Muni Bond Fund Flows Lighter, but Still Positive

Flows to municipal bond mutual funds fell this week, but they still remain positive.

The market saw a sluggish week of mostly stagnant yields and mixed interest for product in the primary and secondary markets.

Muni bond funds reported almost $504 million of inflows from funds that report their flows weekly for the week ended Aug. 1, according to Lipper FMI. They have seen inflows for 16 consecutive weeks.

There were net inflows of $810 million in the week ended July 25. For context, the muni market has now seen positive flows for 45 of the past 48 weeks.

For the year to date through July 25, there have been $26.6 billion in inflows.

On the week from last Friday, muni yields held steady through all but the belly of the curve. The 10-year triple-A rose two basis points over the period to 1.66%. Yields across the curve sit within striking distance of record lows.

Treasury yields easily outperformed those of munis on the week. This has left ratios in richer territory. Muni ratios to Treasuries now measure at least 110%.

This past week, assets for all muni funds that report their flows weekly leapt to $308.6 billion from $307.6 billion the week before. They've jumped almost $7 billion in a month's time.

The value of the holdings for weekly reporting funds rose by $397 million. The week before, they increased by $1.55 billion.

The four-week moving average for all municipal bond mutual funds that report their flows weekly saw a $701 million inflow, rising from a $654 million gain the week before.

Long-term bond funds recorded strong flows yet again. They weighed in at well more than half of the overall figure for muni bond funds.

Long-term bond funds that report their flows weekly saw inflows to the tune of $307 million, a decrease from $504 million the week before. On the year to date through July 25, they have seen inflows of $11.7 billion.

High-yield muni funds recorded another week of inflows, though not as robust as those of the previous week. Still, flows have been positive for 19 consecutive weeks, and 33 of the previous 34 weeks.

And for the year to date through July 25, flows to high-yield muni funds are up $5.5 billion.

High-yield funds that report weekly saw $130 million in inflows, Lipper said. The previous week, they reported $257 million in inflows.

Assets for high-yield funds that report their flows weekly increased to $42.91 billion, up from $42.62 billion the previous week.

The value of the holdings for weekly reporting funds rose by $159 million. Last week, they increased by $276 million.

The four-week moving average for all high-yield muni bond funds that report their flows weekly was nearly $212 million of inflows, down slightly from $215 million the week before.

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