Table of Contents
What are the various types of bonds?A bond is a certificate promising to repay, no later than a specified date, a sum of money which the investor or bondholder has loaned to the company. In return for the use of the money, the company (or municipality or other government entity) also agrees to pay bondholders a certain amount of interest each year, which is usually a percentage of the amount loaned. Since bondholders are not owners of the company, they do not share in dividend payments or vote on company matters. The return on their investment is not usually dependent on how successful the company is. Bondholders are entitled to receive the amount of interest originally agreed upon, as well as a return of the principal amount of the bond, if they hold the bond for the time period specified. Corporate bonds generally are issued in denominations of $1,000. This is the face value of the bond, and is the amount the company agrees to repay to the bondholder when the bond matures. The prices at which bonds trade may differ from their face values because the price or value of a bond is closely related to the movement of interest rates in the economy. As interest rates change, so too will the value of the bond. So if you need to sell the bond before it matures, it may be worth more or less at that time than the price you paid for it. Some bonds are callable, which means that the issuer can elect to buy them back from holders—at the face amount—before the date of maturity. Bonds are classified in three ways: by the issuing organization, by their maturity, and by their quality. Issuing Organization. The U.S. government sells bonds through the Treasury to finance the national debt and through various federal agencies for special purposes. State and local municipalities sell bonds to finance schools, hospitals, highways, bridges, airports, and the like. Corporations sell bonds to finance long-term capital project— new plants or equipment. Maturity. Maturity means the length of time until the principal is repaid. Short-term bonds mature in less than two years. Note that short-term may be used to mean less than one year. Long-term bonds mature in more than ten years. Intermediate-term bonds, as the name implies, mature between short- and long-term debt. Treasury bills have maturates of one year or less, Treasury notes mature between one and ten years, and Treasury bonds have maturates of ten years or longer.
What is meant by the term "bond quality"?Bond quality means the creditworthiness of the issuing organization—the likelihood that it will be able to repay its debt. Independent rating services, such as Moody's Investors Service, Inc. or Standard & Poor’s Corporation, publish directories (available in most large libraries) that rate bond quality. A lower rating means the service associates a greater credit risk with that particular bond issue. Rating agencies use a combination of letters A though D to estimate the risk for prospective investors. For example, AAA (or Aaa) is the highest quality bond while C or D rated bonds are in default of payment.
What is a "bond call provision"?Investors considering long-term bonds should be alert to the possibility of a "call" (or redemption) feature in the bonds, which can frustrate their expectation of a high yield over the life of the bonds. Such a call feature gives the issuing corporation the right to call in (redeem) its bonds after a specified number of years have elapsed. (Growing numbers of corporations are reserving such early redemption features in their bonds in hopes of refinancing later at the lower interest rates.) The call feature has three effects:
There are a number of different call provisions, some of which are complex and hard to understand. What to do: Seek bonds which either have no call feature or bonds which have the latest possible redemption date. What do the various bond ratings mean?The table below provides a summary of the ratings:
For more detailed definitions of each rating, consult the publications of the rating services. What factors affect bond prices?Think of bond prices and interest rates as opposite ends of a see-saw. When rates fall, prices rise. When rates rise, prices fall. Why does it work this way?
Bond mutual fund share values generally reflect bond prices. Fund managers decide which bonds to buy and sell, and when, in accordance with the fund's investment objective. (Of course, you can redeem, or liquidate, your shares at any time.) Bond prices are also influenced by maturity. The extent of the change in bond price is also influenced by the maturity of the bond. The longer the maturity, the greater the change in price for a given change in interest rates. For example, a rise in interest rates will bring about a larger drop in price for a 20-year bond than for an otherwise equivalent 10-year bond. Bond fund managers try to lengthen or shorten the fund's average maturity (within the fund's overall investment objectives) to anticipate changing interest rates. Changes in bond fund prices due to changing interest rates do not reflect on the creditworthiness of the bond issuers. If, however, their creditworthiness changes, bond fund prices may also change—this type of price volatility is known as credit risk.
Should I buy bond funds directly or through a mutual fund?The biggest difference between an individual bond and a bond mutual fund is this: Because the bond fund contains many different bonds, neither the dividend payments you receive nor the maturity date is fixed. So you cannot "lock in" your principal or your payment rate. Let's examine the implications of this difference. A bond mutual fund is an investment company of which the sole business is managing a portfolio of individual bonds. Investors purchase ownership shares in the fund, with each share representing ownership in all the bonds in the fund's portfolio. Thus, a pool of shareholders owns a pool of bonds. Professional money managers use shareholders’ investments to buy and sell bonds for the portfolio in accordance with the fund's investment objective. Due to pooled resources and the professional money management, bond fund shareholders can invest in far more bonds than could the average individual investor. For example, you would need to pay $25,000 for a single Government National Mortgage Association (GNMA or Ginnie Mae) bond, for instance, but you can invest in most GNMA bond mutual funds for only $1,000. Liquidity is another important difference between an individual bond and a bond fund. By law, the bond fund must buy back your shares at any time. You may receive more or less than your purchase price, depending on how the value of the fund's underlying portfolio has changed. In contrast, for an individual bond, if you invested in it directly, you would need to find your own buyer if you wanted to sell it before it matured. Bond fund portfolios can contain many different types of bonds of different maturates and varying quality. Risks also vary depending on the type of fund. All bond funds are subject to interest rate risk, and most are subject to credit risk. There may be other types of risk as well. Each fund's investment objective, the types of bonds it invests in, related risks, fees, and other information can be found in the fund's prospectus. What are the various types of bond funds?The table below shows eight common types of bond funds and some of their key characteristics.
What are municipal bonds?Bonds issued by states, cities, or certain agencies of local governments (such as school districts) are called municipal bonds. An important feature of these bonds is that the interest a bondholder receives is not subject to federal income tax. In addition, the interest is also exempt from state and local tax if the bondholder lives in the jurisdiction of the issuing authority. Because of the tax advantages, however, the interest rate paid on municipal bonds is generally lower than that paid on corporate bonds. Rating agencies evaluate bonds issued by state and local governments and their agencies, taking into consideration such factors as the tax base, population statistics, total debt outstanding, and the area's general economic climate. There are different types of municipal bonds. Some are general obligation bonds that are secured by the full faith and credit of a state or local government, and are backed by its taxing power. Others are revenue bonds that are issued to finance specified public works, such as bridges or tunnels, and are directly backed by the income from the specific project. Prices of most municipal bonds are not usually quoted in daily newspapers.
What do I need to know about U.S. Government bonds?Like state and local governments, the U.S. Government also issues debt securities to raise funds. Because these are backed by the federal government itself, they are considered to have maximum safety characteristics. Government debt securities include Treasury bills with maturates of up to one year, Treasury notes with maturates between one and ten years, and Treasury bonds with maturates between ten and thirty years. Other U.S. Government agencies issue bonds, notes, debentures, and participation certificates. While government securities do not have to be registered with the SEC, transactions involving them are subject to the antifraud provisions of the securities laws and SEC rules. Can I buy treasury bonds without a broker?Treasury bills, notes, and bonds can be purchased directly from the Federal Reserve. Call the Federal Reserve branch nearest you and ask them to mail you information on purchasing through the Treasury Direct program.
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