High Yield Report articles from June 2003

High Yield Report archives from June 2003

US Company News.(Huntsman deal fails)
June 2, 2003... Despite the continuing surge in high yield new issues - one of the strongest market runs in years - private chemical company Huntsman LLC's proposed $250 million deal ran aground last week, one of only a handful of postponed or scrapped deals...

US Company News.(Boldholder concerned after Tenet Healthcare CEO resigns)
June 2, 2003... Tenet Healthcare's announcement of the resignation of CEO Jeffrey Barbakow gave the company's bonds a bit of a boost. But bondholders are still worried about who will replace Barbakow at the helm of the second largest domestic owner and...

Europe.(Britax bond performance)
June 2, 2003... Branded the "hairiest" and "worst" deal of the year by many high yield investors when it was launched last May, Britax has had it tough. But market sentiment is slowly changing, and some analysts and investors are talking about the credit as a...

The Word Is.(overview and design of the new High Yield Report)(Editorial)
June 2, 2003... From a marketplace that once welcomed fledgling telecoms with grand ambitions to one populated by fallen angels, the high yield world has undergone considerable change over the past couple of years. Even now, it continues to change, and we at...

Convertibles.(Lucent to issue convertible bonds)
June 2, 2003... Lucent Technologies plans to sell $1.3 billion in convertible bonds, an option that many companies like Delta Air Lines, Northwest Airlines and Sirius are choosing to raise cash. But the message Lucent is sending its shareholders by doing this...

Market View.
June 2, 2003... Is the US high yield market running out of steam? It would appear so: Two weeks ago, mutual fund flows began to slow down and actually reversed course for the first time since Feb. 21, recording outflows of $257.65 million for the week...

Profile.(creation of market research firm FridsonVision)
June 2, 2003... He was never going to be absent from the market for long, but rather than look for another position on the sellside, Marty Fridson, former chief high yield strategist at Merrill Lynch, has decided to branch out on his own. Over the past...

People Moves.(Brief Article)
June 2, 2003... In addition to hiring Frederick Taylor as managing director and head of high yield research at Fleet Securities (HYR 5/19), Fleet recently recruited analysts George Ashur and Frank Hacklander to its high yield research unit. Ashur will cover...

Opinion.(few high yield fund managers post better returns than the market)
June 2, 2003... Oh, those pitches fund managers throw out to prospective high yield clients. They're a riot, often rising to a level of thrill and fantasy worthy of a James Carville campaign speech or a Tom Clancy novel. They besiege the senses with inspiring...

Sector Analysis.(slowdown in the grocery store industry)(Industry Overview)
June 2, 2003... US supermarkets and grocery distributors have experienced a slowdown in sales since the beginning of 2002 and it's not because of the economy, sources say. Much of the slippage in sales is a result of natural and organic food retailers...

US Company News.
June 9, 2003... Despite Warren Buffet's dismissing the potential of the high yield market, money is still pouring into mutual funds and deals are still pricing. Case in point: Williams Cos.'s $800 million deal offering, which was expected to price at press...

US Company News.
June 9, 2003... Bondholders have been bracing themselves for the possible blow-up of WestPoint Stevens, Inc. and when reports came out last week suggesting that the manufacturer of textiles was working with ESL Investments, a hedge fund run by Edward S....

Europe.
June 9, 2003... European high yield market participants are having mixed feelings over the proposed three-part refinancing package for fallen angel HeidelbergCement, particularly over pricing and the outlook for the cement sector. "The success of this...

The Word Is.
June 9, 2003... Alan Greenspan might have spoken of deflation, but according to Bear Stearns' chief global economist, David Malpass, the US economy is headed for a multi-year "reflation," a period of strong growth akin to the 1982 move from a period of rampant...

Leveraged Loans.
June 9, 2003... While leveraged loans have proven more stable and less risky CDO collateral than high yield bonds, some might be questioning their presence in structured vehicles, as ultimate recovery rates on bank loans are declining. Actually, bank loan...

Sector Analysis.
June 9, 2003... A panel of chief financial officers from three major gaming companies speaking at the Bear Stearns' 12th Annual Global Credit Conference in New York last week were quite firm in stating their concern over the increased taxation from certain...

Profile.(Robert Cook and Thomas Hauser)
June 9, 2003... With roughly $26.2 billion in total fixed income assets and roughly $4 billion in high yield under management, Conseco Capital Management's (CCM) team has plenty to keep it busy. But successfully managing such a large sum of money requires...

People Moves.
June 9, 2003... Yet another high profile professional is making the trip back across the Atlantic, according to market sources. Bala Ramakrishnan, head of European high yield research at Morgan Stanley, is transferring back to the US office after five years...

CDOs.(collateralized debt obligations)
June 9, 2003... Fitch Ratings recently unveiled a new tool that will help investors fend off some of the risks associated with certain collateralized debt obligation (CDO) structures. The rating agency has designed a new state-of-the-art portfolio...

