Income Investing: How to Pick the BDCs With the Safest Yields And Best Loan Books -- Barron's
Income Investing: How to Pick the BDCs With the Safest Yields And Best Loan Books -- Barron's
DJ Income Investing: How to Pick the BDCs With the Safest Yields And Best Loan Books -- Barron's
DJ收入投資：如何挑選收益最安全、貸款賬簿最好的BDC--Barron‘s
By Alexandra Scaggs
亞歷山德拉·斯卡格斯(Alexandra Scaggs)著
Income investors may want to pay attention to business development companies' earnings this month: Those that report stable loan portfolios could deliver some healthy yields.
收益投資者可能希望關注業務發展公司本月的收益：那些報告貸款組合穩定的公司可能會帶來一些健康的收益。
The vehicles, known as BDCs, are among the only ways that individual investors can lend to midsize companies that are too small for traditional bond offerings. BDCs generally raise money in both equity and bond markets and lend to those companies directly, or buy their loans.
這些工具被稱為BDC，是個人投資者向傳統債券發行規模太小的中型公司放貸的僅有方式之一。BDC通常在股票和債券市場籌集資金，並直接向這些公司放貸，或者購買它們的貸款。
The draw for investors is that these midsize companies pay higher yields to borrow than bond-market giants like Apple (ticker: AAPL) or Microsoft (MSFT). And BDCs have similar dividend rules as real estate investment trusts: They must pay out 90% of their net income as dividends to get preferential tax treatment. The Cliffwater BDC Index yielded 9.1% as of Feb. 17.
對投資者的吸引力在於，這些中型公司的借款收益率高於蘋果(Apple)或微軟(Microsoft)等債券市場巨頭。而BDC的分紅規則與房地產投資信託相似：它們必須支付淨收入的90%作為股息，才能獲得税收優惠。截至2月17日，Cliffwater BDC指數的收益率為9.1%。
By contrast, long-term Treasuries yield around 2.1%, even after a steady drive higher over the past four months. The investment-grade corporate bond market yields less than 2%, and junk bonds yield less than 4%. In all three of those markets, interest rates are fixed, so rising yields and interest rates can dent returns.
相比之下，長期國債收益率在2.1%左右，即使在過去四個月穩步走高之後也是如此。投資級公司債市場收益率不到2%，垃圾債收益率不到4%。在這三個市場，利率都是固定的，因此收益率和利率上升可能會削弱回報。
BDCs, however, often lend at floating rates. That means that if short-term U.S. interest rates eventually rise, those loans' interest rates will rise, as well. That might be years away, but it does help investors dodge risk of paper losses that hit fixed-rate bonds when yields rise.
然而，發展中國家通常以浮動利率放貸。這意味着，如果美國短期利率最終上升，這些貸款的利率也將上升。這可能需要數年時間，但它確實有助於投資者規避賬面損失的風險，當收益率上升時，賬面損失會打擊固定利率債券。
The downside is that midsize companies pay higher rates for a reason. They are smaller and tend to be less insulated against business disruptions of the type that happened during the pandemic. As of the third quarter of 2020, about 4.5% of the loans in BDC portfolios tracked by analysts at Truist were overdue by 90 days or more, the highest in four years, according to a recent note. That compares with about 1.6% before the pandemic, the analysts wrote.
不利的一面是，中型公司支付更高的費率是有原因的。它們較小，往往不太容易受到大流行期間發生的那種商業中斷的影響。根據最近的一份報告，截至2020年第三季度，Truist分析師追蹤的BDC投資組閤中約4.5%的貸款逾期90天或更長時間，為四年來最高。分析人士寫道，相比之下，大流行前這一比例約為1.6%。
That makes it important for investors to be careful in choosing managers, says Andrew Kerai, portfolio manager and senior credit strategist at RiverNorth. Until the middle of last year, Kerai, who helps manage the RiverNorth Specialty Finance fund (RSF), was interested primarily in BDCs' unsecured bonds, in part because the sector has leverage limits imposed by regulators.
