1H17 US Syndicated loan volume hits record high at over US$1.2Tr US syndicated loan issuance hit a new milestone in 1H17 to mark the highest half year total on record at over US$1.2T (an additional US$21.6bn of clubbed loans also worked their way through the market to bring US corporate issuance to nearly US$1.4Tr in…

Large Corporate LBO Leverage Jumped in 2Q17 to 6.4x Leverage levels on large corporate LBO deals closed in 2Q17 has reached the highest level tracked since 4Q14. Leverage averaged roughly 4.84 times first lien by 6.39 times total debt to EBITDA this quarter for broadly syndicated LBO deals,… Subscribe to Read MoreAlready a member? Log

Middle market sponsor-backed issuers are seeing fewer repricings than large corp. issuers Private equity shops have taken advantage of strong liquidity in the loan market to refinance/reprice many of their portfolio companies into longer dated maturities, looser structures and cheaper pricing…. Subscribe to Read MoreAlready a member? Log in here...

Middle market fundraising firing on all cylinders in 2017 Money continues to pour into the middle market in a myriad of ways. For starters, 2017 is going to be the strongest year for middle market CLO formation since the credit crisis. Year to date $7.3 billion in middle market CLOs have priced, not too far…

U.S. new issue CLO volume outpaces refinancings for first time in 2017 May marked the first month this year where U.S. new issue CLO volume outpaced refinancing volume. CLO new issue amounted to $9.8 billion in May, slightly down from the $10.2 billion posted in April, taking 2017 issuance to $37.5 billion…. Subscribe to Read

Primary leveraged yields tighten in May After widening in April, average yields have tightened in May, but are still above their March level. The average yield, assuming a three year term to repayment on first-lien institutional loans is 4.87% in May, down from 5.03% in April but still 20bp above the… Subscribe to Read MoreAlready

Middle market lenders struggling to find yield in 2Q17 Middle market lenders with a minimum spread requirement of 500bp and above are most likely struggling to find assets in the syndicated loan market that meet their return requirements. So far in 2Q17, 77% of middle market sponsor-backed loans to hit the syndicated market have a…

BDC performance wavers in May on the back of mixed earnings The upward march of BDC share prices in 2017 seems to have come to a halt in May on the back of mixed earnings announcements for 1Q17. Rising non-accruals, earnings misses, heavy prepayments, declining yields, tough market conditions and extreme competition are all… Subscribe

Lender Survey: Compared to the historical average, loan recoveries will be: Many investors have a wish list for rolling back structural deterioration with, not surprising, bringing back covenants with clean historical EBITDA definition meaning capped add-backs and no inclusion of projected results or cost savings at the top of the list. Although a lower spread…

What is the most likely catalyst for derailment? 41% of the audience polled last Thursday during Thomson Reuters LPC’s Fifth Annual Middle Market Loans Conference pointed to competitive pressures leading to structural and yield deterioration as the most likely catalyst for change or derailment in the market. However, one third pointed to geopolitical risk, which…