Takeaways
- Harvard University’s bonds were once coveted for tax advantages and perceived safety, but yields climbed as investors grew uneasy about the Trump administration’s threats to the school’s tax-exempt status and federal funding.
- Jeremy Holtz, portfolio manager at Income Research + Management, said his team has taken advantage of the “eds and meds” sector as bond prices have fallen, and that Ivy League schools like Harvard have “fortress balance sheets”.
- Some analysts and investors, including David Dowden and Christopher Lanouette, have expressed caution or optimism about the bonds, with Lanouette noting that continued federal pressure on the colleges could cause investors to remain wary, while others see the bonds as a bargain.
Harvard University’s ongoing clash with the Trump administration has sparked a flurry of trading activity in the municipal bond market for its tax-exempt debt.
The university’s bonds were once so coveted, they traded at yields lower than other AAA debt. Wealthy investors in the high-tax commonwealth of Massachusetts were eager to scoop them up for tax advantages and perceived safety.
Bloomberg Markets
By Amanda Albright and Elizabeth Rembert
July 17, 2025