Higher-grade convertibles in focus amid better outright sellers; Newmont Mining holds in

By Rebecca Melvin

New York, Jan. 19 – Higher-grade issues were in focus in the convertibles space as equity markets swung around, ending the session off their lows and at about the unchanged mark on the first day of the trading week on Tuesday.

U.S. financial markets were closed on Monday in observance of the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday.

Traders pointed to activity in Priceline Group Inc., Ares Capital Corp., Lam Research Corp. and Intel Corp. as high-grade bond spreads were a few basis points tighter and equities a little higher in the early going. But crude oil prices were lower.

There was not much trading, but it seemed that most investment-grade names were trading in a flight-to-safety trade, a New York-based trader said.

Twitter Inc., Microchip Technology Inc. and Newmont Mining Corp. were also mentioned as active.

A second New York-based trader said there was outright money being taken off the table as funds are anticipating redemptions given current performance.

Microchip’s 1.625% convertibles due 2025 traded up a point to 91.8, according to Trace data.

Newmont’s 1.625% convertibles traded in size on Tuesday at 98.75, compared to being offered on Friday at 98.25, sources said.

Shares of the Greenwood Village, Colo.-based gold and copper miner fell $1.39, or 8%, to $16.31 on Tuesday after trading higher on Friday with higher gold prices.

© 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.