Understanding Bond Pricing - Fidelity Investments€¦ · Understanding Bond Pricing . 2017 . 2 . ... the bond market is volatile, ... compared municipal and corporate inventories

Understanding Bond Pricing

2017

Copyright 1998-2017 FMR LLC. All Rights Reserved. 2

By better understanding bonds, you can more confidently use them to strengthen your portfolio.


Resources to help inform and assist you in managing your assets

Education on securities

Insights for helping you make more prudent and informed decisions

Develop an Ongoing Strategy with Fidelity


Common Questions

How many of you currently have bonds in your portfolio?

1 Ever wonder why it’s harder to get a bond quote than a stock quote?

2 How many of you have a grasp on what you’re being charged per bond trade?

3


Today’s Agenda

Assessing Pricing for Individual Bonds

Comprehending the Bond Market

Understanding Trading Costs


Understanding the Bond Market

Volume

Makeup

Size


The Makeup of the Bond Market Varies from the Stock Market

STOCK MARKET BOND MARKET

Makeup Equity shares of publicly owned companies

Debt securities issued by corporations, governments, government

agencies, municipalities

Size Limited to size of shares offered by companies

Relatively small and large debt instruments

Trading floors Centralized (Ex. NYSE or NASDAQ)

Fragmented, bonds are traded

“over the counter.”

Timing of determined

price

Market price negotiated prior to trade

Market price negotiated at the point of trade


Size

1.Bonds—SIFMA, Q1 2017, Equity NYSE, S&P 500, Dow, NASDAQ. 2. Bonds—SIFMA, Q1 2017, Equity AMEX/ARCA, NYSE, NASDAQ, BATS, DirectEdge. 3. Bonds-FINRA May 2017, Equity-World Federation of Exchanges Dec 2016 4.Bloomberg—Recent 10-K filing.

In general, the bond market is volatile, bond prices rise when interest rates fall and vice versa. This effect is usually pronounced for long-term securities.

Any fixed income security sold or redeemed prior to maturity may be subject to a substantial gain or loss.

CHARACTERISTICS BOND STOCK

Market Size1 $38 Trillion $29 Trillion

Daily Trading Volumes2 $809 Billion $270 Billion

Number of Securities3 1,200,000 5,200

Ford (example) Outstanding4 $65 Billion $45 Billion

Ford (example) Number of Issues4 277 1


Volume: US Bond Markets

Source: Fidelity, SIFMA, 2017

DAILY TRADING VOLUME ($BN) AND CUSIPS OUTSTANDING

$517

$206

$30 $10 $5 1K 54K 89K

1.0M

13K 0K 200K 400K 600K 800K 1.0M 1.2M

$0

$200

$400

$600

$800

$1,000

Treasuries MBS Corporate Municipal Agency

Daily Trading Volume ($BN) # of Cusips


The bond market can be difficult to navigate because of its fragmented nature, its size, and its inconsistent trading.


Review materials in your kit

Take a look at the Viewpoints article titled:

Is it time to look at CDs?

Learn More



Live Pricing

Valuation Pricing

Historical Pricing


Valuation Pricing: Monthly Statement Bond Pricing Valuation

For illustrative purposes only Source: Fidelity.com Screen-print taken on 12/22/2016


Valuation Pricing: Nightly Valuation



Valuation Pricing: Bond Details



Valuation Pricing: Fixed Income Analytics

For illustrative purposes only Source: Fidelity.com


Historical Pricing: Trading Liquidity



~40K Unique Bonds Offered

~60K Total Offerings

Live Pricing: Fidelity Bond Aggregation


Live Pricing: Live Listing of Bonds Available



Live Pricing: Treasuries and Corporate Live Bid and Offer Prices


Bid Price: 99.421 Ask Price: 99.469

Yield Spread: 0.005%

Bid Price: 105.904 Ask Price: 105.999

Yield Spread: 0.011%


Live Pricing: Municipal Bond Offerings



Live Pricing: Depth of Book


11 dealers offering Different quantities and prices 6 dealers bidding

Different quantities and prices


Historical Pricing: Depth of Book and Recent Trades for Corporate Bonds


Recent Trades Investor Bought earlier at 112.52

Investor Sold earlier at 112.20

Best Offer: 112.388 Best Bid: 111.902

Yield Spread: 0.108


Historical Pricing: Depth of Book and Recent Trades for Municipal Bonds


Best Offer: 124.083 No Bids

Trades often months apart Pricing increased over time, in line with general Muni market

Copyright 1998-2017 FMR LLC. All Rights Reserved. 25 Copyright 1998-2017 FMR LLC. All Rights Reserved. 25

Live Pricing: The Yield Table


Fidelity.com > Research > Fixed Income Bonds & CDs

Quick and easy scan of 120 comparative yield data-points

Derived every 15 minutes from live bond inventory

Immediate, one-click, access to search results for that category

https://www.fidelity.com/learning-center/investment-products/etf/whatisanetf-video


Live Pricing: Using the Fidelity.Com Bond Yield Table


Click on a yield to see offerings

View by Highest or Median yields


Live Pricing: The Yield Curve



Live Pricing: Lower-Yielding Bonds Generally Indicate Lower Risk



Live Pricing: Higher-Yielding Bonds Invariably Mean Higher Risk



Review materials in your kit

Learn More Take a look at the Viewpoints article titled:

Bonds 2017: A New Dynamic



Impact

Transparency

Fee Comparison


Cost Transparency

A Fidelity Process: “Transparent Pricing”

OFFERINGS SEEN BY TRADERS

PRICES SEEN BY CUSTOMERS IN

OFFERINGS

PRICES SEEN BY CUSTOMERS IN TRADE TICKET

B Markup Broker Process: “Undisclosed Pricing”

Inventory (and prices) from dealers


Disclosed Concession ($1/Bond)


$1

Bond

1 2 3




Undisclosed Concession ($?/Bond)

Undisclosed Concession ($?/Bond)

$?

