CURRENT Exchange Traded Bonds and Preferred Stocks Basket:

This basket has been downsized some, primarily as a result of profit taking, since I last updated the table back in August 2016. Update For Exchange Traded Bond And Preferred Stock Basket Strategy As Of 8/25/16 - South Gent | Seeking Alpha

Stocks, Bonds & Politics: Exchange Traded Bonds: New Gateway Post

Table as of 7/10/17:

Value: +$102,705.67
Up +$110.6 Today

I include several bond ETFs in the preceding table for comparison purposes. I do not currently own any bond ETFs.  The lot value number for Canadian reset preferred stocks are in USDs but the closing prices are in CADs.  

Most of the profit taking has occurred in Canadian reset equity preferred stocks. Those securities are classified in my allocation strategies with U.S. equity preferred floating rate stocks. 

Stocks, Bonds & Politics: Advantages and Disadvantages of Equity Preferred Floating Rate Securities

Profits in Equity Preferred Floaters: $22,252.79 (snapshots at the end of the preceding linked post)

The realized gains in Canadian reset equity preferred stocks since August 2016 are as follows:  

Profit Is In Canadian Dollars: 

50 CFPRC:   $50.5

50PPLPRE:  $58

50 FFHPRG:  $112

100 PWTPRT:  $46.5

100 VSNPRC:  $792

50 FTSPRM: $75

50 CPXPRC: $225

50 EMAPRE:  $429

50 MFCPRN: $108

300 ENBPRP: $1,468.25

100 PWFPRT: $190.5

50 MFCPRM: $113

50 CFPRC: $173.5

100 DCPRD: $50.5

50 FFHPRG: $168.5

100 RYPRZ: $367

100 TRPPRH: $393

100 PPLPRG: $507

100 TRPPRE: $476.5

200 ENBPRP: $963

100 FTSPRI: $479

100 PPLPRC: $496

Total: +C$7,741.75

I still own several Canadian reset equity preferred stocks with significant unrealized gains.

In the U.S. equity preferred floater category, I lost 30 shares of AHLPRA to an issuer redemption, realizing a $50 gain and harvested $290.96 in profits from SCEPRJ and USBPRH. 

In the baby bonds category, I reduced my credit risks by eliminating RFT, RFTA, TANNL and TANNZ.

The issuer of TANNL and TANNZ, TravelCenters of America, had a dismal first quarter report that caused its exchange traded bonds to decline materially in price. 

TravelCenters of America LLC 8% Senior Notes Due 2030 (TANNZ) 

TravelCenters of America LLC 8% Senior Notes Due 2029 (TANNL) 

TravelCenters 2017 First Quarter Results

Stocks, Bonds & Politics: 4/14/17 (SGYP, TANNZ, TANNL, AGNC, VEA)- Item 4.A. Sold 50 TANNZ at $25.65 and Item 4.B. Sold 50 TANNL at $24.56 

I lost the baby bond HTGZ to an issuer redemption. 

I also engaged in routine trading that generated small profits in the following baby bonds: 

AmTrust Financial Services Inc. 7.25% Subordinated Notes DUE 2055 (AFSS) 

eBay Inc. 6% Notes due 2056  (EBAYL) 

Entergy Mississippi Inc. 4.9% First Mortgage Bonds Due 2066 (EMP) 

GATX Corp. 5.625% Senior Notes due 2066  (GMTX) 

Selective Insurance Group Inc. 5.875% Senior Notes due 2043 (SGZA) 

Southern Co. 5.25% Jr. Subordinated Notes (SOJA) 

Stanley Black & Decker Inc. 5.75% Junior Subordinated Debt Due 2052 (SWJ) 

THL Credit Inc. 6.75% Senior Notes  Due 2022 Stock Quote (TCRZ) 

Trading Profits Baby Bonds Category Since 2008 = $9,360.02 

In the long dated maturities, interest rate risk is asymmetric between the issuer and the bond owner. The lopsided assignment of that risk is in favor of the issuer. If interest rates rise, the issuer will allow the owners to keep the low coupon bonds as they decline in value. If interest rates fall, which has been the case for a long time now, the issuer will redeem the bond at par value when it is able to do so, leaving the bond owners with less desirable alternatives for income replacement. The issuer only assumes the interest rate risk associated with a decline in rates within a few years after issuance so that it has to pay more in interest until it has the option to redeem at par value and refinance at a lower rate.    

