Bond Yield and Yield to Maturity sound similar but differ in real life. Both terms differ significantly despite coming from the background of yield in a bond structure. Bond Yield and Yield to Maturity are two different aspects of a bond issued to a bondholder.
Key Takeaways
- Bond yield refers to the amount of return a bond generates, while yield to maturity indicates the total return that will be earned if the bond is held until its maturity.
- The bond yield is based on the bond’s current market price while yielding to maturity factors in the bond’s coupon rate, face value, and time to maturity.
- Yield to maturity is a more accurate measure of a bond’s expected return, while bond yield is useful for assessing short-term investment opportunities.
Bond Yield vs Yield to Maturity
Bond yield is the return an investor will earn on a bond based on the bond’s coupon rate and current market price. Yield to maturity is a more comprehensive measure of a bond’s return, which considers not only the coupon payments but also the bond’s price, the time left until maturity, and the interest rates. It represents a bond’s total return if held to maturity, assuming all coupon payments are reinvested at the exact yield.
Bond Yield shows that a bond yield is proportional to the price. If the price changes, the Yield of the bond changes too.
The yield to maturity compares or equates the current cash flows of the bond to the regular market price.
Comparison Table
| Parameters of Comparison | Bond Yield | Yield to Maturity |
|---|---|---|
| Denotation | Bond Yield, commonly known as yield, designates the revenue return on the bond. In short, a bond yield is calculated by dividing the coupon amount (interest) by the price. | Yield to maturity comes into effect when the bond grows mature. It is considered a more extensive method for calculating debt return and is also known as redemption/book yield. |
| Relation to the Coupon amount | It is directly proportional to the coupon amount and increases with an increase. | It is indirectly proportional to the coupon rate of a bond. If the YTM of a bond is less than its coupon rate, it is sold at a premium. If the YTM of a bond is more than its coupon rate, it sells at a discount. Similarly, if the YTM of a bond equals the coupon rate, the bond sells at standard. |
| Relation with Price | Bond Yield is inversely proportional to the price of a bond. | Yield to maturity is the predicted return rate on a bond and depends on the coupon rate. |
| Formula | Bond Yield = (Coupon rate of the bond/Price of the bond) | Yield to maturity = [(Face value/Present value)1/Time period]-1. |
| Market Value | It clearly shows a bond’s current value in the market. | Yield to maturity is the expected return rate that is calculated annually. |
What is Bond Yield?
Bond Yield, also known as Yield, defines the return rate of a bond. When digging more into this term, bond yield accounts for the time rate of money and compound interest returns. To understand the Yield on a bond, one can divide the coupon amount by the face value upon maturity.
Bond Yield is indirectly proportional to the price. As the price increases, the yield falls or vice-versa. The bondholder entrusts some money to the issuer when a bond is issued. The bond issuer then pays the interest on the bond till the time it is in operation.
Upon maturity, the face value of the bond begins working.
For example, a bondholder buys a bond at $1000 with a coupon of 10%. If the bondholder holds the glue for the successive 10 years, they will be paid 100 dollars each year by the issuer for the successive 10 years. The bondholder will get 1000 dollars from the issuer at the end of the duration.
The bond yield is 10% on the scheduled date and can be calculated by the formula: (Coupon amount/Price).
What is Yield to Maturity?
Yield to Maturity, also known as book yield/redemption, signifies the predictable rate of return the bondholder earns yearly. The bond must be held until maturity to anticipate the yield to maturity. It helps compare the current cash flow of the bond to the regular market price.
It is indirectly proportional to a bond’s coupon interest. To be sold at a premium, the yield to maturity of a bond should be less than its coupon rate, and to sell the bond at a discount, the yield to maturity should be more than its coupon rate.
Similarly, if the YTM of a bond equals the coupon rate, the bond sells at standard.
There are three variants in YTM, depending upon the type of bond. In a yield-to-call (YTC), the bond can be purchased again before its maturity date by the issuer. Yield to put(YTP) is similar to YTC.
The only difference is that in a YTP, the bondholder can sell back the bond to the issuer on a given date. In the case of yield to worst (YTW), a bond can be callable, puttable, and interchangeable simultaneously.
Main Differences Between Bond Yield and Yield to Maturity
- Bond yield designates the revenue return on the bond. Yield to Maturity is a more extensive method for calculating the return on the debt.
- The bond yield is directly proportional to the coupon rate. The yield of maturity is inversely proportional to the coupon amount.
- Yield to maturity is the predicted rate of return on a bond, calculated annually, but the bond yield is inversely dependent on the bond’s price.
- Bond Yield = (Coupon interest/ The given price of the bond). Yield to maturity = [(Bond’s Face value/Present value of the bond)1/Time period]-1.
- Bond yield shows the current market value of the bonds, but Yield to maturity reveals the annually expected return rate on a bond.
Last Updated : 13 July, 2023
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Chara Yadav holds MBA in Finance. Her goal is to simplify finance-related topics. She has worked in finance for about 25 years. She has held multiple finance and banking classes for business schools and communities. Read more at her bio page.
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