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Fixed Income Research and Market Data

You can access key information that will assist you with investments decisions on fixed income products. There are credit research reports for Corporate and Municipal markets that will help you identify credit risks and strengths. Yield curves for various fixed income markets will provide information about yields for various maturities over time. You can then evaluate the yields of our bond offerings against this market view. Benchmarks for the aggregate bond market, Municipal, Corporate and Agency markets provide a broad indicator of how each market is performing currently and over time.

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What are the fundamental differences between equity and fixed income credit research?

Credit/fixed income research looks at the likelihood that an issuer will be able to meet financial obligations, including debt payments. They often review the issuer's financial history and determine whether market conditions will be conducive to repayment. This work is done to justify a credit rating supplied by one of the three major ratings agencies, Moody's, S&P and Fitch. Equity research is focused on analyzing financial data and trends for a company. An analyst reviews public records of businesses in order to predict the company's future financial needs. Their report is focused on company finances and describes the business's investment potential by assigning analyst's opinions, such as buy, sell, hold, etc.

What is a market benchmark and how do they differ from yield curves?

A Market Benchmark is a comparative average used when comparing the performance or volatility of a specific security. The benchmark used will vary depending on the instrument you're comparing. We are providing benchmarks for the overall bond market, US Treasury, Municipal, Agency and Corporate market. The benchmark shows you how all instruments included in the index fared on average. You can then use that as a comparison to a security you are considering. The major difference between benchmarks and yield curves is specificity. Yield curves look at a more focused segment of a market than benchmarks. For example a Municipal benchmark would look at the entire Municipal Market. Municipal Yield curves would look at specific credit ratings or even types of Municipal bonds.

What is the difference between Find Fixed Income Products and the regular search pages?

Find Fixed Income Products are screeners that are a subset of the full product search pages. You will only need to input a few key fields to create a search. You can also access the full search page by clicking on Advanced Search

What is the difference between these yield curves and the scattergraph?

The yield curves from the scattergraph are derived from the offerings we receive daily from Fidelity Capital Markets and other bond dealers. The research yield curves are provided by outside providers and may use a different universe of securities to make up their curves. They should be similar but may not be exactly the same.

What do the arrows mean for Topics Trending Now?

They are related to the relevancy of the topic on the web. If the number of sites and articles on that topic are less than the prior week then the arrow will point downward. The reverse is true if the web content is increasing. A neutral notation means that the content has not changed from the prior week.

What is the difference between research and commentary?

A research report includes an analysis of the securities of individual companies, industries or municipalities, and that provides information upon which an investor can form an investment decision. Commentary is an opinion or point of view that could be one element in coming to an investment decision. An investor can base an investment decision based on anything they want to.

How can I tie the research reports to an individual bond?

At this time it would be a manual process for you. We are looking to add Cusip level research later this year. We will try to also add Cusip level news as well.

What is the difference between a Summary Analysis and a State Review on the Municipal market page?

The Summary Analysis is an abbreviated report focused on the rationale for the current credit rating, the current outlook for the municipality and related evaluation criteria and research. The State Review is more in depth and is typically created when the rating of the municipality has changed. In addition to the areas of focus in the Summary Analysis, the State Review also goes into detail on the following:

Why do you have Industry Reviews on the Corporate market page but not sector review?

We do have sector reviews but they are not in their own section. They can be found in Latest Research Reports.