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Fallen Angels Index Shift Looms as Potential Entrants Emerge

30 August 2024

Read Time 6 MIN

Potential fallen angels in H2 2024 may reshape Index; wider spreads in Telecom and Real Estate sectors dampened Index performance in June.

After outperforming in Q1 by 0.10%, fallen angels (as represented by the ICE US Fallen Angel High Yield 10% Constrained Index, “H0CF”) underperformed broad high yield (as represented by the ICE BofA US High Yield Index, “H0A0”) by 1.60% in Q2 and now lag by 1.53% YTD. Most Q2 underperformance can be attributed to credit deterioration in weaker credits within the Telecom and Real Estate sectors. Within Telecom, Embarq had been trading at distressed levels all year but deteriorated further in June following a downgrade. In addition, Lumen Technologies spreads widened significantly through the quarter. Within Real Estate, Office Properties Income Trust, a REIT focused on office properties, conducted a distressed exchange, reflecting ongoing concerns in that sector. Fallen angels continue to be overweight to the Real Estate sector by approximately 2.5x versus the broad high yield market. Rates have also taken a toll on fallen angels this year, as intermediate and long maturity US Treasury yields have increased approximately 0.50%, most of which occurred in Q1.

J.P. Morgan is expecting fallen angels to outpace rising stars for the remainder of the year, with approximately $30bn downgrades expected and only $5bn in rising stars. The downgrades are expected to occur within Media, Basic Industry, Retail, among others, and are mostly idiosyncratic in nature. One of the issuers, Paramount, is already rated high yield by S&P (BB+), while Fitch has it on negative watch (BBB-) and Moody’s put its Baa3 on review for downgrade after it agreed to sell itself to SkyDance due to ongoing pressures that will continue to impact the businesses. Below we analyze how Paramount would impact the fallen angel index, if it were to be downgraded to high yield:

  • The fallen angel index hasn’t had exposure to the Media sector since the middle of 2019, and Paramount would be the only issuer in the sector.
  • With approximately $13bn in debt, Paramount would likely reach the index’s 10% issuer cap, making it the largest exposure in the index. The largest exposure now belongs to Walgreens with just over 6% weight in the Retail sector.
  • Paramount’s duration is slightly longer than 7 years, which would increase the fallen angel index duration.
  • Over the last 6 months, the average price return of Paramount bonds in the broad investment grade index was -8.25%.

Paramount Par Weighted Price (last 6 months)

Paramount Par Weighted Price (last 6 months)

Source: ICE Data Services, VanEck. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.

  Fallen Angels Broad HY
  12/31/23 3/31/24 6/30/24 12/31/23 3/31/24 6/30/24
Yield to Worst 6.99 6.92 7.10 7.69 7.75 7.94
Par Weighted Price 91.20 91.22 90.32 91.86 93.18 92.98
Effective Duration 5.41 5.32 5.08 3.31 3.28 3.26
Full Market Value ($mn) 67,821 64,657 55,371 1,237,721 1,260,542 1,266,993
OAS 285 247 252 339 315 321
No. of Issues 143 138 126 1,837 1,864 1,863

Source: ICE Data Services, VanEck. Fallen Angels: ICE US Fallen Angel High Yield 10% Constrained Index. Broad HY: ICE BofA US High Yield Index. OAS refers to “option-adjusted spread.” Please see definition for this and other terms referenced herein in the disclosures and definitions portion of this blog. Past performance is no guarantee of future results. Index performance is not representative of strategy performance. It is not possible to invest in an index.

It is important to note that while the potential returns from investing in fallen angels can be attractive, they also carry important risks.

Fallen Angels: The fallen angel index had no new entrants in Q2, but we continue to believe there is potential for idiosyncratic downgrades in coming months with Boeing and Paramount being the largest.

Month-end Addition Name Rating Sector Industry % Mkt Value Price
January Hudson Pacific Properties LP BB1 Real Estate REITs 2.18 88.05
February Advance Auto Parts Inc. BB1 Retail Specialty Retail 2.52 91.20

Source: ICE Data Services, VanEck. Fallen Angels: ICE US Fallen Angel High Yield 10% Constrained Index. Past performance is no guarantee of future results. Not a recommendation to buy or sell any of the names/securities mentioned herein. Index performance is not representative of strategy performance. It is not possible to invest in an index.

Rising Stars: There were no rising stars in May or June, but FirstEnergy and Rolls-Royce were upgraded to investment grade during the quarter in April. It appears the momentum for rising stars has continued to weaken, relative to the last few years.

