ESG, or “Environmental, Social, and Governance” has been a hot topic of conversation across the financial world for years, with its weight and influence on investing decisions and credit profiles continuing to grow and expand
Colleges and universities across the country are facing unprecedented pressures. Inflation and rising costs are the most recent factors that drive finance and business officers to pull their hair
Out of control inflation, war, geopolitical tensions, and China’s recent mortgage defaults and boycott are some of the issues that have led to market volatility this year. In a response to inflation running at its highest levels since the early 1980s, the Fed has delivered some of the biggest interest rate hikes in decades, with 75 bp increases in both June and July
In fiscal 2021, private universities saw major positive developments that buoyed their credit positions in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. In particular, strong investment returns across the many asset classes provided for significant growth in cash and investments for most universities, and pandemic-related government aid provided support for operations
There is no question that the rapid rise of interest rates in 2022 has come much more quickly than nearly anyone anticipated. During the second half of 2021, there was growing evidence that the mounting inflationary pressures once thought to be transitory were, in fact, a bigger problem. Indeed, the perspective that inflation was temporarily high was a common stance
In a welcome change from recent years, this year all three rating agencies have assigned a “Stable” outlook to the higher education sector for the first time since 2017
2021 saw a continued demand for – and high issuance of – municipal bonds following record performance in 2020, though higher education issuance was down compared to the prior year, following a decline in taxable issuances
In the last year and a half, the strong stock market performance has been a boon for higher education institutions despite the turbulent operating environment. For example, the S&P 500 is up 35% from its pre-pandemic high
Earlier this year we wrote an article about whether inflationary pressures were real. As articulated in June, we identified the popular economic narrative indicated a strong economic recovery
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