Bond


Fee Comparisons

Price Quantity Yield Date/Time Buy/Sell

101.963 100 3.195 06/08/2015 04:49:44 Customer Buy

101.863 100 3.208 06/08/2015 04:49:44 Dealer to Dealer

104.217 75 2.909 06/04/2015 11:11:59 Customer Buy

102.271 75 3.155 06/04/2015 11:11:53 Dealer to Dealer

For illustrative purposes only

Source: Fidelity.com

Fidelity’s $1 per bond concession (101.963 – 101.863) Another broker’s $19.46 per bond markup (104.217 – 102.271)


Impact


Compare Fidelity’s $1 per bond with markup competitors

fidelity.com/go/bond

https://www.fidelity.com/go/bond


Learn More Review materials

Take a look at our online Viewpoints resources:

What the Fed’s Move May Mean


In Review


Comprehending the Bond Market



Next Steps Review materials in your kit

Review the Viewpoints articles:

• Is it time to look at CDs?

• Bonds 2017: A New Dynamic

• What the Fed’s Move May Mean

Attend additional seminars: • Bond Investing Beyond Yield—

A Deeper Dive • Demystifying Bond Selection for

Your Portfolio

• Using Fidelity’s Fixed Income & Bond Investing Tools


Where to start: Fidelity.com > Research > Fixed Income, Bonds & CDs

fixedincome.fidelity.com/ftgw/fi/filanding

For illustrative purposes only



More on the Corporate Insight Bond Pricing Study fidelity.com/go/bond


How Fidelity Can Help

Further understand your current bond holdings

Explore how you may improve your portfolio with bonds

See if you’re currently paying markups on bond transactions

Meet with a Fidelity investment professional


The Advantage of Working with Us


Why Fidelity

Expert Insights and Investing Tools

Trading

Security and Privacy

Straightforward Pricing

WE BELIEVE IN MAKING THE COMPLEX, SIMPLER

Planning and Advice

Advice refers to investment management services offered within our professionally managed accounts


By better understanding bonds, you can more confidently use them to strengthen your portfolio.


1. Fidelity commissioned Corporate Insight to study bond pricing, available online, for self-directed retail investors from five brokers that offer corporate and municipal bonds. The study compared online bond prices for over 20,000 municipal and corporate inventory matches between September 2nd and October 6th, 2015. It compared municipal and corporate inventories offered online. The study found on average that four competitors that bundled their markups or fees into their online bond prices were asking an average of $13.65 more per bond. Corporate Insight determined the average cost differential by calculating the difference between the costs of matching corporate and municipal bond inventory at Fidelity vs. these markup-based firms in the study, then averaging the differences across all of the competitor firms. For the table, the example competitor trade costs range of $240 - $510 is based on an average size order of $22,000 face or par value bonds and average cost differential between Fidelity and the four selected competitors displayed in the table. Year to date, through September 2015, Fidelity's retail brokerage account holders who purchased individual municipal or corporate bonds, purchased an average of 22 bonds per transaction.

Minimum concessions of $19.95 apply if traded with a Fidelity representative. For U.S. Treasury purchases traded with a Fidelity representative, a flat charge of $19.95 per trade applies. A $250 maximum applies to all trades, reduced to a $50 maximum for bonds maturing in one year or less. Fixed income trading requires a Fidelity brokerage account with a minimum opening balance of $2,500. Rates are for U.S. dollar–denominated bonds; additional fees and minimums apply for non-dollar bond trades. Other conditions may apply; see Fidelity.com/commissions for details. Please note that concessions may affect the total cost of the transaction and the total, or "effective," yield of your investment. The offering broker, which may be our affiliate National Financial Services LLC, may separately mark up or mark down the price of the security and may realize a trading profit or loss on the transaction.

References to individual securities are for illustrative purposes only, and should not be construed as investment advice.

In general, the bond market is volatile, and fixed income securities carry interest rate risk. (As interest rates rise, bond prices usually fall, and vice versa. This effect is usually more pronounced for longer-term securities). Fixed income securities also carry inflation risk, liquidity risk, call risk and credit and default risks for both issuers and counterparties. Any fixed income security sold or redeemed prior to maturity may be subject to loss.

Disclosures


Interest income earned from tax-exempt municipal securities generally is exempt from federal income tax, and may also be exempt from state and local income taxes if the investor is a resident in the state of issuance. A portion of the income received may be subject to federal and state income taxes, including the federal alternative minimum tax. In addition, investors may be subject to tax on amounts recognized in connection with the sale of municipal bonds, including capital gains and “market discount” taxed at ordinary income rates. “Market discount” arises when a bond is purchased on the secondary market for a price that is less than its stated redemption price by more than a statutory amount. Before making any investment, investors should review the official statement for the relevant offering for additional tax and other considerations.

The tax information contained herein is general in nature, is provided for informational purposes only, and should not be construed as legal or tax advice. Fidelity does not provide legal or tax advice. Fidelity cannot guarantee that such information is accurate, complete, or timely. Laws of a particular state or laws that may be applicable to a particular situation may have an impact on the applicability, accuracy, or completeness of such information. Always consult an attorney or tax professional regarding your specific legal or tax situation.

Past performance is no guarantee of future results.

Fidelity Brokerage Services LLC, Member NYSE, SIPC, 900 Salem Street, Smithfield, RI 02917 765139.3.1 1.9872603.104

Disclosures

Documents

Understanding Bond Pricing - Fidelity Investments€¦ · Understanding Bond Pricing . 2017 . 2 . ... the bond market is volatile, ... compared municipal and corporate inventories