Bear Stearns index rises 0.86% in most recent week, up 1.79% year to date

New York, March 15 - The Bear Stearns High Yield Index built on strong returns in the week to March 7 and added a further 0.86% in the most recent week, bringing the year-to-date return to 1.79%. Once more telecommunications was the leading sector.

The most recent gain is the third in a row - the week before the index jumped sharply upwards with a 1.62% move and the week before it added 0.17% - after four consecutive weeks of declines.

With the further rise, the index's yield to worst declined 20 basis points to 11.98% from 12.18% a week earlier. The spread to worst moved in by 37 basis points to 725 basis points from 762 basis points.

Overall the index included 1,417 issues with a total market value of $316.372 billion compared to 1,416 issues valued at $312.369 billion the week before.

Once again, all 11 sectors into which Bear Stearns divides the index rose in the most recent week.

And once again telecommunications was the top-placed sector, returning 2.05% in the week after gaining 5.64% the previous week.

However the group is still by far the worst performer year to date with a 12.90% loss, significantly underperforming the only other sector of the 11 in negative territory so far in 2002, utilities with a 7.48% decline. As in the previous week, utilities was, however, the second best performing sector at 1.84% for the seven days.

The laggard among sectors was media, although it still managed to return 0.39%. The week before, energy had been last.

Year to date, the best performing sector is transportation, which added 1.68% in the week to March 14 for a return so far in 2002 of 9.78%.

Among narrow sub-sectors, the week's top performer was broadband access and internet services, although its 4.46% rise still leaves it 24.42% lower so far this year, the second worst performer. Bottom on a year-to-date basis is long distance, down 32.91% despite a rise of 3.74% in the most recent week.

The year-to-date best performing sector is satellites, up 15.21% so far in 2002 and with a 0.58% rise in the most recent week.

For the week to March 14, the biggest loser was insurance, which dropped 0.66% although it is still up 11.69% so far this year.

© 2015 Prospect News.
All content on this website is protected by copyright law in the U.S. and elsewhere. For the use of the person downloading only.
Redistribution and copying are prohibited by law without written permission in advance from Prospect News.
Redistribution or copying includes e-mailing, printing multiple copies or any other form of reproduction.