There are many words synonymous with the European sovereign debt crisis, the portmanteau ‘Grexit’ being the most in vogue. But a word that was thought to have been banished by the ECB – contagion – has returned to the discourse this week. Spreads in Italy, Spain and Portugal – the peripheral countries most exposed to…
Valuations met with a shrug High valuations have become a headache in the PE industry, not only for the firms themselves but also their own LP investors. Overpaying today leads to under-reaping tomorrow. Even so, deal activity… Subscribe to Read MoreAlready a member? Log in here...
Loan mutual fund & ETF assets under management edged higher to just over $139 billion in May as these funds registered a second consecutive month of inflows as expectations around higher interest rates once again came to the fore. Despite the combined inflows of $646 million in April and May,… Subscribe to Read MoreAlready a
Macro themes continue to dominate fixed income markets, but investors shouldn’t lose sight of the idiosyncratic stories that are unfolding in the background. New Look, a British high street retailer, saw its spreads tighten dramatically this week after it announced a refinancing that should improve its credit profile. The company was bought… Subscribe to Read
Not all recoveries are created equal Top-line numbers never tell the whole story in PE. That’s especially the case in Europe, where overall middle-market numbers show a pronounced boom in activity between 2009 and 2014. Since bottoming out, deal flow almost tripled… Subscribe to Read MoreAlready a member? Log in here...
Yields on institutional term loans have tightened in 2Q15. The average yield assuming a three-year term to repayment on first-lien institutional loans is at 5.01 percent so far in 2Q15, down from 5.71 percent in 1Q15, and down over 100bp from 4Q14’s level…. Subscribe to Read MoreAlready a member? Log in here...
Many expect the European economy to perform better this year – not difficult, come might say – but recent spreads movements suggest the credit markets are sceptical. Since the index roll on March 20, the Markit iTraxx Europe has widened by 10bps to 65bps…. Subscribe to Read MoreAlready a member? Log in here...
Energy prices should boost B2B Assuming low energy prices are sustained, B2B PE activity should benefit, especially in the middle market. Activity is already pretty strong in the U.S., with another 300 deals done in Q1 totaling $30 billion. But there’s reason to be more optimistic. Much of the… Subscribe to Read MoreAlready a member? Log
After declining dramatically for two consecutive quarters due to fears of being penalized by the regulators, LBO leverage is back on the rise this quarter. Debt to EBITDA on large corporate and institutional middle market buyout deals has risen to 6.27 times and 5.50… Subscribe to Read MoreAlready a member? Log in here...
The seemingly never-ending saga around Greece’s EU status continues to drive macro sentiment, but credit investors have also had sector specific issues to digest. CDS in the TMT sector is often among the most active, but the past few weeks have seen several M&A… Subscribe to Read MoreAlready a member? Log in here...