Maiden Holdings brings preferreds; American Financial's new issue frees; JPMorgan holds in

By Stephanie N. Rotondo

Phoenix, Aug. 22 - Another new preferred stock issue entered the market Wednesday. Maiden Holdings Ltd. priced $150 million of series A noncumulative perpetual preference shares at 8.25% after the close.

"It's doing well," a trader said prior to pricing.

American Financial Group Inc.'s new $125 million of 5.75% $25-par senior notes due Aug. 25, 2042 freed from the syndicate, according to a trader. The deal priced Tuesday.

JPMorgan Chase & Co.'s $1.1 billion 5.5% series O noncumulative preferreds continued to be busy, trading up to just under par.

Away from recent issues, Royal Bank of Scotland Group plc preferreds were mixed but not much shaken by news that U.S. regulators are investigating the bank in regards to transactions done with Iran.

Maiden prices

Maiden Holdings priced a $150 million offering of 8.25% series A noncumulative perpetual preference shares after the bell on Wednesday.

The deal came in line with talk.

A trader saw the paper at $24.70 bid in the gray market at midday.

But after the market closed, a market source said he saw only bids for paper, no offers. The bid was $24.88, he said.

"It's not a well-known entity," he said of the lack of offers. However, he did note that it was "kind of a juicy yield."

Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC and Wells Fargo Securities LLC are the joint bookrunning managers.

Proceeds will be used for general corporate purposes, including possible common share buybacks or trust preferred redemptions.

Maiden Holdings is a Hamilton, Bermuda-based reinsurance holding company.

American Financial deal frees

American Financial Group's new 5.75% $25-par notes due 2042 freed to trade Wednesday after pricing on Tuesday.

On the break, a trader said the issue was trading in a range between $24.98 and $25.05.

Another market source called the issue one of the most actively traded of the day and said they rose 46 cents to "just under par."

Bank of America Merrill Lynch, UBS Securities LLC and Wells Fargo are the joint bookrunning managers. The joint lead manager is J.P. Morgan Securities LLC.

The senior co-managers are Barclays, PNC Capital Markets LLC and Raymond James & Associates, Inc. The co-managers are Keefe, Bruyette & Woods, Inc., Macquarie Capital (USA) Inc., Mitsubishi UFJ Securities (USA), Inc. and U.S. Bancorp Investments, Inc.

Proceeds will be used to redeem all $115 million of the company's 7.125% senior debentures due 2034 at par plus accrued interest. Any remaining proceeds will be used for general corporate purposes.

JPMorgan stagnates

JPMorgan's recently priced 5.5% series O noncumulative preferreds gave back some early gains in active trading Wednesday.

At midday, the preferreds were seen rising to just under par, a trader reported. He pegged the securities at "$24.99-ish."

But a market source said the issue closed flat at $24.86.

The deal priced Monday and freed to trade on Tuesday.

J.P. Morgan Securities is the bookrunner. Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Citigroup Global Markets Inc., Morgan Stanley, UBS and Wells Fargo are the joint lead managers.

The bank will apply to list the new series of preferreds on the New York Stock Exchange. Settlement is expected Tuesday.

Proceeds will be used for general corporate purposes, including the repayment of debt, investments in or extensions of credit to subsidiaries, redemptions or possible acquisitions.

JPMorgan is a New York-based financial holding company.

RBS probe no problem

Royal Bank of Scotland preferreds ended the day in mixed fashion, though not much moved either way, following news that the Edinburgh-based bank is getting probed by U.S. regulators.

The 7.25% series T noncumulative dollar preference shares (NYSE: RBSPT) lost a nickel to end at $22.49. The 6.08% noncumulative guaranteed trust securities (NYSE: RBSPG), however, gained 6 cents, finishing at $16.17.

It was reported Wednesday that the Federal Reserve and the Justice Department are investigating RBS due to possible sanctions violations in regards to Iran.

RBS said in a regulatory filing earlier this month that it had opened up talks with authorities in both the United States and the United Kingdom "to discuss its historical compliance with applicable laws and regulations, including U.S. economic sanctions." The filing did not directly mention Iran.

© 2015 Prospect News.
All content on this website is protected by copyright law in the U.S. and elsewhere. For the use of the person downloading only.
Redistribution and copying are prohibited by law without written permission in advance from Prospect News.
Redistribution or copying includes e-mailing, printing multiple copies or any other form of reproduction.