The rate reset occurred in November, before the 75 bsp increase though, it won’t move again till November 2023, so in the short term at least the rate looks less attractive.
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The rate reset occurred in November, before the 75 bsp increase though, it won’t move again till November 2023, so in the short term at least the rate looks less attractive.
A little info. on IFTHA and IFTHC in today's Chris Lee & Partners newsletter; (Market News 28th November-look on their web site).
That Chris Lee blog post was a lot of nonsense, arguing that default funds (which are retirement savings vehicles) should have stayed in cash and bond focused investment strategies because of short term market conditions is such a stupid position to take. Passive strategies have a tendency to beat active, you only need to look at Buffett's bet with the hedge funds.
Over the past year or so it's been interesting to see the New Zealand Financial Services Industry, and the investing public, respond to an environment of rising interest rates after more than a decade of static and/or falling interest rates.
There's even been the first faint stirrings of an understanding that there's more to Fixed Interest investing than simply the coupon rate.
Hopefully both groups have learned something and that they will be better placed to understand and cope with future changes.
Today my IFTHC bond payment came through and they are now paying 7.89%, so happy enough with that.
Can I ask, as i'm simply learning about perp bonds, is the fall in the price IFTHA a result of the market perceiving rate drops next time it resets?
And.....IFTHA recently went XI, so pricing adjusts accordingly.
Ex interest. Was paid today.
Based on my wealth of inexperience I believe that those that reset soon will do so at atleast what they would at present, so quite good. But more important I think is the margin, which if it is large ie bigger than 1.5%, will ensure the return is still good even when rates are lower.
They're a bugger to analyse. Interest rate expectations are undoubtedly a factor, but IMO the more significant factor is the view of the credit compensation. Since the coupon is fixed at 1.5% over short dated swap and the securities never need be repaid, you have to think of the discount more akin to the perpetuity value of whatever extra spread is demanded by the investor.
Let's assume really simple maths and say an investor has a time horizon of 30 years. If they will only accept the risk of the instrument if they get an extra 1% per annum return to the headline rate, they will only be prepared to pay 70c on the dollar for that instrument (1% x 30). It is akin to a long dated bond, except it's lower down the credit stack and therefore much riskier. 1.5% is a very low credit margin for a subordinated instrument like IFTHA.
The irony is you can see the dynamic in action by comparing IFTHA with how IFTHC behaves. IFTHC is annual reset and the annual coupon is 2.5% over swap, not 1.5%. However IFTHC trades pretty much at par. That 1% credit margin difference using the maths above, nicely explains the 30% discount from IFTHA to IFTHC.
IMO IFTHA is "busted", it's been a joke for many years and the company should adopt a standing buyback programme, whereby they step into the market and buy the perpetuals back should the implied spread breach a certain level. This would give some certainty to retail investors.
[QUOTE/] IMO IFTHA is "busted", it's been a joke for many years and the company should adopt a standing buyback programme, whereby they step into the market and buy the perpetuals back should the implied spread breach a certain level. This would give some certainty to retail investors.[/QUOTE]
No company would last forever. When Infratil is in big trouble, it has to redeem IFTHA at face value. 30 years would be long enough for this to happen.
I love IFTHA. With an initial entry price of $0.56, I've done well. But equally, those who bought in at $1.00 at the initial listing have not done well.
Swings and roundabouts, and how many of the initial holders still hold anyway? They've also been great for slow, long-term, trading. But does anyone think that IFT are going to buy these back at $1/pop? Seriously?
I first bought IFTHA waaaaaay back, as the annual rate reset gives a built-in (trailing) inflation hedge. I have bought and sold over the years as the price has fluctuated, but the main reason I have them is still that combination of price and rate reset.
If I recall, Infratil have occasionally bought some back on-market when the price was right.
A true "Swiss Army Knife"!