The secondary market commanded investors’ attention last week, what with earnings and other headline news sparking some big swings in widely held credits against the backdrop of a muted new-issue loan market and a high-yield secondary firm at three-month highs since the rebound rally in January.
Topics: Loans, Analytics, BDC, market analytics, business development company, Fixed Income, portfolio, LevFin Insights, News
Here is our preview of the most important developments likely to occur in the BDC sector in the coming week. Pretty much everything highlighted in last week’s report came to pass. This week may be a little less frantic, as we explain below. However – as always – the BDC common stock market remains in a volatile state as investors – who just a few weeks ago – were bailing out have bailed back in, but now face what to do next. BDC Fixed Income investors have a more propitious environment than at any time since November 2018.
Medley Merger: As we anticipated in last week’s Preview, the dogfight about the future of Medley Capital (MCC), as well as Medley Management(MDLY) and Sierra Income, dominated the BDC news headlines. The BDC Reporter wrote three (!) more full length articles on the subject during the week for our Premium subscribers, the most recent over the week-end. We won’t repeat all the twists and turns of the week past. However, this is where we are right now: MCC and Sierra have rebuffed the NexPoint offer to serve as the Investment Advisor of the two merged BDCs. Also, MCC, Sierra and MDLY have set a new date for a shareholder vote for each entity: March 8, 2019. Plus, MCC’s Board has changed some of its by-laws to maintain control over when and by whom shareholder meetings are called. NexPoint has offered some very harsh criticism of the management and Boards of the Medley empire. Oh, and we’ve learnt about several lawsuits underway which MCC and MDLY have to contend with by disgruntled parties, including FrontFour.
Topics: Analytics, BDC, market analytics, business development company, News, bdc reporter
The new-issue loan market turned a corner last week with a procession of closely watched, larger transactions wrapping—due in part to a resurgent high-yield market—leaving investors with little else to chew on. The sudden prospect of a slowing calendar flipped a switch, and accounts flooded into transactions they had previously been viewing with a cautious eye. The frenzy generated seven reverse flexes, including some that were being discussed wide of official guidance just a few days earlier. Indeed no loan deals widened as the market heated up.
Topics: Analytics, BDC, market analytics, business development company, LevFin Insights, News
Advantage Data Inc. (ADI), a leading fixed income pricing and analytics provider, today announced that it has been named Best Data Provider — Fixed Income and Credit at the 2019 Fund Technology & WSL (Wall Street Letter) Awards.
The eighth annual award ceremony, organized by Pageant Media, recognized providers catering to asset managers and institutional traders who have demonstrated exceptional customer service and innovative product development over the past 12 months.
Topics: News, press release, award
Here is our preview of the most important developments likely to occur in the BDC sector in the coming week. After a January that was notable mostly for what was happening to BDC prices rather than anything else, the week ahead promises to be jam packed with “hard news”; the ongoing Medley drama and the continuing question mark about how the rally will fare entering into Week 7. The BDC Reporter does not expect to get much sleep.
Medley Mergers: For the first time in weeks, our arbitrary prioritization of what is likely to matter most in the BDC sector will not be led by “the markets”. Not that watching the tape will not be important as the BDC rally grows ever longer in the tooth. However, that other long simmering subject: the attempted merger of Medley Capital (MCC) and Medley Management (MDLY) into non-traded Sierra Income which is to be followed by the internalization of the management arrangement and a public issuance, has reached a boiling point. The BDC Reporter has written two articles over the week-end alone – and more than half a dozen in total – about the twists and turns in this poorly received merger proposal. First, there was opposition from several major MCC shareholders, most notably FrontFour Capital (FrontFour). Then a major proxy advisory firm chimed in with what now seems – as we’ve heard both from the proponents of the merger and its opponents – contradictory views about the merits of the transaction. Over the week-end, the plot thickened when a would-be new manager (NextPoint) offered itself as investment advisor to the shareholders of MCC and Sierra, but not MDLY. In fact, NexPoint’s principal strategy is to dump MDLY out of any arrangement, which leaves a bigger pie for the shareholders of the other two entities to share. That’s how we left matters when we went to bed Sunday night and after much hypothesizing to our readers about the possible impact on the stock price of MCC and MDLY and on the value of Sierra.
Topics: Analytics, BDC, market analytics, business development company, Finance, News, bdc reporter
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