Market Commentaries
Turning 30 — A Milestone Year
January 2015By Ronald P. Bernardi We thank our clients and others who count on us and wish everyone a healthy and prosperous 2015. This past November marked the beginning of our thirtieth year in business. Today, I want to share a few thoughts with you, some of wh …
Wicomico County, Maryland
December 2014Wicomico County, Maryland successfully issued $1.605 Million of Series 2014B Taxable General Obligation Public Improvement Bonds. The bonds are rated Aa2 by Moody’s and AA+ by Standard & Poor’s. The Bonds are being issued for the purpose of financi …
Detroit and Stockton Emerge from Chapter 9 – A Few Facts, Observations and Takeaways
November 2014By Ronald P. Bernardi Stockton, California emerged from Chapter 9 on October 30, 2014 when U. S. Bankruptcy Judge Christopher M. Klein confirmed Stockton’s plan. Detroit, Michigan emerged from bankruptcy on November 7, 2014 when U.S. Bankruptcy Judge S …
Municipal Bond Specialists for 30 Years — Our Founder Gives Thanks for Bernardi’s Mission
November 2014By Edward Bernardi As we begin to celebrate our 30th anniversary, I have been asked to give you a review of our firm’s history, guiding principles and some of the changes I have seen in the municipal bond market. I have been in this business for over 5 …
Premium Municipal Bonds: Benefits in a Rising Rate Environment
October 2014By Matthew P. Bernardi Many investors find it difficult to pay a price greater than par for a bond. We often find this hesitation is purely psychological and causes some investors to miss an advantageous structure in a low interest rate environment. Th …
Premium Municipal Bond Benefits in a Rising Rate Environment
October 2014Many investors find it difficult to pay a price greater than par for a bond. We often find this hesitation is purely psychological and causes some investors to miss an advantageous structure in a low interest rate environment. This market commentary is …
Municipal Securities as High Quality Liquid Assets (HQLA)
September 2014By Ronald P. Bernardi For many months, we at Bernardi Securities have closely followed the issue of municipal securities and their status as a high-quality liquid asset (HQLA) for commercial banks and nonbank systemically important financial institutio …
2014 Mid-Year Municipal Market Update
July 2014Since June of last year the economy has added almost 2.5 million jobs and the unemployment rate has fallen from 7.50% to 6.08%. Nonfarm payrolls have surpassed pre-crisis levels and PCE inflation readings — although subdued — have increased from 1.16% …
Black River Falls, Wisconsin
April 2014$5.225 Million Electric System Revenue Refunding Bonds, Series 2014 The Bonds are being issued for the purpose of refunding, on a current basis, the 2014 through 2030 maturities of the City’s Series 2010A Taxable Electric System Revenue Bonds (Build Am …
Detroit settles with UTGO creditors – BOND is Right Side Up! Still “Waiting for Godot”
April 2014By Ronald P. Bernardi Detroit Settles on UTGO Debt The family vacation photo that made its debut this past December, “Will Detroit turn BOND upside down?”, returns today, right side up. Last week Detroit reached a settlement with three bond insurers ov …
The Problem with Waiting for the “Fed” to Raise Rates
March 2014Following Janet Yellen’s recent testimony, many investors may just want to wait for Federal Reserve policy makers to raise interest rates before committing money to the bond market. After all, the fed funds rate has been held in the 0% to 0.25% range f …
The Problem with Waiting for the “Fed” to Raise Rates
March 2014By Jeffrey D. Irish Following Janet Yellen’s recent testimony, many investors may just want to wait for Federal Reserve policy makers to raise interest rates before committing money to the bond market. After all, the fed funds rate has been held in the …
2013 Municipal Bond Wēijī: Does Crisis Equal 2014 Opportunity?
January 2014The municipal bond market’s behavior in 2013 could be summed up by the old saying that the Chinese word for “crisis” – wēijī – is actually composed of two characters representing “danger” and “opportunity.” John F. Kennedy is credited for popularizing …
Will Detroit turn BOND upside down?
December 2013By Ronald P. Bernardi Will the Detroit Chapter 9 bankruptcy turn the municipal bond world upside down? A random vacation photo captured this concern fairly well. With such a big question looming over the market, let’s review the ways in which th …
Perspective and Strategy Discussion
December 2013Historical U.S. Treasury Bond Yield Curves Red Line = November 2003 (New, 30-yr. Treasuries were not being issued at this time) Orange Line = November 2008 Blue Line = November 2013 (current) Green Line = November 2012 Over the years, we’ve talked ab …