Municipals little changed ahead of Thanksgiving; Dasny, Connecticut Housing sell bonds

By Sheri Kasprzak

New York, Nov. 21 - Municipals were little moved on Wednesday as the market prepared to close down for the Thanksgiving holiday Thursday, market insiders reported.

Throughout the week, a trader noted, municipals have ignored Treasuries and outperformed them, all while keeping in a steady holding pattern as new-issue activity dwindled.

"Trading is at a minimum today," said one trader reached in the early afternoon.

"Primary is quiet; secondary is quiet; overall it's quiet."

While this week may have been slow, the week after Thanksgiving is already poised to provide a decent amount of supply, said Alan Schankel, managing director with Janney Montgomery Scott LLC.

"The holiday week is winding down with most new issue business accomplished," Schankel said Wednesday.

"Next week's municipal issuance calendar already stands at $7 billion."

Miami-Dade deal set

Primary action in the week ahead will be led by Miami-Dade County, Fla.'s $808.45 million sale of aviation revenue refunding bonds (A2/A/A).

"Due to its status as the gateway airport to Latin America, Miami International has experienced stronger traffic growth than many other U.S. airports," Schankel said Wednesday.

The Miami-Dade offering, which is being sold through Bank of America Merrill Lynch, will include $700,435,000 of series 2012A AMT bonds and $108,015,000 of series 2012B non-AMT bonds.

The proceeds from the deal will be used to purchase government obligations.

Connecticut Housing prices

On Wednesday, the Connecticut Housing Finance Authority came to market with $145.27 million of series 2012F housing mortgage program bonds, according to a pricing sheet.

The bonds were sold through J.P. Morgan Securities LLC, Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC, Bank of America Merrill Lynch and Citigroup Global Markets Inc.

The deal included $102.64 million of series 2012F-1 non-AMT bonds and $42.63 million of series 2012F-2 AMT bonds.

The 2012F-1 bonds are due 2014 to 2024 with term bonds due in 2027, 2032, 2037 and 2042. The serial coupons range from 0.35% to 2.5%, all priced at par. The 2027 bonds have a 2.7% coupon priced at par, and the 2032 bonds have a 3% coupon priced at par. The 2037 bonds have a 3.3% coupon priced at par, and the 2042 bonds have a 3.4% coupon priced at par.

The 2012F-2 bonds are due 2013 to 2014 with a term bond due in 2035. The serial coupons range from 0.25% to 0.70%, all priced at par. The 2035 bonds have a 2.75% coupon priced at par.

Proceeds will be used to make mortgage loans to qualified Connecticut residents.

Dasny brings RIT bonds

Elsewhere during the muted session, the Dormitory Authority of the State of New York brought to market $146.03 million of series 2012 revenue bonds for the Rochester Institute of Technology, according to a term sheet.

The bonds (A1) were sold through RBC Capital Markets LLC.

The bonds are due 2014 to 2034 with term bonds due in 2038 and 2042. The serial coupons range from 3% to 5%. The 2038 bonds have a 5% coupon priced at 117.776, and the 2042 bonds have a 5% coupon priced at 117.046.

Proceeds will be used to construct an ice arena, renovate RIT's Institute of Health Science and Technology, renovate an electrical substation and renovate laboratories, as well as refund existing debt.

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