACTIONS. Short term investment transactions are recorded on a trade date basis. Long term investment transactions are recorded on a trade date plus one basis, except for fiscal quarter ends, which are recorded on trade date. NOTE 2 INVESTMENTS. The following information is presented on an income tax basis as of July 31, 2004. Differences between amounts for financial statements and Federal income tax purposes are primarily due to timing differences. The cost basis of investments for Federal income tax purposes at July 31, 2004 was as follows: Cost basis of investments $ 3,587,417,128 ======================== Gross unrealized appreciation $ 57,501,291 Gross unrealized depreciation (127,081,961) ------------------------ Net unrealized appreciation (depreciation) $ (69,580,670) ======================== NOTE 3 INTEREST RATE TRANSACTIONS. The Fund may enter into interest rate swap or cap transactions to attempt to protect itself from increasing dividend or interest expense on its leverage resulting from increasing short-term interest rates. A decline in interest rates may result in a decline in the value of the swap or cap, which may result in a decline in the net asset value of the Fund. In addition, if the counterparty to an interest rate swap or cap defaults, the Fund would not be able to use the anticipated receipts under the swap or cap to offset the dividend or interest payments on the Fund's leverage. At the time an interest rate swap or cap reaches its scheduled termination, there is a risk that the Fund would not be able to obtain a replacement transaction or that the terms of the replacement would not be as favorable as on the expiring transaction. In addition, if the Fund is required to terminate any swap or cap early due to the Fund failing to maintain a required 200% asset coverage of the liquidation value of the outstanding preferred shares or the Fund loses its credit rating on its preferred shares, then the Fund could be required to make a termination payment, in addition to redeeming all or some of the preferred shares. Details of the swap agreements outstanding as of July 31, 2004 were as follows: UNREALIZED TERMINATION NOTIONAL FIXED APPRECIATION COUNTERPARTY DATE AMOUNT (000) RATE FLOATING RATE (DEPRECIATION) ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Citibank NA June 4, 2006 $ 150,000 3.04% 1 month LIBOR $ (528,718) Citibank NA June 4, 2007 150,000 3.61% 1 month LIBOR (1,123,714) Citibank NA June 4, 2009 200,000 4.34% 1 month LIBOR (3,198,237) ------------------ $ (4,850,669) ================== ITEM 2. CONTROLS AND PROCEDURES. a) The registrant's principal executive officer and principal financial officer have evaluated the registrant's disclosure controls and procedures within 90 days of this filing and have concluded that the registrant's disclosure controls and procedures were effective, as of that date, in ensuring that information required to be disclosed by the registrant in this Form N-Q was recorded, processed, summarized, and reported on a timely basis. b) There were no changes in the registrant's internal controls over financial reporting (as defined in Rule 30a-3(d) under the Investment Company Act of 1940) that occurred during the registrant's quarter that has materially affected, or is reasonably likely to materially affect, the registrant's internal control over financial reporting. ITEM 3. EXHIBITS. (a) Certification of Principal Executive Officer. (b) Certification of Principal Financial Officer. 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. Calamos Strategic Total Return Fund By: /s/ John P. Calamos, Sr. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- Name: John P. Calamos, Sr. Title: Principal Executive Officer Date: September 23, 2004 By: /s/ Patrick H. Dudasik ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- Name: Patrick H. Dudasik Title: Principal Financial Officer Date: September 23, 2004 Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and the Investment Company Act of 1940, this report has been signed by the following persons on behalf of the registrant and in the capacities and on the dates indicated. Calamos Strategic Total Return Fund By: /s/ John P. Calamos, Sr. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- Name: John P. Calamos, Sr. Title: Principal Executive Officer Date: September 23, 2004 By: /s/ Patrick H. Dudasik ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- Name: Patrick H. Dudasik Title: Principal Financial Officer Date: September 23, 2004