Static deals stand out in Europe
European CLO equity in redeemed deals has delivered excellent returns. But managers might be surprised to discover that static deals are the region’s stars

European CLOs see jump in triple-C exposure, says Fitch
European CLOs have seen their exposure to assets rated triple-C or below increase sharply, reaching an average of 5.0%

Reset or refinancing?
The CLO market is expecting another strong half year for both resets and refinancings. But what factors are leading equity investors to prefer resetting deals over refinancing them?

JP Morgan revises CLO spread target upwards as recession fears mount
Off the back of renewed recession fears JP Morgan has revised its end-of-year AAA CLO spread target upwards to 150bps for both the US and Europe

European managers struggle to add alpha
Before the COVID pandemic, European CLOs comfortably outperformed the Morningstar European Euro-Denominated Loan Index. Since then, alpha has declined for many managers

New survey explores middle-market CLO operations
S&P Global Market Intelligence, in collaboration with Creditflux, conducted a study of middle-market CLO managers to assess how specialists are adapting their operations to tap this burgeoning opportunity

Barclays sees record European CLOs for 2024
Barclays expects a record year for CLO deals in Europe, raising its issuance forecast to EUR 40-45bn in a report released this week

Older CLOs show they’ve still got it
The CLO primary market is vibrant — but some older vintages are still performing very well. We look at the equity performance of US BSL CLOs that have exited their reinvestment period

Bank holdings of CLOs drop by nearly 3% in first quarter
US bank holdings of CLOs fell 2.93% to USD 199bn in the first quarter, as repayments outweighed purchases of the securities

Technical strength drives primary US CLOs spreads below historical norms
Triple As are now pricing on top of historical levels, and other investment-grade CLO tranches are already pricing much tighter than historical trends, thanks to the technical strength observed in the primary US BSL CLO market

Do defaults predict equity returns?
At first glance, recently redeemed European CLOs show some sort of correlation between final IRR and the number of defaults in their portfolio. But what other factors affect performance?

Middle market portfolios aren't immune to rate stress, according to new research
Two research reports published this week highlighted ongoing risks in middle market structured credit portfolios

European WAL test language is getting a little looser finds Dealscribe
The latest quarter has seen some loosening of WAL test laguage for European CLOs, according to document analysts Dealscribe

Thirty years strong - new S&P report highlights resilience of CLO structures
If you’re feeling battered by the relentless Altice coverage, S&P Global Ratings has come out with a timely reminder that dealing with distress is something CLOs do exceptionally well

Deutsche Bank and PSL launch index for European CLOs
Deutsche Bank has launched a total-return benchmark index for euro-denominated CLO debt.

Barclays raises 2024 US BSL CLO new issue forecast
Barclays has become the latest bank research desk to increase its 2024 US BSL CLO new issue forecast

How many CLOs will be reset?
Tightening liability spreads aren’t just driving record new CLO issuance this year — they’re also triggering a wave of resets and refinancings in the US, especially for broadly syndicated CLOs

How many CLOs will be called this year?
Most CLOs are called when loan market prices are high. Distributions and equity NAV are also important, and they suggest that over 30 2017 and 2018 deals are now ripe for redemption

European CLO equity distributions keep getting better, US keep getting worse
The latest distributions for post-reinvestment US CLOs show the impact of rapid prepayment rates, but post-reinvestment European CLOs are bucking that trend and seem to be improving with age.

Ask the market where spreads are heading
Nothing brings the CLO market together like a good moan about the state of the arb. But according to our data, the arbitrage for new-issue US CLOs has remained in the same range for years. 

Fresh wave of CLO calls looms as US equity distributions drop
Equity distributions for US CLOs outside their reinvestment period continue to fall as prepayments cut into cashflows

European CLO primary spreads still have a long way to go
Are European CLO spreads in the primary market cheap or expensive? Our latest research shows that while US managers can celebrate AAAs reaching the 150s, in Europe spreads still have a long way to go to reach historical norms.

New report finds 2023 a record year for alternative credit M&A
A new report on “Acquisitions of Alternative Credit Managers” by credit specialist Gapstow forecasts that more M&A activity lies ahead for credit firms as they struggle with the challenges facing the broader investment management industry

New research says that CLO arb is better than you think, but still not good enough
New research by Barclays’ Powell Eddins and Pranava Boyidapu suggests that CLO arbitrage is in a better place than many investors think, but that BBs are still more attractive

Investor wades into debate on whether CLO BB notes are literally underrated
The latest piece of thought-provoking research from Flat Rock Global broaches the thorny topic of structured credit ratings, asking “Are CLO BB Notes Investment Grade?”