What Is a Coupon Rate? (2024)

What Is a Coupon Rate?

A coupon rate is the nominal yield paid by a fixed-income security. It is the annual coupon payments paid by the issuer relative to the bond's face or par value.

Key Takeaways

  • A coupon rate is the nominal yield paid by a fixed-income security.
  • When a market ticks up and is more favorable, the coupon holder will yield less than the prevailing market conditions as the bond will not pay more, as its value was determined at issuance.
  • The yield to maturity is when a bond is purchased on the secondary market, and it's the difference in the bond's interest payments, which may be higher or lower than the bond's coupon rate when it was issued.

Understanding Coupon Rates

The coupon rate, or coupon payment, is the nominal yield the bond is stated to pay on its issue date. This yield changes as the value of the bond changes, thus giving the bond's yield to maturity (YTM).

A bond's coupon rate can be calculated by dividing the sum of the security's annual coupon payments and dividing them by the bond's par value. For example, a bond issued with a face value of $1,000 that pays a $25 coupon semiannually has a coupon rate of 5%. All else held equal, bonds with higher coupon rates are more desirable for investors than those with lower coupon rates.

The coupon rate is the interest rate paid on a bond by its issuer for the term of the security. The term "coupon" is derived from the historical use of actual coupons for periodic interest payment collections. Once set at the issuance date, a bond's coupon rate remains unchanged and holders of the bond receive fixed interest payments at a predetermined time or frequency.

A bond issuer decides on the coupon rate based on prevalent market interest rates, among others, at the time of the issuance. Market interest rates change over time and as they move lower or higher than a bond's coupon rate, the value of the bond increases or decreases, respectively.

Changing market interest rates affect bond investment results. Since a bond's coupon rate is fixed all through the bond's maturity, a bondholder is stuck with receiving comparably lower interest payments when the market is offering a higher interest rate. An equally undesirable alternative is selling the bond for less than its face value at a loss. Thus, bonds with higher coupon rates provide a margin of safety against rising market interest rates.

If the market rate turns lower than a bond's coupon rate, holding the bond is advantageous, as other investors may want to pay more than the face value for the bond's comparably higher coupon rate.

Special Considerations

When investors buy a bond initially at face value and then hold the bond to maturity, the interest they earn on the bond is based on the coupon rate set forth at the issuance. For investors acquiring the bond on the secondary market, depending on the prices they pay, the return they earn from the bond's interest payments may be higher or lower than the bond's coupon rate. This is the effective return called yield to maturity (YTM).

For example, a bond with a par value of $100 but traded at $90 gives the buyer a yield to maturity higher than the coupon rate. Conversely, a bond with a par value of $100 but traded at $110 gives the buyer a yield to maturity lower than the coupon rate.

How Are Coupon Rates Affected by Market Interest Rates?

A bond issuer decides on the coupon rate based on prevalent market interest rates, among others, at the time of the issuance. Market interest rates change over time and as they move lower or higher than a bond's coupon rate, the value of the bond increases or decreases, respectively. Since a bond's coupon rate is fixed all through the bond's maturity, bonds with higher coupon rates provide a margin of safety against rising market interest rates.

What's the Difference Between Coupon Rate and YTM?

The coupon rate is the annual income an investor can expect to receive while holding a particular bond. It is fixed when the bond is issued and is calculated by dividing the sum of the annual coupon payments by the par value.At the time it is purchased, a bond's yield to maturity and its coupon rate are the same. The yield to maturity (YTM) is the percentage rate of return for a bond assuming that the investor holds the asset until its maturity date. It is the sum of all of its remaining coupon payments and will vary depending on its market value and how many payments remain to be made.

What Is the Effective Yield?

The effective yield is the return on a bond that has its coupon payments reinvested at the same rate by the bondholder. It is the total yield an investor receives, in contrast to the nominal yield—which is the coupon rate. Essentially, effective yield takes into account the power of compounding on investment returns, while nominal yield does not.

What Is a Coupon Rate? (2024)

FAQs

What is a 5% coupon rate? ›

If an investor purchases a $1,000 ABC Company coupon bond and the coupon rate is 5%, the issuer provides the investor with a 5% interest every year. This means the investor gets $50, the face value of the bond derived from multiplying $1,000 by 0.05, every year.

What is coupon rate in simple terms? ›

The coupon rate is the annual income an investor can expect to receive while holding a particular bond. It is fixed when the bond is issued and is calculated by dividing the sum of the annual coupon payments by the par value.

What does a coupon rate tell you? ›

Coupon rate, also known as the nominal rate, nominal yield or coupon payment, is a percentage that describes how much is paid by a fixed-income security to the owner of that security during the duration of that bond.

What is a coupon rate of 7%? ›

For example, a $1,000 bond with a coupon of 7% pays $70 a year. Typically these interest payments will be semiannual, meaning the investor will receive $35 twice a year.

