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Treasury auctions · 5-Year Note

5-year note auction of 26 August 2020 (new issue)

The 5-year note sold $55.431 billion at a high yield of 0.298% on , with a bid-to-cover ratio of 2.71.

High yield at each 5-year note auction

The last 36 auctions, this one last

High yield at each 5-year note auction, 27 Jun 2017 to 26 Aug 2020
High yield at each 5-year note auction, 28 Aug 2018 to 26 Aug 2020

Bid-to-cover ratio at each 5-year note auction

The last 36 auctions, this one last

Bid-to-cover ratio at each 5-year note auction, 27 Jun 2017 to 26 Aug 2020
Bid-to-cover ratio at each 5-year note auction, 28 Aug 2018 to 26 Aug 2020

Who bought the 5-year note of 26 Aug 2020

Shares of the competitive bids accepted

  • Indirect bidders 66.2%
  • Direct bidders 15.9%
  • Primary dealers 17.8%
This auction, 26 Aug 2020
  • Indirect bidders 58.1%
  • Direct bidders 12.3%
  • Primary dealers 29.6%
The 5-year note auction before, 27 Jul 2020

Each point is one 5-year note auction, this one last; pointing at the chart shows its date and figures.

Select a line to followLatest:

  • Indirect bidders66.2%
Inspect and compare dates
High yield and bid-to-cover of the last 36 5-year note auctions, newest first
AuctionHigh yield, %Bid-to-cover
0.2982.71
0.2882.32
0.3302.58
0.3342.28
0.3942.74
0.5352.53
1.1502.46
1.4482.33
1.7562.49
1.5872.50
1.5702.41
1.6002.32
1.3652.48
1.8242.26
1.7912.35
2.3152.44
2.4892.40
2.5762.41
2.6522.09
2.8802.49
2.9772.30
2.9972.39
2.7652.49
2.8152.61
2.7192.55
2.8642.52
2.8372.49
2.6122.50
2.6582.44
2.4342.48
2.0582.44
1.5962.74
1.9112.52
1.7422.58
1.8842.58
1.8282.33

Observed .

Right now

The high yield was 0.298% on 26 August 2020, up from 0.288% at the auction before.

The indirect bidders' share of 66.2% was the highest for a 5-year note since 25 July 2018, with 22 auctions in between.

The primary dealers' share of 17.8% was the lowest for a 5-year note since 28 August 2017, with 32 auctions in between.

Higher than 1 of the 148 since 24 April 2008

Its own history

Against the previous 24 5-year note auctions, the primary dealers' share was lower than all 24.

The bid-to-cover ratio was higher than 23 of them.

See every measure against earlier auctions

Who bought

Indirect bidders took the largest share of the competitive bids accepted.

  • Indirect bidders 66.2%
  • Direct bidders 15.9%
  • Primary dealers 17.8%

Size

Treasury sold $55.431 billion of the $51 billion offered.

Bids received came to $142.63 billion; the bid-to-cover ratio was 2.71.

Its bid-to-cover of 2.71 compares with the 24 auctions before it: lowest 2.09 on , highest 2.74 on ; 95.4% of the way from the low to the high.

2.71

Low 2.09 Midpoint 2.415 High 2.74

The security5-Year, new issue

Coupon
0.250%
Announced
Issued
Matures

It adds to the debt that matures in August 2025.

Understanding this result

Where it stands today

The high yield was 0.298% at this 5-year note auction, the median yield 0.261% and a bid-to-cover ratio of 2.71.

What do these figures measure?

The high yield is the highest rate Treasury accepted; every winning bidder gets it. The bid-to-cover ratio is bids received divided by the amount sold. Shares are of competitive bids accepted. High minus median shows how far the accepted cut-off sat above the middle accepted bid; it is not the market's auction tail, which needs a when-issued price that is not public.

Read more

How does it compare with the par yield curve?

The par yield curve comparison sets the high yield against Treasury's own par yield curve on the auction day, at the point nearest this security's maturity (5-year). Treasury fixes that curve from market quotes in the late afternoon, after the auction closed, so the gap mixes the auction's pricing with the afternoon's market move. It is not the auction tail either.

