Business development companies (BDCs) have increased in popularity among investors during years of the Federal Reserve’s low interest rate policy because this asset class is known for its whopping yields. However, with Treasury yields on the rise, some high-yielding asset classes are proving vulnerable, meaning investors should take the time to assess positions in BDCs and the corresponding exchange traded funds.
Rising Treasury yields have made BDCs and the Market Vectors BDC Income ETF (NYSEArca: BIZD) laggards in the otherwise sturdy financial services sector for a couple of months now, but some analysts believe the time is right to consider some of the stocks that call BIZD home.
“We believe the negative performance of the high yield financials has been related to the Fed’s plan to raise short-term interest rates this year. However, as the Fed has increasingly indicated that it will raise interest rates very slowly, we are perplexed by the concerns about the impact of a 25-basis-point increase in interest rates on these stocks,” said Keefe, Bruyette & Woods in a note out Monday that was posted by Barron’s.
Some of KBW’s favorite BDC’s include BlackRock Capital Investment (NasdaqGS: BKCC), Ares Capital (NasdaqGS: ARCC) and Apollo Investment (Nasdaq: AINV). The $79 million BIZD allocates 15.5% of its weigh to Ares, making the stock the ETF’s largest holding. Apollo Investment accounts for 4.7% of the ETF’s weight while BlackRock Capital garners a weight of 3.6%, according to Market Vectors data.
BDCs offer attractive income opportunities since they are required to pay out 90% of income in form of dividends, a structure similar to what income investors find with real estate investment trusts (REITs).