Weekly Notables
Following the release of the elevated CPI print this week, rates slightly widened. The loan market experienced some softening this week, as the Morningstar® LSTA® US Leveraged Loan Index (Index) returned 0.03% for the seven day period ended February 13. The average Index bid price lost 14 bp, finishing the week at 97.37.
The primary market was busy with M&A and refinancing transactions. For the week, total institutional issuance was about $18.8 billion, while total repricing volume was $10.5 billion. YTD total supply, excluding repricings, is about $94.5 billion, ahead of last year’s volume of $84.2 for the comparable period. In the forward calendar, net of the anticipated $17.8 billion of repayments not associated with the forward pipeline, the amount of new supply projected to enter the market was $19.3 billion, up from $7.1 billion in the prior weekly estimate.
There was a notable dispersion in the secondary market, with earnings or company-specific news resulted in movement in both directions. In terms of performance, Double-Bs and Single-Bs were in the lead at 0.06% and 0.05%, respectively. On the other hand, CCCs were in the red at -0.13%.
There were seven CLO deals that priced during the week, including one new deal for Voya. On a YTD basis, total CLO issuance is currently tracking $15.2 billion. On the retail side, loan funds saw a modest inflow of $269 million. Within that, ETFs and mutual funds added $90 million and $178 million, respectively.
There were no defaults in the Index this week.
Source: Pitchbook Data, Inc./LCD, Morningstar ® LSTA ® Leveraged Loan Index. Additional footnotes and disclosures on back page. Past performance is no guarantee of future results. Investors cannot invest directly in the Index. *The Index’s average nominal spread calculation includes the benefit of base rate floors (where applicable).