E*Trade’s $1,000-pars above par post-pricing; Entergy Arkansas, Medley list; Qwest gains

By Stephanie N. Rotondo

Seattle, Aug. 17 – The preferred stock market remained focused on recently priced deals in midweek trading.

E*Trade Financial Corp. sold $400 million of 5.875% $1,000-par series A fixed-to-floating rate noncumulative preferred stock, the details of which came out late Tuesday.

A trader saw the issue at 100.75 bid, 101 offered in early Wednesday trading.

The paper remained around the 101 mark throughout the day, another trader said.

Credit Suisse Securities (USA) LLC, Goldman Sachs & Co., Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC and J.P. Morgan Securities LLC ran the books. Initial price talk was 6% to 6.25% but was later revised to 5% to 5.875%, according to a market source.

Dividends will be fixed and payable on a semiannual basis until Sept. 15, 2026. After that, the preferreds will float at Libor plus 443.5 basis points and will be paid on a quarterly basis.

Meanwhile, more recent deals were listing on the New York Stock Exchange, including Entergy Arkansas Inc.’s $410 million of 4.875% $25-par first mortgage bonds due Sept. 1, 2066.

The ticker symbol is “EAI,” a market source reported. The deal priced Aug. 9, coming in line with price talk.

The issue was pegged at $24.82 bid, $24.84 offered early in the day, closing at $24.89.

That was up 4 cents.

Wells Fargo Securities LLC, BofA Merrill Lynch and Morgan Stanley led the deal.

As for Entergy Louisiana LLC’s $270 million of 4.875% $25-par collateral trust mortgage bonds due Sept. 1, 2066 – a deal from Aug. 10 – that deal could list on Thursday, a source said.

The ticker is expected to be “ELC,” according to the source.

A trader saw the notes trading at $24.73 at mid-morning.

Medley LLC’s $25 million of 6.875% $25-par unsecured notes due Aug. 15, 2026 was another deal to hit the NYSE on Wednesday, under the ticker “MDLX.”

The notes finished the day at $24.16, down 34 cents.

Rounding out recent deals, Qwest Corp. said its $127.5 million greenshoe on its $850 million offering of 6.5% $25-par senior notes due Sept. 1, 2056 was fully exercised by the underwriters, BofA Merrill Lynch, Morgan Stanley, RBC Capital Markets LLC and Wells Fargo.

That brings the total outstanding to $977.5 million.

“That’s moving up nicely,” a trader said of the issue, seeing the paper move up to $25.47 from earlier levels around $25.40.

The Qwest notes priced Aug. 11.

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