RiverNorth投資組合經理兼高級信貸策略師安德魯·凱萊(Andrew Kerai)表示，這使得投資者在選擇基金經理時要謹慎，這一點很重要。直到去年年中，幫助管理RiverNorth Specialty Finance基金(RSF)的Kerai主要對BDC的無擔保債券感興趣，部分原因是該行業有監管機構施加的槓桿限制。
But when the sector's equity started to sell off, the fund started to buy more shares, as more BDCs traded at a discount -- and with hefty yields.
但當該行業的股票開始拋售時，該基金開始買入更多股票，因為更多的BDC以折扣價交易--而且收益率很高。
"On the equity side, I think our strike zone is a lot narrower than some people's," he said. "It's got to be a top-tier manager, a [loan] book that's good quality, with good liquidity and trading at a reasonable discount. Coming into Covid-19, all those things were all hard to find."
“在股票方面，我認為我們的罷工區域比一些人的要窄得多，”他説。“它必須是一位頂級的主教練，一個[放款]這本書的質量很好，流動性好，而且交易價格有合理的折扣。進入新冠肺炎，所有這些都是很難找到的。“
As of Sept. 30, 2020, the fund owned shares of seven BDCs, including Oaktree Specialty Lending (OCSL); MVC Capital, which has since merged with Barings BDC (BBDC); Bain Capital Specialty Finance (BCSF); and Ares Capital (ARCC), according to Securities and Exchange Commission filings. About 14% of its fund was invested in BDC shares, compared with 40% in bonds issued by BDCs. But those bonds generally offer lower yields than the shares; most yield less than 5%, and many yield less than 3%.
截至9月1日根據美國證券交易委員會(Securities And Exchange Commission)的文件，2020年30日，該基金擁有7家BDC的股份，包括橡樹專業貸款(OCSL)；MVC Capital，後來與霸菱BDC(BBDC)合併；貝恩資本專業金融(BCSF)；以及Ares Capital(ARCC)。其基金中約14%投資於BDC股票，相比之下，40%投資於BDC發行的債券。但這些債券的收益率通常低於股票；大多數債券的收益率不到5%，許多債券的收益率不到3%。
Investors may have missed out on the steepest discounts on the equity side. BDCs' valuations are no longer weighed down by a wide investor panic the way they were during the height of the Covid-19 scare last March. The Cliffwater BDC Index was recently trading at a discount of 0.6% on Feb. 17, compared with discounts of nearly 50% last April.
投資者可能錯過了股票方面最大的折扣。BDC的估值不再像去年3月新冠肺炎(Sequoia Capital)恐慌最嚴重時那樣，受到廣泛的投資者恐慌的拖累。Cliffwater BDC指數最近的交易價格在2月17日折價0.6%，而去年4月的折價幅度接近50%。
There are still a few factors that could work in BDCs' favor from here, however. Perhaps the biggest is a rally in risky debt that has pushed yields on low-rated bonds lower. Bonds rated CCC+ or below -- the lowest-rated bonds not in default -- have rallied 2.4% for the year through Wednesday, according to ICE Indices. That outperformance may bode well for BDCs, seen as one step down in credit quality and size, according to strategists at credit-research firm CreditSights.
然而，仍有一些因素可能會對BDC有利。最大的可能是風險債務的反彈，這推低了低評級債券的收益率。根據洲際交易所指數(ICE Indices)的數據，截至週三，評級為CCC+或以下的債券(評級最低的未違約債券)今年以來上漲了2.4%。據信用研究公司CreditSights的策略師説，這種優異的表現對BDC來説可能是個好兆頭，因為BDC被視為信貸質量和規模下降了一步。
And credit quality might be starting to look brighter in private markets, where lenders are seen as being more willing to negotiate with borrowers to amend loan terms and avoid messy defaults. According to law firm Proskauer Rose, the default rate for the fourth quarter of 2020 was 3.6%, down from 4.2% the prior quarter and 8.2% in the second quarter of last year.