I prefer buying $1K par value bonds in the bond market that have make whole provisions triggered by an issuer's optional redemption. Exchange traded bonds generally permit the issuer to redeem at par value at anytime five years after the IPO.  

There has been some light paring in fixed coupon equity preferred stock category since August 2016. I pared some positions shown in the August 2016 table, sometimes adding and then paring. 

The fixed coupon equity preferred category includes mostly REIT preferred stocks and some bank preferred. 

Stocks, Bonds & Politics: Advantages and Disadvantages of Equity REIT Cumulative Equity Preferred Stocks

Realized Gains in Fixed Coupon Equity Preferred Stocks Since 2008: $9,744.31

I sold shares in the following since August 2016: 

REIT Preferred Stocks: CIOPRA,  CYSPRA, CYSPRB, DLRPRI, HTPRD, MNNPRC, NLYPRD, NNNPRF, PSAPRE, REXPRA 

BANK Preferred Stocks: BANCPRE, COFPRC, JPMPRH, RNRPRC, WFCPRW  

Other:  GNEPRA

Regarding the trust certificate category of exchange traded bonds, few of those securities remain due to early redemptions by their respective call warrant owners. Stocks, Bonds & Politics: Trust Certificates: New Gateway Post

I have added recently to my synthetic floaters which are in the Trust Certificate legal form of ownership. Since August 2016,  I did eliminate GJO and PYT and pared GYC and GYB.

Trust Certificates Realized Gains = $29,798.17

I currently have no position in ING hybrids: Stocks, Bonds & Politics: ING Hybrids: Links in one Post
Realized Gains ING Hybrids = $2,117.96


Since August 2016,  I did nibble on the Aegon hybrids AEB and AEH.  

Bought 50 AEB at $21.69-South Gent's Comment Blog # 7
Bought 30 AEH at $24.81South Gent's Comment Blog # 6:

Stocks, Bonds & Politics: Aegon Hybrids: Gateway Post
Realized Gains Aegon Hybrids = $4,512.81

There has been no activity in Trust Preferred securities: TRUST PREFERRED SECURITIES - South Gent | Seeking Alpha

Realized Gains Trust Preferred: $4,169.25

Overall, I remained concern about interest rate risk for potentially perpetual equity preferred stocks and potentially long duration exchange traded bonds. Both categories will react badly to a material rise in interest rates.

I discuss the issue of asymmetric interest rate risk here: Update For Bond And Preferred Stock Basket Strategy As Of 9/10/15 - South Gent | Seeking Alpha

I discussed the interest rate risk and other material topics here: Update On Bond And Equity Preferred Stock Basket Strategy As Of 8/14/15 - South Gent | Seeking Alpha (scroll to following titles in the Appendix section: Interest Rate and Lost Opportunity Risks for Fixed Rate Coupon Equity Preferred Stocks; Credit Risks; Volatility Risk for Equity Preferred Stocks)

Disclaimer: I am not a financial advisor but simply an individual investor who has been managing my own money since I was a teenager. In this post, I am acting solely as a financial journalist focusing on my own investments. The information contained in this post is not intended to be a complete description or summary of all available data relevant to making an investment decision. Instead, I am merely expressing some of the reasons underlying the purchase or sell of securities. Nothing in this post is intended to constitute investment or legal advice or a recommendation to buy or to sell. All investors need to perform their own due diligence before making any financial decision which requires at a minimum reading original source material available at the SEC and elsewhere. A failure to perform due diligence only increases what I call "error creep". Stocks, Bonds & Politics: ERROR CREEP and the INVESTING PROCESS Each investor needs to assess a potential investment taking into account their personal risk tolerances, goals and situational risks. I can only make that kind of assessment for myself and family members.