What these figures cannot tell

  • Why it sold where it did. Results show what was bid and accepted, not the reasons behind any bid.
  • The auction tail as markets quote it. That compares the high yield with the when-issued yield just before bids closed, a market price that is not public; we show high minus median instead, a different measure.
  • Who the bidders are. Indirect bidders include foreign and international accounts bidding through the New York Fed and investors bidding through dealers; Treasury does not publish names.
  • Demand on another day. A bid-to-cover ratio counts bids at one auction against the amount offered, and the amount offered changes from auction to auction.

The numbers behind the chart

What did Treasury publish for this auction?Every field, to the dollar
FieldValue
Offered as5-Year, new issue
Offering amount$51,000,000,000
Bids received$142,630,135,100
Sold$55,430,929,100
Competitive bids accepted$50,980,249,000
Non-competitive bids accepted$20,111,400
Federal Reserve (SOMA) add-on$4,430,568,700
Foreign and international (FIMA) non-competitive$0
High yield, %0.298
Median rate, %0.261
Low rate, %0.080
Interest rate (coupon), %0.250
Bids at the high rate filled, %84.34
Bid-to-cover ratio2.71
Indirect bidders accepted$33,773,607,000
Direct bidders accepted$8,121,000,000
Primary dealers accepted$9,085,642,000
Indirect bidders' share, % (ours)66.2
Direct bidders' share, % (ours)15.9
Primary dealers' share, % (ours)17.8
High minus median, basis points (ours)3.7
Treasury par yield curve, 5-year point, same day, %0.28
High yield minus that point, basis points (ours)1.8
How does it compare with earlier auctions?The previous 12 auctions, then every window
Against the previous 12 auctions of the 5-year note
MeasureThis auctionMedianHigherLower
Bid-to-cover ratio2.712.471 of 1211 of 12
High yield0.2981.25811 of 121 of 12
Indirect bidders' share66.260.20 of 1212 of 12
Direct bidders' share15.913.73 of 129 of 12
Primary dealers' share17.824.412 of 120 of 12
High minus median, basis points3.74.811 of 121 of 12

The table scrolls sideways; the first column stays in place.

The longer windows

Each measure against earlier 5-year note auctions: how many were higher and lower, and their median
MeasureThis auctionWindowHigherLowerMedian
Bid-to-cover ratio2.71Last 24 auctions1 of 2423 of 242.42
Bid-to-cover ratio2.71Since 24 April 200847 of 14898 of 1482.55
Bid-to-cover ratio2.71All 225 since 28 September 199460 of 225162 of 2252.49
High yield0.298Last 24 auctions23 of 241 of 241.774
High yield0.298Since 24 April 2008147 of 1481 of 1481.620
High yield0.298All 321 since 24 January 1991320 of 3211 of 3213.348
Indirect bidders' share66.2Last 24 auctions1 of 2423 of 2460.0
Indirect bidders' share66.2All 148 since 24 April 200811 of 148137 of 14851.5
Direct bidders' share15.9Last 24 auctions5 of 2419 of 2413.1
Direct bidders' share15.9All 148 since 24 April 200813 of 148135 of 14810.0
Primary dealers' share17.8Last 24 auctions24 of 240 of 2425.4
Primary dealers' share17.8All 148 since 24 April 2008147 of 1481 of 14838.8
High minus median, basis points3.7Last 24 auctions16 of 247 of 244.3
High minus median, basis points3.7Since 24 April 2008102 of 14840 of 1484.4
High minus median, basis points3.7All 321 since 24 January 1991132 of 321182 of 3213.2

The table scrolls sideways; the first column stays in place.

When are the figures from, and how are they cited?Dates and how to cite

Observed .

Shares of competitive bids, grades against earlier auctions and the high-minus-median spread are computed by 500metrics from Treasury's published fields.

Observed .

How to cite this

U.S. Treasury, Bureau of the Fiscal Service, Fiscal Data, Treasury Securities Auctions Data, auction of 26 August 2020. Results file: https://www.treasurydirect.gov/instit/annceresult/press/preanre/2020/R_20200826_4.pdf. Compiled by 500metrics, "5-year note auction of 26 August 2020 (new issue)", https://500metrics.com/treasury/auctions/5-year-note/2020-08-26.

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