John Cole Scott: Expect 'upside surprises' for BDCs during earnings season

John Cole Scott, chief investment officer at Closed-End Fund Advisors and the chairman of the Active Investment Company Alliance, says that business-development companies -- which are built to handle a four-year business cycle -- are looking at positive surprises as second-quarter earnings season arrives. From July 26 to August 10 -- when the bulk of BDCs will report earnings -- Scott says that BDC discounts are currently about 13 percent wider than media discounts have been over the last two decades, and that there has been very little uptick in problem loans, which sets up a potential rally. Scott notes that BDCs have outperformed closed-end funds during the rough first half of 2022, and identifies several BDCs poised to deliver good yields, mostly at a significant discount now.