New York, Feb 23, 2026, 06:59 (EST) — Premarket
- Blue Owl (OWL) slips 0.4% ahead of the bell, coming off a 6.7% drop Friday.
- Three of Blue Owl’s unlisted credit funds have drawn hedge funds circling with tender offers—discounts run from 20% to 35% off NAV.
- Blue Owl’s March 31 capital-return deadline is on the radar for investors, who are also watching for new cues from the leveraged-loan market.
Blue Owl Capital Inc slipped roughly 0.4% to $10.77 early Monday in premarket action, following a $10.81 close on Friday. Shares had dropped 6.7% during the previous session. (StockAnalysis)
Fresh pressure is hitting as investors zero in on liquidity in Blue Owl’s retail private credit offerings—and how pricey exits have become. Saba Capital and Cox Capital Management, both hedge funds, are lining up tender offers targeting investors in Blue Owl Capital Corp. II plus two other unlisted Blue Owl funds, aiming to buy at 20% to 35% below net asset value, according to MarketWatch. (MarketWatch)
Concerns are growing as the software lending landscape gets shaken up by artificial intelligence, raising questions about business models and refinancing risk. “We expect AI disruption risk to be increasingly reflected over 2026 to early 2027,” said Matthew Mish, UBS’ head of credit strategy. UBS is calling for defaults to climb 3% to 5% in a faster-disruption scenario—a sharper jump than the market’s 1% to 2% estimate, according to Reuters. (Reuters)
Last week, Blue Owl’s credit funds struck a deal to offload $1.4 billion in direct-lending assets, moving them at a price equal to 99.7% of par as of Feb. 12. Proceeds will go toward trimming debt and returning capital. “We saw strong demand to purchase these investments at fair value,” said Craig W. Packer. The fund added that OBDC II’s return-of-capital distribution should land on or before March 31. (Blue Owl Capital)
OBDC II operates as a non-traded business development company, or BDC. The vehicle is a closed-end lender focused on middle-market firms, and it usually restricts when investors can redeem shares. Net asset value, or NAV, comes from subtracting liabilities from assets and dividing the result by the number of shares.
The jitters weren’t limited to Blue Owl. Blackstone dipped 0.3% before the bell following a 3.6% drop on Friday. Ares lost 5.2% that same day. Apollo, though, climbed 1.2%. (StockAnalysis)
The next move hinges on the timing and terms of promised liquidity. If the tender offer comes in at a steep discount, that could set a precedent for valuing other similar products—especially if redemption pressure picks up.
Traders are eyeing potential formal launches of the hedge funds’ tenders, along with the accompanying disclosures. Those fresh filings might finally put a number on just how much appetite there is for discounted exits.
Traders are still weighing rates and risk appetite. Fed Governor Christopher Waller is on the docket to speak later Monday, according to the Federal Reserve’s calendar. (Federal Reserve)
Blue Owl faces a crucial moment with the upcoming return-of-capital payment from OBDC II, set for no later than March 31. Investors are watching closely — this deadline is shaping up as a key test of the firm’s ability to head off a liquidity scare before it gets out of hand.
