How to calculate the yield to maturity of a zero coupon bond?
John Johnson
Updated on February 07, 2026
This makes calculating the yield to maturity of a zero coupon bond straight-forward: Let’s take the following bond as an example: Current Price: $600. Par Value: $1000. Years to Maturity: 3. Annual Coupon Rate: 0%. Coupon Frequency: 0x a Year.
When to sell a bond at a discount?
IF c <> r AND Bond price < F then the bond should be selling at a discount. Let’s assume that someone holds for a period of 10 years a bond with a face value of $100,000, with a coupon rate of 7% compounded semi-annually, while similar bonds on the market offer a rate of return of 6.5%.
Which is an example of a semi annual coupon bond?
Let us take an example of bonds issued by company ABC Ltd that pays semi-annual coupons. Each bond has a par value of $1,000 with a coupon rate of 8%, and it is to mature in 5 years. The effective yield to maturity is 7%.
What’s the interest rate on a 10 year bond?
Let’s assume that someone holds for a period of 10 years a bond with a face value of $100,000, with a coupon rate of 7% compounded semi-annually, while similar bonds on the market offer a rate of return of 6.5%. Let’s figure out its correct price in case the holder would like to sell it:
What happens to the par value of a bond at maturity?
At maturity, the issuing entity must pay the bondholder the par value of the bond, regardless of its current market value. This means that if an investor purchases a five-year $1,000 bond for $800, they collect $1,000 at the end of five years in addition to any coupon payments they received during that time.
What happens when you hold a bond to maturity?
If you buy a new bond at par and hold it to maturity, your current yield when the bond matures will be the same as the coupon yield. Yield-to-Maturity (YTM) is the rate of return you receive if you hold a bond to maturity and reinvest all the interest payments at the YTM rate.
Can a bond be redeemed before the maturity date?
Bond Maturity Date. This means that the bond cannot be called before a specified date. After that, the bond’s issuer can redeem that bond on the pre-determined call date, or a bond may be continuously callable, meaning the issuer may redeem the bond at the specified price at any time during the call period.
How does a 10% coupon on a bond work?
Still, the term persists. The coupon is expressed as a percentage of the bond’s face value. So, a 10% coupon on a $10,000 bond would pay an annual interest of $1000. Again, these payments are often staggered throughout the year, so a bond holder’s interest might be paid in biannual or quarterly installments.
What happens to a bond when it reaches maturity?
Finally, when the bond reaches maturity, the organization repays you the original amount borrowed, or the face value of the bond. Bonds are considered fixed income securities, because investors know exactly how much of a return they will receive on their investment.
Which is better a 20 year bond or a 10 year bond?
A bond that matures in 20 years is less predictable, and therefore considered a greater risk, so will come with a higher interest rate. In addition to these basic terms, it will also be useful to have a working understanding of the bond rating system.
What is the yield on a 10 year Treasury bond?
14. A treasury bond that matures in 10 years has a yield of 5.5%. A 10 year corporate bond has a yield of 7.5%. Assume that the liquidity premium on the corporate bond is 0.6%.
When is a longer duration bond offers a higher yield?
Typically the yield curve is upward sloping with longer duration bonds offering a higher return to compensate for the added risk. When shorter duration bonds offer a higher yield than longer duration bonds that is called yield curve inversion.
What happens when you sell a zero coupon bond?
Since zero coupon bonds do not pay a coupon, any capital appreciation remains in the bond. Since they sell at a discount to their stated maturation value they are known as discount bonds. In a falling rate envirnoment zero-coupon bonds appreciate much faster than other bonds which have periodic coupon payments.
What is the face value of a bond?
Bond Face Value/Par Value ($) – The face value of the bond, also known as the par value of the bond. Years to Maturity – The numbers of years until bond maturity.
How to calculate the yield on a bond?
The formula for the approximate yield to maturity on a bond is: ((Annual Interest Payment) + ((Face Value – Current Price) / (Years to Maturity)))
What is the par value of a bond?
Bond Face Value/Par Value ($) – The face value of the bond, also known as the par value of the bond. Years to Maturity – The numbers of years until bond maturity. Yield to Maturity (%): The converged upon solution for the yield to maturity of the current bond (the internal rate of return)
Which is an example of yield to maturity?
Y is the number of years to maturity. Example 2: Suppose a bond is selling for $980, and has an annual coupon rate of 6%. It matures in five years, and the face value is $1000.
How does the maturity of a bond work?
The maturity of a bond is the year the par or face value of the bond is returned to the bond holder. This is the effective annual rate of interest being paid by the bond issuer based on the purchase price of the bond and the amount of the annual coupon payments.
How is the price of a coupon bond calculated?
The formula for calculation of the price of this bond basically uses the present value of the probable future cash flows in the form of coupon payments and the principal amount which is the amount received at maturity. The present value is computed by discounting the cash flow using yield to maturity.
How is the coupon rate of a bond fixed?
Unlike other financial metrics, the coupon payment in terms of the dollar is fixed over the life of the bond. For example, if a bond with a face value of $1,000 offers a coupon rate of 5%, then the bond will pay $50 to the bondholder until its maturity.
What is the value of 100 par bond?
A Rs. 100/- par value bond carries a coupon rate of 16% interest payable semi-annually and has a maturity period of 10 years. If an investor required rate of return (Discount rate) for this bond is 85 for six months the value of the bond will be: The value of bond which gives interest semi-annually is Rs. 80.408.