The grey lady reports that savvy investors could have made a decent amount on Cornell's bonds in recent weeks, as municipal bonds were indiscriminately discounted across the line: "Individual investors looked at the pricing and the yields of these bonds, and came to their own conclusion: a place like Cornell is going to be good for the money, and when the smoke clears, this will be a real opportunity, said Thomas McLoughlin, managing director and head of municipal research at UBS. Swept up in the price movements were some red-hot munis including those Cornell and Harvard bonds. (Although state and local governments, as well as water systems and sewer districts, are classic issuers of munis, universities may also offer them through various means.)Traders who bought a 30-year Cornell 5 percent bond in mid-January and sold it last week would have pocketed a quick 9.3 percent profit, he said. Trading the equivalent Harvard bond over the same short period would have produced a 6.3 percent gain.
Nice to know that some people think that Cornell's finances are stable. Wonder if any loyal alumnus bought up some bonds on the cheap and donated the profits back to the University.
