EDU Articles
Learn about investing, trading, retirement, banking, personal finance and more.
What does Investment Grade Mean?
Investment grade refers to the highest quality of debt available, and usually means the bond has little risk of default.
Determining a bond’s credit rating is typically handled by ratings agencies, which is far from a perfect process. Ratings agencies like Moody’s and S&P notoriously failed to rate mortgage backed securities as high risk in the months/years leading into the 2008 financial crisis, instead keeping them as investment grade even as the crisis took hold.
An investor should determine the creditworthiness of the issuing company or the security through their own due diligence, above and beyond what the credit rating is.
What is a Credit Rating?
What Happens if I Don’t Diversify my Portfolio Sufficiently?
What are Some Strategies for Diversifying a Portfolio?
What are the Tax Implications of Owning Bonds?
Some bonds receive preferential tax treatment. The interest you receive is fully taxable, unless the bonds are issued...
What is Variable Universal Life Insurance?
Variable Universal Life Insurance benefits the very wealthy, since there is no cap on contributions or income for eligibility
Where Do I Buy Life Insurance?
You should buy your Life Insurance from a company that is reliable, financially stable, and reputable
What is the October Effect?
The October Effect is an anecdotally-founded fear that markets are vulnerable to catastrophe in the month of October
What is an Accelerated Return Note (ARN)?
An accelerated return note (ARN) is an unsecured debt instrument that uses derivatives to offer leveraged return
What are Accounting Earnings?
Earnings are the revenues of the company minus the cost of good sold, expenses, and investment losses
What is Return on Investment?
Return on Investment (ROI) is a ratio used to compare the net income of a project or investment to the amount invested
What is market efficiency?
Market efficiency describes the degree to which relevant information is integrated into the price of a security
What is Chapter 15?
Chapter 15 bankruptcy allows foreign companies access to the US bankruptcy court system in certain circumstances
What is Mortgage Par Rate?
Par rate is the fair market value of a loan for a person with certain risk characteristics, from a lending institution