How to Invest Money, George Garr Henry [interesting books to read .txt] 📗

eighteen months, the showing above is truly remarkable. It is plain that the entire bonded debt of any of these standard railroads is less than 60 per cent of the total market value of the property, while in the cases of the Pennsylvania, Great Northern, and Union Pacific, more than half of the present market value of the property could be erased before the lien of the bonds least well secured would be impaired.

Of course, where the entire bonded debt is protected by such a margin, it is evident that the underlying bonds (the prior liens and first mortgages) are protected by several times as great a margin and their position is correspondingly strengthened.

The foregoing analysis, in the judgment of the writer, affords convincing proof not only that the prevailing want of confidence in railroad obligations is without foundation, but that railroad bonds compare favorably in point of safety with any other form of investment.

It remains to point out the amount of income and degree of convertibility which they afford and the extent of appreciation in value which they promise. It is impossible to do more than indicate the general characteristics of railroad bonds in these particulars.

Railroad bonds cover a wide range of income return. They yield all the way from 3¾ per cent to 9 per cent, the general average being from 4 per cent to 6 per cent. As a class they yield more than government or municipal bonds, and less than public-utility or industrial bonds. With equal security they probably yield less than real-estate mortgages. Compared with stocks they return more than bank stocks, average about the same as railroad stocks, and yield less than public-utility, industrial, or mining stocks. These comparisons are intended to apply to the classes as a whole, and remain generally true in spite of specific cases to the contrary.

Convertibility is the distinguishing mark of railroad bonds. Generally speaking they may be more easily marketed than any other class of bonds. Compared with stocks they exceed public-utility, mining, and bank stocks in point of convertibility, and yield only to railroad stocks. It is hard to say whether or not they possess greater convertibility than industrial stocks, but it is probable that they do, allowing for the fact that an undue impression is created by the activity of certain prominent shares.

Railroad bonds as a class possess great promise of appreciation in value. American railroads, generally speaking, have adopted the conservative policy of putting a considerable part of their annual earnings back into the property in the form of improvements. To the extent to which this policy is followed, an equity is created back of the bonds which raises their intrinsic value. This policy contrasts favorably with the general practise of English roads to pay out all their earnings in dividends, and to capitalize their improvements. In addition, new capital for American railroads is largely raised by stock issues, which further increases the margin of security for the bondholders. Taken together these facts insure a steady enhancement in the intrinsic value of railroad bonds, which is bound to be reflected, other things being equal, in higher prices.

We shall not attempt to discuss at this time the degree of stability of market price which railroad bonds enjoy. As explained in the first chapter, stability of market price is dependent upon general financial and business conditions. It is sufficient to point out here that the maintenance intact of the principal sum invested can only be rendered certain by the purchase of short-time securities whose near approach to maturity will keep their price close to par. In a later chapter the general principles which determine this question will be elucidated.

The ideal investment may be defined as one combining ample security of principal and interest, a good rate of income, ready convertibility into cash, and reasonable promise of appreciation in value. Measured by the requirements of this definition, the conclusion seems justified that well-selected railroad bonds, if purchased under favorable money-market conditions, afford a highly desirable form of investment.

III RAILROAD EQUIPMENT BONDS

As its name implies, an equipment bond is one issued by a railroad to provide funds with which to pay for new rolling stock—cars and locomotives. The issues are variously described as car trust certificates, equipment bonds, or equipment notes. They conform in general to one of two standard forms: (1) The conditional sale plan: In accordance with specifications furnished by the railroad, the trustee selected (usually a trust company) contracts with the builders for the purchase of the equipment. From 10 to 20 per cent of the cost of the equipment is paid in cash by the railroad and the rest is represented by the equipment bonds. The bonds are the direct obligation of the railroad company. They are secured by a first lien upon the entire equipment purchased. The title to the equipment remains in the trustee for the benefit of the bondholders until the last bond has been paid, so that under no circumstances can the general mortgages of the railroad attach as a first lien on the equipment ahead of the car trust obligations. After the final payment, the trustee assigns title to the railroad company, which thereupon becomes the owner in fee of the equipment. Under the terms of the deed of trust the railroad is always obliged to keep the equipment fully insured, in good order and complete repair, and to replace any equipment which may become worn out, lost, or destroyed. The bonds are usually issued in coupon form, $1,000 each, bearing semiannual interest, with provision for registration. They are generally paid off in semiannual or annual instalments of substantially equal amounts, the last instalment usually falling due in ten years, a period well within the life of the equipment as estimated under the master car builder's rules. Occasionally this method of payment is altered by the substitution of a sinking fund, the bonds having a uniform fixt maturity, but subject to the operation of a sinking fund which is sufficient to retire the entire issue well within the life of the equipment. In either case the security, ample at the outset, increases proportionally with the reduction in obligations outstanding against it.

