Airport bond yields have nearly returned to pre-pandemic levels as U.S. citizens continue to get vaccinated and travel volumes rise.
From Bloomberg:
Bonds backed by America’s airports are rallying back as the Covid vaccine rollout promises to revive the travel industry, marking a rebound for one of the corners of the municipal-debt market hardest hit by the pandemic.
The rally has driven the yields on debt backed by airports down to about 1.2%, or about 30 basis points more than the market’s benchmark, according to an ICE Bank of America index tracking the sector. That marks a dramatic shift from early in the pandemic, when speculation about the deep financial toll of the nation’s shutdowns drove the index’s yield to more than 4% as investors dumped the securities in droves.
The move eliminates what had been some of the rare bargains in the municipal securities market as valuations on top-rated bonds hover near record highs. Junk bonds have climbed, too, pushing the yields back toward the more than two-decade low hit before Covid-19 raced through the U.S.
“During the pandemic, airlines and anything associated got absolutely crushed in terms of spread — and they stayed wider for a longer period of time than some of the other sectors that were affected,” said Jason Appleson, a portfolio manager at PT Asset Management in Chicago. “In terms of buying opportunity, I’m not sure there is a lot left.”
