Читать книгу The Sterling Bonds and Fixed Income Handbook - Mark Glowrey - Страница 42

I recently surveyed the readers of my website for their opinion on preferred ratings bands and sectors. 20% of respondents replied that they did not follow the credit ratings agencies, preferring to formulate their own view independently of any rating given. This is not unreasonable. Many private investors have very good judgement and are not slaves to industry orthodoxy. That opens the possibility of buying unrated issues, an area where many fund mangers will be unable to tread.

Consider that an unrated bond is not necessarily a bad credit. There are some issuers who are of the opinion that their name and creditworthiness are sufficient to stand alone without the imprimatur of Moody’s or Standard and Poor’s. A good example of this would be the mutually-held John Lewis Group, which the market prices as a high-end investment grade corporate, in spite of not having a rating. Tesco Bank, the banking subsidiary of the supermarket group, is also unrated (although its parent carries an investment grade from the major agencies).

However; be advised. There is a danger, particularly with private investors, to confuse the product with the issuer. Whilst John Lewis is in good shape, there are numerous producers of well-loved and luxury goods that operate on thin margins, low profitability and a stretched balance sheet. With unrated issuers, take a good long look at the reports and accounts before acting.