Month-end Exit Name Rating Sector Industry % Mkt Value Price
February Las Vegas Sands Corp BB1 Leisure Gaming 3.12 93.19
March Enlink Midstream Partners LP BB1 Energy Gas Distribution 2.30 88.92
April FirstEnergy Corp. BB1 Utility Electric-Integrated 6.62 87.10
April Rolls-Royce PLC BB1 Capital Goods Aerospace/Defense 1.51 96.00

Source: ICE Data Services, VanEck. Fallen Angels: ICE US Fallen Angel High Yield 10% Constrained Index. Past performance is no guarantee of future results. Not a recommendation to buy or sell any of the names/securities mentioned herein. Index performance is not representative of strategy performance. It is not possible to invest in an index.

Fallen Angels Performance by Sector: No major change in the sector allocation over the past few months due to the lack of fallen angels and rising stars. In terms of performance, all sectors except for Financial Services, RE, Retail and Telecom (approximately 43% exposure) posted positive returns in June, with Healthcare and Tech being the top performers, although their contribution to return was limited due to their relatively low exposure (approximately 12%). In terms of attribution vs broad high yield in June, the impact of wider spreads was the main culprit of the underperformance by fallen angels especially within Telecom, with two issuers (Embarq and Lumen Technologies) seeing their spreads widened to +5000bps and +2000bps respectively. Within Real Estate, Office Properties Income Trust (OPI, 0.83% exposure) conducted a distressed exchange and was removed from the index due to not meeting index minimum face amount outstanding requirements. Within Retail, Walgreens (6.29% exposure) spreads widened by close to 80bps. The idiosyncratic nature of these events has affected their price, especially in Real Estate and Telecom, but with the exit of OPI and the now low weightings of Embarq and Lumen Tech (0.49%), further downside in these names is limited.

  Wgt (%) OAS Price Total Return Total Return
  31/12/23 21/03/24 30/06/24 31/12/23 31/03/24 30/06/24 31/12/23 31/03/24 30/06/24 MTD YTD
Banking 4.79 4.62 5.38 231 235 220 97.91 97.11 97.36 0.45 2.11
Basic Industry 1.70 3.20 3.73 171 186 156 97.24 94.37 95.03 0.80 2.51
Capital Goods 5.85 6.17 5.41 200 153 161 97.34 97.38 97.51 1.02 2.85
Consumer Goods 4.33 4.42 5.28 230 223 240 94.29 93.07 93.64 0.36 2.43
Energy 14.75 11.17 12.27 259 235 239 92.49 93.95 93.44 1.00 3.49
Financial Services 1.14 1.18 1.37 378 336 376 86.41 87.09 84.87 -0.63 1.32
Healthcare 4.10 4.44 5.15 270 210 207 88.73 90.80 91.12 1.29 5.51
Insurance 1.32 1.43 1.65 323 244 238 94.10 96.82 96.11 0.55 5.31
Leisure 7.90 5.10 5.92 228 170 180 93.21 95.08 94.48 0.57 3.38
Real Estate 9.07 9.60 10.07 675 527 450 82.72 81.84 84.76 -0.37 -1.36
Retail 14.38 18.02 20.45 242 179 196 86.39 89.54 88.19 -0.08 3.59
Services 0.64 0.66 0.79 243 217 206 94.78 94.51 94.67 0.64 2.51
Technology & Electronics 6.22 5.81 6.67 194 188 184 94.14 92.99 92.27 1.26 1.30
Telecommunications 13.00 13.39 11.10 366 368 413 92.22 90.01 81.48 -1.49 -6.68
Transportation 2.09 2.23 2.60 209 170 150 94.92 95.37 96.07 0.85 3.79
Utility 8.71 8.54 2.17 139 122 185 92.18 91.13 96.23 0.35 -0.38
Total 100 100 100.00 285 247 252 91.20 91.22 90.32 0.24 1.09

Source: ICE Data Services, VanEck. Returns are based on partial period data. Fallen Angels: ICE US Fallen Angel High Yield 10% Constrained Index. Not intended as a recommendation to invest or divest in any of the sectors mentioned herein. Index performance is not representative of strategy performance. It is not possible to invest in an index.

Fallen Angels Performance by Rating: The total weight of BB rated bonds increased to 87.62% from 81.63% at the end of Q1, as Telecom Italia Capital was upgraded to Ba3 from B1 by Moody’s due to improvement of the company’s financial profile as the European Commission approved Telecom’s Italia sale of its fixed line business to KKR. The BB rated bucket had not seen this high exposure of BB rated bonds since the end of 2022, when it fell below 90%. Another Telecom issuer, Embarq Corp was downgraded to CC from CCC following a downgrade by Fitch to CCC- from B after a significant decline in liquidity and expectations that the company may need to restructure its debt. Year to date, BB rated fallen angel bonds have performed in line with the broad BBs. However, single-B and CCC & lower rated fallen angels have significantly underperformed due to both lower carry and wider spreads in those ratings categories relative to the broad market.

