March 3, 2021
China’s green energy ambitions and needs could power an uptick in green bond sales this year, potentially providing a catalyst for the
GRNB tracks the S&P Green Bond Select Index, which is “comprised of labeled green bonds that are issued to finance environmentally friendly projects, and includes bonds issued by the supranational, government, and corporate issuers globally in multiple currencies,” according to VanEck.
Green bonds are debt securities issued to finance projects that promote climate change mitigation or the adaptation of other environmental sustainability purposes. The new breed of green bonds has gained momentum in the global market ever since the European Investment Bank issued the first green bond in 2007. Plenty of eyes are now turning to the U.S. green bond market.
March 3, 2021
Seasoned fixed income investors know that the lower they go in terms of credit quality, the higher the risk profile they take on.
The
SKOR tracks the Northern Trust Credit-Scored US Corporate Bond Index, which focuses on issues from companies with quality characteristics such as strength in management efficiency, profitability, and solvency, according to FlexShares. The fund is increasingly relevant for investors seek stout credit quality.
“During the COVID-19-led global recession, our corporate ratings performed as designed,” according to S&P Dow Jones Indices. “The number of defaults rose, but all entities that defaulted in 2020 began the year rated speculative grade–and 94% with a rating in the ‘B’ category or lower. Default and downgrade rates were in line with the rank ordering of our ratings, with higher default and downgrade rates among the lower ratings, and vice versa. Annual stability rates displayed positive rank ordering in 2020, and most
How to Play Small Caps and the Value Factor Simultaneously March 3, 2021
The small cap rally doesn’t appear to be slowing down. Combine that with a value resurgence and you get a potent combination in the
“The stars are really lined up for small-caps as an asset class this year,” said Amy Zhang, a small-cap fund portfolio manager at Alger.
VBR seeks to track the performance of a benchmark index that measures the investment return of small-capitalization value stocks. The fund employs an indexing investment approach designed to track the performance of the CRSP US Small Cap Value Index, a broadly diversified index of value stocks of small U.S. companies.