| | | Weekly CEF Summary Report Period: Week ending October 10, 2025
Scope: 17 diversified CEFs covering equity, utility, infrastructure, REIT, and hybrid strategies.
Focus: Price movements, NAV trends, premium/discount behavior, and notable signals.
Market Overview CEF sentiment remains cautiously constructive this week. Discounts continued to narrow in several funds, with risk appetite returning in technology and infrastructure names. Average Z-stats remain mildly negative across most funds, suggesting valuations are still below long-term averages, but the recovery momentum continues.
Key Gainers - BST ($44.75) and STK ($37.64) both hit 52-week highs, fueled by tech sector strength. Premiums remain moderate (BST: -4.9%, STK: -4.2%), implying no overheating yet.
- UTG ($40.50) reclaimed prior highs, with a small premium (1.1%) and positive Z-scores — signaling renewed demand for utilities.
- ERH ($13.78) continues to firm up with improving sentiment (discount -5.9% vs. -9.9% 1-year average).
Notable Discount Contractions - ASGI swung from deep discount territory to a modest 1.5% premium, suggesting a reversal in sentiment around infrastructure exposure.
- BUI saw a tightening to +3.8% premium, confirming investor demand for unlevered utility exposure.
- CSQ and EOS remain at mild discounts (~-5%), but improving Z-stats hint at continued recovery momentum.
Discount Laggards - NBXG remains the widest at -10.8%, though trending better than its 1-year average (-11.9%).
- BME continues to trade at a persistent ~9% discount, reflecting healthcare sector softness.
Z-Score Highlights - Positive standouts: ERH (2.35), PDO (1.43–1.88) — potential short-term overextension flags.
- Deep negatives: UTF (-3.11), CSQ (-2.23), AIO (-2.3) — still trading well below normalized valuations.
Quick Watchlist Notes - Tech: BST, STK — strong NAV rebound; watch premiums.
- Utilities: BUI, UTF, UTG — leadership rotation into defensives.
- Hybrids/Infrastructure: ASGI, AIO — steady improvement, value still present.
- Fixed Income: PDO, PCN — resilient, but Z-scores near overbought.
Summary Takeaway Overall tone: Constructive but selective.
Discount compression and improving NAV trends show healthier CEF breadth, yet premium creep in a few names (BUI, ASGI) warrants restraint. Deep discounts with improving technicals (UTF, CSQ, AIO) offer better risk-reward setups for new capital.
Disclaimer This report is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice or a solicitation to buy or sell any securities. All data presented are estimates based on publicly available sources and are subject to change. |
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