  Wgt (%) OAS Price Total Return Total Return
  31/12/23 31/03/24 30/06/24 31/12/23 31/03/24 30/06/24 31/12/23 31/03/24 30/06/24 MTD YTD
BB 80.55 81.63 87.62 219 190 210 92.44 92.85 92.62 0.50 2.43
B 13.43 12.87 7.89 317 330 371 96.46 93.99 90.73 2.12 -0.79
CCC 5.44 5.51 4.19 1,130 893 505 69.40 68.48 80.90 -7.19 -12.88
CC     0.30     5719     13.00   2.47
Total 100 100 100.00 285 247 252 91.20 91.22 90.32 0.24 1.09

Source: ICE Data Services, VanEck. Fallen Angels: ICE US Fallen Angel High Yield 10% Constrained Index. Not intended as a recommendation to invest or divest in any of the sectors mentioned herein. Index performance is not representative of strategy performance. It is not possible to invest in an index. BB index: ICE BofA BB US High Yield Index; Single-B index: ICE BofA Single-B US High Yield Index; CCC & Lower rated index ICE BofA CCC & Lower US High Yield Index.

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Glossary

  • Fallen Angels: Bonds that were initially given an investment-grade rating but have been downgraded to a high-yield, or "junk," status.
  • Spreads: The difference in yield between two different bonds or bond indexes.
  • Duration: A measure of the sensitivity of the price of a bond to a change in interest rates.
  • Default: When a bond issuer fails to pay interest or principal as scheduled.
  • Investment Grade: Bonds rated ‘BBB’ or higher by credit rating agencies such as S&P, which are considered to have a lower risk of default.
  • High Yield: Bonds rated ‘BB’ or below by credit rating agencies, indicating a higher risk of default but potentially higher returns.

IMPORTANT INFORMATION

This is a marketing communication. Please refer to the prospectus of the UCITS and to the KID before making any final investment decisions. This information originates from VanEck (Europe) GmbH, which has been appointed as distributor of VanEck products in Europe by the Management Company VanEck Asset Management B.V., incorporated under Dutch law and registered with the Dutch Authority for the Financial Markets (AFM). VanEck (Europe) GmbH with registered address at Kreuznacher Str. 30, 60486 Frankfurt, Germany, is a financial services provider regulated by the Federal Financial Supervisory Authority in Germany (BaFin).

The information is intended only to provide general and preliminary information to investors and shall not be construed as investment, legal or tax advice VanEck (Europe) GmbH and its associated and affiliated companies (together “VanEck”) assume no liability with regards to any investment, divestment or retention decision taken by the investor on the basis of this information. The views and opinions expressed are those of the author(s) but not necessarily those of VanEck. Opinions are current as of the publication date and are subject to change with market conditions. Certain statements contained herein may constitute projections, forecasts and other forward-looking statements, which do not reflect actual results. Information provided by third party sources is believed to be reliable and have not been independently verified for accuracy or completeness and cannot be guaranteed. Brokerage or transaction fees may apply.

All performance information is based on historical data and does not predict future returns. Investing is subject to risk, including the possible loss of principal.

No part of this material may be reproduced in any form, or referred to in any other publication, without express written permission of VanEck.

© VanEck (Europe) GmbH

Important Disclosure

This is a marketing communication. Please refer to the prospectus of the UCITS and to the KID before making any final investment decisions.

This information originates from VanEck (Europe) GmbH, which has been appointed as distributor of VanEck products in Europe by the Management Company VanEck Asset Management B.V., incorporated under Dutch law and registered with the Dutch Authority for the Financial Markets (AFM). VanEck (Europe) GmbH with registered address at Kreuznacher Str. 30, 60486 Frankfurt, Germany, is a financial services provider regulated by the Federal Financial Supervisory Authority in Germany (BaFin).

The information is intended only to provide general and preliminary information to investors and shall not be construed as investment, legal or tax advice VanEck (Europe) GmbH, VanEck Switzerland AG, VanEck Securities UK Limited and their associated and affiliated companies (together “VanEck”) assume no liability with regards to any investment, divestment or retention decision taken by the investor on the basis of this information. The views and opinions expressed are those of the author(s) but not necessarily those of VanEck. Opinions are current as of the publication date and are subject to change with market conditions. Certain statements contained herein may constitute projections, forecasts and other forward-looking statements, which do not reflect actual results. Information provided by third party sources is believed to be reliable and have not been independently verified for accuracy or completeness and cannot be guaranteed. Brokerage or transaction fees may apply.

All performance information is based on historical data and does not predict future returns. Investing is subject to risk, including the possible loss of principal.

No part of this material may be reproduced in any form, or referred to in any other publication, without express written permission of VanEck.

© VanEck (Europe) GmbH / VanEck Asset Management B.V.