Thread: How much to bond prices fluctuate?

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  1. #1
    Avalanchelaf
    Guest

    Default How much to bond prices fluctuate?

    According to what I've been reading, bond prices fluctuate based on what interest rates are. I was thinking of maybe buying Wal-Mart bonds which are currently priced at $115.30 with a 5.80 Semi-annual coupon. The maturity date is February 2018. I'm new to bonds. I want to understand how much that bond price will fluctuate between now and February 2018. Thanks a lot for your help.
  2. #2

    Default

    Impossible to say, as that would be predicting the future and if we could do that we'd all be rich already.
  3. #3

    Default

    Thanks for your response. I understand what you're saying. But, can you atleast give me a clue or an example of a bond you know of? With stocks, its easy to see the daily fluctuations because all you have to do is look at the charts. But, I don't see any charts for bonds on financial websites.
  4. #4

    Default

    I don't do bonds, so I don't have an example to give you. I do stocks, but if you ask me how much shares of JCP (JC Penny) is going to fluctuate between now and February of 2018, the answer is still going to be, "Impossible to say".

    The daily price of a bond will fluctuate based on many things. Some examples are credit upgrades/downgrades, stock prices, corporate events (bankruptcies, restructurings, mergers, buyouts, etc), inflation/deflation, liquidity, bid/ask spreads, and the Fed's interest rates. But if you plan on holding the bond until maturity, then none of this really means a damn thing. Unless Walmart goes bankrupt and defaults on the bond, then at maturity you should get back 100 of your principal, plus you'll have whatever interest you collected over the 5 years.
  5. #5
    b6provost0
    Guest

    Default

    That's an important piece of information I discovered a couple days ago. That if you hold the bond to maturity, you will be get back the principal. That's what I needed to know. Thanks for your help.

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