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Corporate/muni/etc bonds

Posted: Tue Dec 29, 2020 8:48 pm
by Cortopassi
As part of the inheritance from my wife's uncle, we took our portion of his brokerage account as is, with the positions.

So we now own some corporate bonds/notes, most of which mature in the 2025 timeframe. I decided to keep them because they were paying anywhere from 4 to 7% interest (Union Carbide being the highest).

The corporate bond market has been an eye opener and I know very little about it. I know the basics -- yield up, price down, company ratings, but not a lot else.

If anyone trades/holds these and can point to a good website or book they've used to learn, I'd appreciate it.

Re: Corporate/muni/etc bonds

Posted: Tue Dec 29, 2020 9:10 pm
by Xan
Cortopassi wrote: Tue Dec 29, 2020 8:48 pm As part of the inheritance from my wife's uncle, we took our portion of his brokerage account as is, with the positions.

So we now own some corporate bonds/notes, most of which mature in the 2025 timeframe. I decided to keep them because they were paying anywhere from 4 to 7% interest (Union Carbide being the highest).

The corporate bond market has been an eye opener and I know very little about it. I know the basics -- yield up, price down, company ratings, but not a lot else.

If anyone trades/holds these and can point to a good website or book they've used to learn, I'd appreciate it.
I don't know much about this market either. If I were in your shoes, the first thing I'd do is figure out whether there's a reasonably liquid market for these. If so, I would sell them, knowing I'm getting a fair price for them (regardless of what their interest rate is) and then get into something that I understand better (ie, the PP).

Re: Corporate/muni/etc bonds

Posted: Wed Dec 30, 2020 1:05 am
by Hal
Cortopassi wrote: Tue Dec 29, 2020 8:48 pm As part of the inheritance from my wife's uncle, we took our portion of his brokerage account as is, with the positions.

So we now own some corporate bonds/notes, most of which mature in the 2025 timeframe. I decided to keep them because they were paying anywhere from 4 to 7% interest (Union Carbide being the highest).

The corporate bond market has been an eye opener and I know very little about it. I know the basics -- yield up, price down, company ratings, but not a lot else.

If anyone trades/holds these and can point to a good website or book they've used to learn, I'd appreciate it.
Pg 141, Chapter 6. Enjoy 8)
http://glenbradford.com/files/Stocks/se ... -0-meg.pdf

Re: Corporate/muni/etc bonds

Posted: Wed Dec 30, 2020 9:17 am
by Cortopassi
Hal wrote: Wed Dec 30, 2020 1:05 am
Cortopassi wrote: Tue Dec 29, 2020 8:48 pm As part of the inheritance from my wife's uncle, we took our portion of his brokerage account as is, with the positions.

So we now own some corporate bonds/notes, most of which mature in the 2025 timeframe. I decided to keep them because they were paying anywhere from 4 to 7% interest (Union Carbide being the highest).

The corporate bond market has been an eye opener and I know very little about it. I know the basics -- yield up, price down, company ratings, but not a lot else.

If anyone trades/holds these and can point to a good website or book they've used to learn, I'd appreciate it.
Pg 141, Chapter 6. Enjoy 8)
http://glenbradford.com/files/Stocks/se ... -0-meg.pdf
Thanks, Hal!

Re: Corporate/muni/etc bonds

Posted: Wed Dec 30, 2020 11:58 am
by I Shrugged
Cortopassi wrote: Tue Dec 29, 2020 8:48 pm As part of the inheritance from my wife's uncle, we took our portion of his brokerage account as is, with the positions.

So we now own some corporate bonds/notes, most of which mature in the 2025 timeframe. I decided to keep them because they were paying anywhere from 4 to 7% interest (Union Carbide being the highest).

The corporate bond market has been an eye opener and I know very little about it. I know the basics -- yield up, price down, company ratings, but not a lot else.

If anyone trades/holds these and can point to a good website or book they've used to learn, I'd appreciate it.
The pisser in having a corp bond portfolio is when the higher yielding ones get called. Then you are struggling to replace that yield.

Re: Corporate/muni/etc bonds

Posted: Wed Dec 30, 2020 12:15 pm
by Cortopassi
I Shrugged wrote: Wed Dec 30, 2020 11:58 am
Cortopassi wrote: Tue Dec 29, 2020 8:48 pm As part of the inheritance from my wife's uncle, we took our portion of his brokerage account as is, with the positions.

So we now own some corporate bonds/notes, most of which mature in the 2025 timeframe. I decided to keep them because they were paying anywhere from 4 to 7% interest (Union Carbide being the highest).

The corporate bond market has been an eye opener and I know very little about it. I know the basics -- yield up, price down, company ratings, but not a lot else.

If anyone trades/holds these and can point to a good website or book they've used to learn, I'd appreciate it.
The pisser in having a corp bond portfolio is when the higher yielding ones get called. Then you are struggling to replace that yield.
They are all non-callable so there's that. The averaged interest rate across all them is 3.9%. I don't know where I could possibly match that. Of course I could sell and turn into PP assets, like Xan suggests.

The companies are Pfizer, Coca Cola, Union Carbide, Cisco, Apple and Citigroup, so default on any of those seems pretty remote.

Re: Corporate/muni/etc bonds

Posted: Wed Dec 30, 2020 1:07 pm
by pp4me
Cortopassi wrote: Tue Dec 29, 2020 8:48 pm As part of the inheritance from my wife's uncle, we took our portion of his brokerage account as is, with the positions.

So we now own some corporate bonds/notes, most of which mature in the 2025 timeframe. I decided to keep them because they were paying anywhere from 4 to 7% interest (Union Carbide being the highest).

The corporate bond market has been an eye opener and I know very little about it. I know the basics -- yield up, price down, company ratings, but not a lot else.

If anyone trades/holds these and can point to a good website or book they've used to learn, I'd appreciate it.
I got my education on corporate bonds from two books about the Permanent Portfolio, one by HB and the other by two other guys.

They said just don't do it, basically, but if I was in your shoes and inherited them I'd probably hold on to them too and call it part of my VP. Depends on how much you're talking about, of course. I see you got 20% on the PP last year so you have to take that into consideration when you run the figures, don't you?

Re: Corporate/muni/etc bonds

Posted: Wed Dec 30, 2020 1:58 pm
by I Shrugged
I’d keep them, myself. Good yields.

Re: Corporate/muni/etc bonds

Posted: Wed Dec 30, 2020 8:28 pm
by whatchamacallit
I bet the commission cost to sell is a good incentive to hold until maturity. Just move the interest payments to pp.