Shriram transport bonds
from ET
Shriram transport bonds may yield 5% on debut
18 Jul, 2011, 0218 hrs IST, ET Bureau
MUMBAI: Shriram Transport Finance Company’s non-convertible bonds, which were sold out on the first day of subscriptions, may yield a 3-5% return on listing on Monday as investors who lost out could bid up the prices. The bonds are being actively traded in the grey market after speculators offered Rs 8,000-10,000 to retail investors for every application of Rs 5 lakh bonds, to bid on their behalf.
But this is still lower than the Rs 15,000 that was offered to retail investors in the State Bank of India’s retail bond issue. “The bond could list at a premium of something between 3% and 5%,’’ said Anil Rego, CEO, Right Horizons. “Retail investors are increasingly taking advantage of trading in these bonds, since they have an exit option now. I would expect reasonable volumes from investors, but it may be not as much as we saw in the case of other PSU bonds like SBI.”
Shriram Transport Finance, the largest truck financier in the country, received bids for around Rs 1,800 crore on the first day for a Rs 500-crore issue, with a right to retain double the subscriptions, i.e., up to Rs 1,000 crore. The bonds offered 11.6% for five-year NCDs for investments less than Rs 5 lakh. Above that, the coupon was 11.35%. The tight monetary conditions after RBI’s 10 rate increases in 15 months has forced many companies to raise long-term funds from the retail market.
But these companies, that are rated lesser than state-run banks, have to offer high rates to lure investors. State-run banks, with almost sovereign guarantee though deposit insurance is just for Rs 1 lakh, pay 9.5% for 10-year deposits and close to 9% for one year. Shriram’s bonds are secured by a charge on the company’s assets.
Instruments of comparable companies in the secondary market are trading at 10.4% with ratings of AA and AA+. “Credit spreads for AA+ corporate bond of 3 and 5 year maturities are in the range of 130-140 basis points,’’ said Maneesh Kumar, MD, Burgeon Wealth Advisors. “With this NCD issued at a much higher spread than that, investors would probably want to stay locked in. So, despite a relatively higher level of interest, liquidity may also be limited due to a dearth of sellers.”