(2) The so-called "Philadelphia plan." Under this plan the equipment is purchased by an individual, association, or corporation which leases the equipment to the railroad for a term of years at a rental equivalent to the interest and maturing instalments of the bonds. The contract of lease is then assigned to a trust company as trustee, which thereupon issues its certificates in substantially the form described in the plan above, these representing a beneficial interest in the equipment, which are usually guaranteed both principal and interest by the railroad. The lease runs until the last bond has been paid, after which the trustee assigns title to the railroad as above. The chief advantage of this plan over the other is that in some States, notably Pennsylvania, certificates issued in accordance with its terms are exempt from taxation, whereas under the conditional sale plan, as the direct obligation of the railroad, the bonds would be taxable.

It is evident from the foregoing description that equipment bonds differ in two important respects from all other classes of railroad issues. First, the title to the property which secures the bonds does not vest in the railroad; and, secondly, the property is movable and not fixt in any one locality.

By virtue of these two points, the holders of equipment bonds possess a great advantage over the holders of mortgage bonds in the event of a railroad's becoming bankrupt.

If a railroad is unable to meet its interest charges, the mortgage bondholders can rarely do better than have a receiver appointed who will operate the railroad in their interest; but if, with honest and efficient management, the railroad can not be made to earn its interest charges, the mortgage bondholders usually have to consent to the scaling of their bonds to a point where the railroad can operate upon a paying basis.

With the holders of equipment bonds the case is quite different. If the receiver defaults upon their bonds they have only to direct the trustee to enter upon possession of the equipment and sell it or lease it to some other railroad. The knowledge that they possess this power renders its exercise generally unnecessary. The equipment of a railroad is essential to its operation. It is the tool with which the railroad handles its business. If the receiver were deprived of the equipment it would be impossible for him to operate the road, and so he could never satisfy its creditors. Consequently the courts, both State and Federal, have ruled that the necessary equipment of a bankrupt railroad must be preserved, and have placed the charges for principal and interest of equipment obligations upon an equality with charges for wages, materials, and other operating expenses, and in priority to interest of even first-mortgage bonds.

These points sufficiently explain the remarkable record which equipment bonds have made during reorganizations. Careful investigation has been made of the various railroads which were reorganized, either with or without foreclosure, between the years 1888 and 1905. This covers the chief period of railroad receivership. It was discovered that sixteen different railroads, aggregating nearly one hundred thousand miles and located in widely different parts of the country, had outstanding equipment bonds at the time of default. In every case the principal and interest of equipment bonds were paid in full, while all other securities, with a few exceptions, were reduced in rate or amount or both. Two of these railroads offered to the holders of equipment bonds the option of an advantageous exchange of securities, which amounted to more than payment in full.

The foregoing facts justify the conclusion that equipment bonds possess security equal or superior to that of any other form of railroad bonds.

Let us now consider their remaining characteristics—their rate of income, convertibility, prospect of appreciation in value, and stability of market price.

One of the strongest features of equipment bonds is the relatively high rate of income which they yield. The amount realized varies in accordance with the financial strength and credit of the issuing railroad, and the margin of security in the equipment itself. As a general rule, the net return on the equipment bonds of a given railroad is usually from ½ per cent to ¾ per cent greater than on the first-mortgage bonds of the same railroad. This is owing to the fact that while banks and scientific investors have bought equipment bonds for many years, the general public is not sufficiently familiar with the inherent strength of these issues to create much of a demand for them. This insures a good return.

Equipment bonds vary in point of convertibility. The reader will remember from the description above that equipment bonds are usually issued in serial form, with instalments maturing semiannually from six months to ten years. By confining purchases to the shorter maturities, say within two or three years, a high degree of convertibility may usually be obtained because the short maturities are greatly sought by banks and other financial institutions which regard equipment bonds in much the same light as merchant's paper or time loans secured by collateral. At a price equivalent to the rate which the best commercial paper commands, there is always a good demand from the banks. Many banks prefer equipment bonds to loans or paper on account of their greater convertibility. As the length of maturity increases, the degree of convertibility generally decreases, because the chief demand for the longer dates comes from insurance companies, which do not, in the aggregate, constitute as great a demand as the banks. When the demand from private investors increases, as it undoubtedly will when they become more familiar with the desirable