What does a 10% coupon mean? ›

The coupon rate is calculated on the bond's face value (or par value), not on the issue price or market value. For example, if you have a 10-year- Rs 2,000 bond with a coupon rate of 10 per cent, you will get Rs 200 every year for 10 years, no matter what happens to the bond price in the market.

What is a 20% coupon? ›

A percent off of a product means that the price of the product is reduced by that percent. For example, given a product that costs $279, 20% off of that product would mean subtracting 20% of the original price from the original price. For example: 20% of $279 = 0.20 × 279 = $55.80.

Is a higher or lower coupon rate better? ›

If a coupon is higher than the prevailing interest rate, the bond's price rises; if the coupon is lower, the bond's price falls. The majority of bonds boast fixed coupon rates that remain stable, regardless of the national interest rate or changes in the economic climate.

What is a coupon rate vs yield? ›

The coupon rate is the amount paid to the bondholder by the issuer until its date of maturity. On the other hand, the yield of maturity is the total return earned by the investor till its maturity.

Does coupon rate mean interest rate? ›

The coupon rate is the interest rate paid by a bond relative to its par or face value. For a fixed-rate bond, this will be the same for its entire maturity.

Is a low coupon rate good? ›

Bonds offering lower coupon rates generally will have higher interest rate risk than similar bonds that offer higher coupon rates. For example, imagine one bond that has a coupon rate of 2% while another bond has a coupon rate of 4%.

Does higher coupon mean higher yield? ›

If an investor purchases a bond at par or face value, the yield to maturity is equal to its coupon rate. If the investor purchases the bond at a discount, its yield to maturity will be higher than its coupon rate. A bond purchased at a premium will have a yield to maturity that is lower than its coupon rate.

Is a high coupon rate good for bonds? ›

Coupon rate—The higher a bond or CD's coupon rate, or interest payment, the higher its yield. That's because each year the bond or CD will pay a higher percentage of its face value as interest.

How much is a 10% coupon? ›

Now that we know the formula, let's practice using it to find a 10 percent discount when the original price for an item is $14. So, a 10 percent discount off of $14 gives you a discount of $1.40.

What does coupon rate 6 3 8 mean? ›

The Par Value of the bond is $1,000. Coupon payments are made semi-annually (June 30 and December 31 for this particular bond). Since the coupon rate is 6 3/8%, the payment is $31.875.

What is the coupon rate formula? ›

The formula for the coupon rate consists of dividing the annual coupon payment by the par value of the bond.

How much would a $1000 bond be worth in 10 years? ›

Zero Coupon Bonds

For example, a $1000 bond might be traded on the open market at a cost of $600, to be paid in full after 10 years.

What is the most common coupon size? ›

The most popular size of a coupon is the size of a dollar bill, or 2.5 x 6 inches. You may choose to make a smaller coupon, but keep in mind that people tend to lose them if they are too small.

What is a high coupon? ›

a high rate of interest paid on particular bonds: Bonds with a high coupon trade at a discount (have higher yields) relative to bonds with a low coupon.

How much is $1000 with 20% discount? ›

After multiplying, you see that 20% of 1,000 is 200. Thus, 20% of a $1,000 bill is $200.

How much is 20 percent discount on $1000? ›

You have Rs 1,000 * 0.2 = Rs 200.

What is 30% discount on $20? ›

Answer and Explanation: 30% off of $20 would be $6. So, if you were purchasing this item, it would cost you $14 ($20 - $6 = $14).

How much will the coupon payments be of a 20 year $500 bond with a 8% coupon rate and quarterly payments? ›

Expert Answer

The coupon payment is $10, i.e., option B. Hence, the annual coupon payment per period is $10.

Why do bond prices fall when yields rise? ›

When interest rates rise, existing bonds paying lower interest rates become less attractive, causing their price to drop below their initial par value in the secondary market. (The coupon payments remain unaffected.)

Why low coupon rate is more price risk? ›

The larger the coupon, the shorter the duration number becomes. Generally, bonds with long maturities and low coupons have the longest durations. These bonds are more sensitive to a change in market interest rates and thus are more volatile in a changing rate environment.

Why would a coupon exceed a yield? ›

The yield of maturity is higher than the coupon rate because an investor purchases the bond at a discount.

Is coupon rate always lower than yield to maturity? ›

If the investor purchases the bond at a discount, its yield to maturity is always higher than its coupon rate. Conversely, a bond purchased at a premium always has a yield to maturity that is lower than its coupon rate.

What is the price of a two year bond with a 9% annual coupon and a yield to maturity of 8%? ›

5. Finally, add the present values of the cash flows to find the price of the bond: Price = PV (Year 1) + PV (Year 2) = $83.33 + $935.03 = $1,018.36 So, the price of the two-year bond with a 9% annual coupon and a yield to maturity of 8% is approximately $1,018.36.

