PIPE volume improving; PanAmerican Bancorp raises $17.4 million

By Sheri Kasprzak

New York, Aug. 2 - Private placement volume remained fairly light Tuesday, but some sell-siders agreed that there is a light at the end of the tunnel.

"We're already seeing more stuff," said one market source. "It's starting to trickle in bit by bit."

Another sell-side source said issuers are finally wrapping up quarter-end earnings reports and some of those reports could mean more PIPEs.

"The effect of earnings season, even though it has been a pretty strong one, would suggest more [issuance] to me because for some of these companies, there will be a strong need for capital in the coming fiscal year and in the coming quarter," he said. "It's just a matter of pricing them."

Market conditions improved for PIPEs on Tuesday, according to another sell-sider based out of New York.

"Stocks got a boost, so that's always a good sign," he said. "Some sectors are faring better than others, but it actually looked better today than it has in a while."

The Dow gained 60.59 to end at 10,683.74, the Nasdaq composite index closed 22.77 higher at 2,218.15, and the S&P 500 ended up 8.77 at 1,244.12.

Oil prices, one Canadian market source said, may help issuance north of the border. Oil rose to new highs on Tuesday, gaining $0.32 to end at $61.89 per barrel.

Of the higher oil prices, the Canadian source said better energy stocks will mean more offerings from oil exploration companies - a major sector in Canada.

PanAmerican closes $17.4 million

Moving to specific offerings, PanAmerican Bancorp led private placement news Tuesday with the closing of its $17.4 million private placement. The company has received definitive agreements for another $12.6 million in proceeds from the deal. If fully subscribed, the company will rake in $30 million from the offering.

As of Tuesday, the company had sold 4.35 million units at $4.00 each.

The units include one share and one half-share series F warrant. The whole warrants allow for another share at $4.00 each.

"We are extremely pleased by the acceptance that this offering has received from investors," said the company's chief executive officer, Michael Golden, in a statement. "As the company bank has grown, investors have become increasingly aware of our success and recognize that we are an emerging bank force in the growing Southern Florida region.

"At June 30, 2005, total assets were $247 million and our net loans receivable exceeded $202 million - increases since March 31, 2005 of 18% and 21%, respectively, and increases of 58% and 71% respectively, compared to a year earlier. After the current offering, the book value of $3.12 per share, the bank's total assets are $265 million and the total capital is $57 million."

The company reported a net income of $601,958 for the quarter ended March 31, compared to a net loss of $566,583 for the corresponding period in 2004.

As of March 31, the company had 9,992,939 outstanding common shares.

Based in Miami, PanAmerican is a holding company for PanAmerican Bank, a state-chartered bank.

At the end of the day Tuesday, the company's stock edged up $0.17 to close at $4.99.

Canary raises $7.25 million

Heading to the natural resources' sector, Toronto-based Canary Resources Inc. closed a $7.25 million private placement of class A convertible preferred stock.

The company sold 18,125,000 preferreds at $0.40 each to institutional investors, including a large European institution.

The preferreds, which do not pay dividends, are convertible into common shares on a one-for-one basis.

The investors received warrants for 9,062,500 shares, exercisable at $1.00 each for four years.

The proceeds will be used for drilling and development in the Eastern Forest City basin in Kansas and Missouri. The remainder will be used for working capital.

The company has 30,892,700 outstanding common shares. Following the conversion of the class A convertible preferred shares, the company will have 49,017,700 shares outstanding.

The offering was announced Tuesday afternoon, and the company's stock dove by more than 50%, losing $0.21 to end at $0.20.

Canary is a coal bed methane exploration company.

Urban Television wraps $6.9 million deal

Urban Television Network Corp. announced the closing of its $6.9 million private placement on Tuesday.

The company sold 69 million shares at $0.10 each to Miles Investment Group, LLC.

Miles will make installment payments of $250,000 over 28 months on the transaction with a $100,000 down payment.

The investor will also receive warrants for 30 million shares at a penny each. The warrants may be exercised only for a certain number of shares depending upon the company's stock performance.

Based in Arlington, Texas, Urban Television is a television network targeting African-American viewers.

The company's stock gained $0.024, or 21.82%, to end at $0.134 on Tuesday.

Prairie Schooner's C$37.56 million deal

Fueled by a jump in oil prices Monday, Prairie Schooner Petroleum Ltd. priced a C$37,561,500 private placement.

The company plans to sell 2,455,000 subscription receipts at C$15.30 each to help pay for the acquisition of gas-producing properties and undeveloped land in Alberta.

Each receipt is exchangeable for one common share upon the closing of the acquisition.

A syndicate of underwriters led by GMP Securities Ltd. has an over-allotment option for up to 245,000 additional receipts.

After the offering was announced early Tuesday, the company's stock gained C$0.75 to end at C$16.00.

Of the offering, a market source familiar with natural resources said he felt the deal was priced right in line, thanks to a substantial increase in oil prices Monday.

"Yesterday's [closing] oil prices made a big difference," he said. "What makes this deal a little more appealing to investors is the acquisition. Those sorts of things - mergers, acquisitions, property purchases - all help in the long run. But the pricing looks really good on this. I think it will go very well."

Based in Calgary, Alta., Prairie Schooner is an oil and natural gas exploration company.

Inverness Medical's stock dips

A day after wrapping a $95.04 million private placement, Inverness Medical Innovations, Inc.'s stock slipped.

Inverness's stock lost $0.53 to close at $27.49 Tuesday.

The company's stock gained $0.87 to end at $28.02 on Monday when the closing was first announced Monday.

Inverness sold shares at $23.76 each.

Based in Waltham, Mass., Inverness produces in vitro diagnostic products and other medical devices.

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