Muni Bond Fund Flows Slip on Slow Week

Flows into municipal bond mutual funds remained positive. Barely. Nonetheless, investors could still be said to favor munis funds.

Those funds that report their flows weekly saw $260 million of inflows for the week ended Sept. 5, according to Lipper FMI. They have seen inflows for 21 straight weeks.

There were net inflows of $613 million in the week ended Aug. 29. For perspective, there have now been positive flows to muni bond funds for 50 of the past 53 weeks.

Muni yields outperformed their Treasury brethren on the week since last Friday. But they did so by rising at a slower pace. Yields over the period rose several basis points from the belly of the curve on out.

Muni ratios to Treasuries on the week dropped across the curve, particularly at the front end. They remained at attractive levels of at least 104%.

And although scant for the second week that straddled the Labor Day holiday, the calendar saw respectable reception, as muni bond investor appetite remained strong.

Assets for all muni funds that report their flows weekly dropped to $309.3 billion from $311.8 billion the week before.

The value of the holdings for weekly reporting funds jumped by $726 million. The week before, they increased by almost $1.2 billion.

The four-week moving average for all municipal bond mutual funds that report their flows weekly saw a $568 million inflow, falling somewhat from a $788 million gain the week before.

Long-term bond fund inflows fell on the week. And their share of overall inflows remained just below half of the total for muni bond funds.

Long-term bond funds that report their flows weekly saw inflows to the tune of $124 million, roughly halving from $240 million the week before.

High-yield muni funds also recorded inflows, though they dropped for the fourth consecutive week. Flows have been positive for 23 consecutive weeks, and 37 of the previous 38 weeks.

High-yield funds that report weekly saw $124 million in inflows, Lipper said. The previous week, they reported $134 million in inflows.

Assets for high-yield funds that report their flows weekly increased to $41.74 billion, down from $43.86 billion the previous week.

The value of the holdings for weekly reporting funds rose by $165 million. Last week, they increased by $206 million.

The four-week moving average for all high-yield municipal bond funds that report their flows weekly was $171 million of inflows, down from $213 million the week before.

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