Channel 11 News host and DoubleLine Portfolio Manager Ken Shinoda welcomes Robert Cohen, the firm’s director of global developed credit, to talk about bank loans amid a period of macro volatility including high inflation. Messrs. Shinoda and Cohen discuss the macro environment, including GDP growth, inflation and the impact of looming interest rate hikes (1:22), before providing an overview of the asset class (4:18). They follow up with a look at the sector’s fundamentals (6:23), with a review of interest coverage cushion and very low default rates, factors that lead Mr. Cohen to note, “This is an environment that’s good for credit.” The episode concludes with talk of portfolio positioning (16:49) and equities and high yield trades (21:51). This episode was recorded Feb. 24, 2022.
Mr. Shinoda joined DoubleLine at inception in 2009. He is Chairman of the Structured Products Committee and oversees the non-Agency RMBS team specializing in investing in non-Agency mortgage-backed securities, residential whole loans and other mortgage-related opportunities. Mr. Shinoda is co-Portfolio Manager on the Total Return, Opportunistic Income, Income, Opportunistic MBS and Strategic MBS strategies. He is also lead Portfolio Manager overseeing the Mortgage Opportunities private funds. Mr. Shinoda is also a permanent member of the Fixed Income Asset Allocation Committee, as well as, participating in the Global Asset Allocation Committee. In addition, he hosts DoubleLine’s “Channel 11 News” (Twitter @DLineChannel11, dline11@doubleline.com), a webcast series that provides market insights and commentary with peers and industry experts. Prior to DoubleLine, Mr. Shinoda was Vice President at TCW where he worked in portfolio management and trading. He holds a B.S. in Business Administration from the University of Southern California and is a CFA® charterholder.
Mr. Cohen joined DoubleLine’s Global Developed Credit (“GDC”) Group in 2012. He is a Portfolio Manager and the Director of the GDC group. He is also a permanent member of the Fixed Income Asset Allocation Committee. Prior to DoubleLine, Mr. Cohen was a Senior Credit Analyst at West Gate Horizons Advisors (and its predecessor ING Capital Advisors) where he worked as an Analyst covering bank loans and high yield bonds. Prior to ING, he was an Assistant Vice President in the Asset Management Group of Union Bank where he managed a diversified portfolio of leveraged loans as well as a portfolio of CDO securities. Previous to Union Bank, he was an Associate Director of Corporate and Investment Banking at the Bank of Montreal in its Natural Resources Group. Mr. Cohen holds a B.A. in Economics from the University of Arizona and an MBA from the University of Southern California. He is a CFA® charterholder.