Large Seasoned US CLO Managers Outperform Their Smaller Peers
A sample of 409 seasoned deals (2015–2019* vintage deals) is included in this study. The benchmark loan index used is the Morningstar LSTA U.S. B/BB Ratings Loan Index.
A sample of 409 seasoned deals (2015–2019* vintage deals) is included in this study. The benchmark loan index used is the Morningstar LSTA U.S. B/BB Ratings Loan Index.
In year-to-date 2025 and throughout 2024, managers have, on average, broadly tracked the loan index across all three inception-to-date annualised metrics: total return, market value (MV) return, and interest return. The benchmark loan index used is the Morningstar LSTA U.S. B/BB Ratings Loan Index. Nonetheless, several managers—such as OHA, Golub Capital, and UBS AM—have continued to distinguish themselves with above-average inception-to-date alpha since 2020, while others have consistently lagged behind the index.
The table below summarises the total, MV, and interest alpha trends for each seasoned manager since 2020.
How Have EU CLO Managers Stacked Up Against the Loan Index Since Inception? This study examines the long-term performance of 218 EU CLO deals from the 2015–2019 vintages, using the Morningstar European Euro-Denominated Loan Index as the benchmark. As of 19 March 2025, EU CLO managers, on average, had outperformed the loan index on an inception-to-date basis—driven primarily by principal value return outperformance—while their interest return remained broadly in line with that of the index.
CLO managers, on average, have closely tracked the loan index in 2024, following a period of relative outperformance of 10–20 bps from 2021 to 2023.
This study examines a sample of 218 deals from the 2015 to 2019 vintages, utilising the Morningstar European Euro-Denominated Loan...