在私人市場，信貸質量可能開始看起來更光明，那裏的貸款人被視為更願意與借款人談判，以修改貸款條款，避免混亂的違約。根據Proskauer Rose律師事務所的數據，2020年第四季度的違約率為3.6%，低於前一季度的4.2%和去年第二季度的8.2%。
In fact, analysts have been pointing to a very different type of risk for BDCs and private lenders more recently: the risk that borrowers will start paying back loans early, removing sources of yield sooner than expected. Those risks are offset with fees, particularly for younger loans.
事實上，分析師最近一直在指出BDC和私人貸款機構面臨的一種非常不同的風險：借款人將開始提前償還貸款，比預期更早地消除收益來源的風險。這些風險可以通過手續費來抵消，特別是對於較年輕的貸款。
"While we expect repayment activity to increase going forward for all BDCs, the younger the portfolio, the greater the probability that a repayment will generate more material yield enhancement income (prepayment fees, accelerated amortization) that flows to earnings," wrote Robert Dodd, analyst at Raymond James, in a December note on the sector. As of that note, the two BDCs with the "youngest" portfolios were Barings BDC and Owl Rock Capital (ORCC).
雷蒙德·詹姆斯(Raymond James)分析師羅伯特·多德(Robert Dodd)在去年12月的一份關於該行業的報告中寫道：“儘管我們預計未來所有BDC的還款活動都會增加，但投資組合越年輕，還款產生更多實質性收益提升收入(預付費、加速攤銷)的可能性就越大。”到目前為止，擁有“最年輕”投資組合的兩家BDC是霸菱BDC和貓頭鷹巖石資本(ORCC)。
BDCs might also find more opportunities to make new loans at rates that are attractive to investors, says Truist. In a Feb. 4 note, the bank's analysts said they favor Ares Capital, FS KKR Capital Corp. II (FSKR), Owl Rock Capital, and Sixth Street Specialty Lending (TSLX), the last of which pays a variable dividend.
Truist説，BDC可能還會找到更多機會，以對投資者有吸引力的利率發放新貸款。在2月4日的一份報告中，該行分析師表示，他們青睞Ares Capital、FS KKR Capital Corp.II、貓頭鷹搖滾資本(Owl Rock Capital)和第六街專業貸款公司(Sixth Street Specialty Lending，TSLX)，後者支付的股息是可變的。
More recently, earnings have been in focus, and the news seems to be good there, as well. Of the roughly dozen BDCs that had reported earnings through Feb. 11, according to Dodd, the share of portfolio loans with late payments has declined to close to 3%, down from levels above 4% the prior quarter.
最近，盈利成為人們關注的焦點，那裏的消息似乎也很好。根據多德的數據，在截至2月11日公佈收益的大約12家BDC中，逾期還款的投資組合貸款所佔比例已從上一季度的4%以上降至接近3%。
"Credit quality looks to have broadly improved and is quickly coming back to pre-Covid levels, if not even better," wrote Dodd.
多德寫道：“信貸質量看起來已經普遍改善，如果不是更好的話，也正在迅速恢復到Covid之前的水平。”
Even so, there are plenty of reports yet to come, with 38 BDCs in Cliffwater's index. And the performance of different managers' portfolios can vary a lot. So, investors should stick with BDCs with proven track records and strong management teams, and not be lured into higher-yielding names trading at steep discounts.
即便如此，仍有大量報告尚未出爐，在Cliffwater的指數中有38個BDC。而且，不同基金經理的投資組合的表現可能差別很大。因此，投資者應該堅持投資於有可靠記錄和強大管理團隊的BDC，而不是被以大幅折扣交易的高收益公司所吸引。
"Only pick the top-tier names," Kerai said. "Don't ever stretch for lower-tier names, and don't ever stretch for yield." b
Kerai説：“只挑選最頂級的名字。”“不要過分追求二線品牌，也不要過度追求收益。”B類
Write to Alexandra Scaggs at alexandra.scaggs@barrons.com
寫信給Alexandra Scaggs，電子郵件：alexandra.scaggs@Barrons.com
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February 19, 2021 21:30 ET (02:30 GMT)
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