Why would someone buy a bond instead of a stock? ›

Investors buy bonds because: They provide a predictable income stream. Typically, bonds pay interest twice a year. If the bonds are held to maturity, bondholders get back the entire principal, so bonds are a way to preserve capital while investing.

Who pays the coupon on a bond? ›

Upon the issuance of the bond, a coupon rate on the bond's face value is specified. The issuer of the bond agrees to make annual or semi-annual interest payments equal to the coupon rate to investors. These payments are made until the bond's maturity.

What happens if the yield on a fixed coupon goes up? ›

If the yield on a fixed-coupon 'bond goes up, does the borrower have to pay more interest? No, the price goes up.

Would higher lower or zero coupon be better? ›

The higher a bond's coupon, the shorter its duration, because proportionately more payment is received before final maturity. Because zero coupon bonds make no coupon payments, a zero coupon bond's duration will be equal to its maturity.

What does a coupon rate of 0 mean? ›

A bond's coupon rate is the percentage of its face value payable as interest each year. A bond with a coupon rate of zero, therefore, is one that pays no interest. However, this does not mean the bond yields no profit. Instead, a zero coupon bond generates a return at maturity.

Should I sell bonds when interest rates rise? ›

The most significant sell signal in the bond market is when interest rates are poised to rise significantly. Because the value of bonds on the open market depends largely on the coupon rates of other bonds, an interest rate increase means that current bonds – your bonds – will likely lose value.

What is the difference between yield to worst and coupon rate? ›

The difference between coupon and yield is that coupon refers to the stated interest rate payable each year, while yield refers to the actual return an investor earns from holding a bond for a year.

What is the best government bond to buy? ›

U.S. Treasury bonds are considered the safest in the world and are generally called “risk-free.” The 10-year rate is considered a benchmark and is used to determine other interest rates such as mortgage rates, auto loans, student loans, and credit cards.

Why do bond yields rise with inflation? ›

Bonds with a longer maturity are more sensitive to changes in interest rates, and therefore, more affected by inflation. Inflation impacts the real rate of return of fixed-income investments.

Is now a good time to buy bond funds? ›

Traders are now betting that global central bank tightening cycle will end soon, with cuts priced for the federal funds rate in 2023. If this narrative persists, we think yields will return to their recent lows. This means now could be a good time to buy bonds, particularly 2-year DM bonds, in the short to medium term.

What does 1 coupon per purchase mean? ›

“One Coupon Per Purchase”

This is a good way to help your cashier or manager understand that the manufacturer is not concerned with how many products you PURCHASE in one transaction, just that you may only use one manufacturer coupon for each item purchased.

How much money does a 20% coupon take off? ›

First, convert the percentage discount to a decimal. A 20 percent discount is 0.20 in decimal format. Secondly, multiply the decimal discount by the price of the item to determine the savings in dollars. For example, if the original price of the item equals $24, you would multiply 0.2 by $24 to get $4.80.

How much is 10 percent off $20? ›

In this example, you are saving 10%, or $4.50. In this example, you are saving the fixed amount of $20. The above examples are two of the most common discount methods.

What is coupon rate for dummies? ›

The coupon rate is the annual income an investor can expect to receive while holding a particular bond. It is fixed when the bond is issued and is calculated by dividing the sum of the annual coupon payments by the par value. At the time it is purchased, a bond's yield to maturity and its coupon rate are the same.

Why are bonds sold at a discount? ›

When an investor purchases a bond, he/she expects to be paid interest by the bond issuer. However, the value of the bond is likely to increase or decrease with changes in the market interest rates. If interest rates go up, it results in a decline in the value of the bond. The bond must, therefore, sell at a discount.

Is coupon rate the same as yield to maturity? ›

The primary difference between coupon rate and yield to maturity is that the coupon rate stays the same throughout the tenure of the bond. However, the yield to maturity undergoes a change depending on various factors such as the years remaining till maturity and the current price at which the bond is being traded.

What affects coupon rate? ›

In short, the coupon rate is affected by both prevailing interest rates and by the issuer's creditworthiness. The prevailing interest rate directly affects the coupon rate of a bond, as well as its market price.

What is an example of a coupon payment? ›

Real-World Example of a Coupon Bond

If an investor purchases a $1,000 ABC Company coupon bond and the coupon rate is 5%, the issuer provides the investor with a 5% interest every year. This means the investor gets $50, the face value of the bond derived from multiplying $1,000 by 0.05, every year.

What does 5 times coupon mean? ›

For example, you would load a coupon and purchase up to 5 of the same item and the coupon will come off on all 5 items.

What is a high coupon rate? ›

A high coupon rate can be an indicator that the financial circ*mstances of an issuer are not the best, forcing it to offer a higher interest rate to investors. Alternatively, a high rate may be required because the market interest rate is also high, and a high coupon rate is needed to attract investors.

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