US Company News.
June 16, 2003... Evergreen Investments last week extended a new $41.5 million senior secured facility to RCN Corp., the largest US facilities-based competitive provider of bundled phone, cable and high speed Internet services delivered over its own fiber-optic...

US Company News.
June 16, 2003... The approximately $1.1 billion acquisition of aerospace-component maker TransDigm Inc. by US private equity firm Warburg Pincus from Odyssey Investment Partners will include a high yield bond offering that should come to market before the end...

Europe.
June 16, 2003... A new transaction from Focus-Wickes, in the form of a hybrid product that resembles a warrant-less mezzanine note with a non-call one-year structure and amortization coupon attached could be the long-awaited solution to the subordination issue...

The Word Is.
June 16, 2003... A strong banking system is the backbone of a strong economy, professionals in this business have often told me. By most accounts, the US economy is not that strong right now, but according to Moody's Investors Service, its banking system is...

US Company News.(Brief Article)
June 16, 2003... The recent bankruptcy announcement by Westpoint Stevens was bad enough news for bondholders. But a summary of the proposed restructuring plan, put forth last week by ESL Investments, GSC Partners and Perry Capital (holders of the majority of...

Mezzanine.
June 16, 2003... Because of the ongoing popularity of the high yield market, the minimum threshold level for a company looking to borrow there has been steadily increasing. As such, some middle market companies that could access the market in the past are...

Profile.(Paul van der Worp)(Interview)
June 16, 2003... With five funds either fully or partly targeting high yield bonds, Dutch buyside firm Robeco has just over EURO1 billion invested in the asset class. Three of the five funds, a EURO230 million Amsterdam listed fund, a EURO150 million fund for...

Opinion.(credit analysts)
June 16, 2003... Bbrriiiiiiiing! The doorbell rouses Dozey from a deep slumber, induced by the latest sellside research report. Snow White, who had been running yield-to-maturity analyses on various fruit vines, rises from her Fruit-of-the-Loomberg terminal and...

Project Finance.
June 16, 2003... The high yield bond market is the hottest market to be in these days, and not only is it attracting a host of new investors, it has also caught the eye of a diverse range of issuers. Project financiers are the latest group to seek fortune...

CDOs.(collateral debt obligations)
June 16, 2003... Sometimes it pays to take a chance and be just a little different. While high yield bond CDOs were the market pariah last year, one CDO collateral manager forged on ahead to put together a CDO using not just high yield bonds, but stressed...

Sector Analysis.
June 23, 2003... Over the past six months, cash-laden investors have been trekking further and further down the credit curve in search of yield. As a result, formerly distressed sectors like telecommunications, utilities and airlines, where many of the...

US Company News.
June 23, 2003... I can't do this. I can't believe I'm buying this kind of junk with this kind of coupon." So thought to himself one high yield player who last week bought the new senior notes issue from triple C-rated Nextel Partners, which priced at a...

Europe.
June 23, 2003... Last week, Remy Cointreau, the BB/Ba2-rated French distiller and drinks group, priced a EURO175 million, seven year, non-call four, senior notes issue via mandated lead arrangers Bank of America and BNP Paribas. With over EURO1 billion in...

the word is...
June 23, 2003... Choices. That's what struck me the most about the US the first time I visited this country in 1983. I was a teenager then, thrilled most with the cornucopia of colorful food items on supermarket aisles, and flipping the remote control through a...

US Company News.
June 23, 2003... Just like Nextel (see story, p. 1), Centennial Communications, a triple-C rated company on both sides, also managed to hit the jackpot with a deal that was so strong and so oversubscribed that it was raised not once, not twice but three times....

Strategy.
June 23, 2003... Interest rate risk is not an issue that high yield fund managers are typically concerned with. Credit risk is usually at the top of their lists, but in this exceedingly low interest rate environment, with US Treasury yields at 45-year lows and...

Issuer Profile.
June 23, 2003... San Francisco - When John Lie-Nielsen and Scott Crockett founded their company Allied Cash Advance, in 1999, their Bay Area peers thought they were crazy. After all, it was the era of trendy dot-com companies, each with a more creative and...

Convertibles.
June 23, 2003... San Francisco - Biotech stock prices have come back dramatically and firms that badly need cash to develop new products have been taking the opportunity to capitalize on a hot convertible bond market, where very low coupons and high conversion...

US Company News.
June 23, 2003... Many companies go through a Chapter 11 filing hoping to step from the bankruptcy courts straight into a chaotic market in which their restructured balance sheets give them a competitive edge over their debt-ridden rivals. Kmart, which...

Leveraged Finance.
June 23, 2003... Despite suffering strongly negative rating trends through 2002, a number of encouraging signs have developed thus far in 2003, which suggest the European leveraged finance market is heading in the right direction, according to a recent report...

ABS.(asset backed securities)
June 23, 2003... Corporate bonds have long since reigned supreme over structured finance transactions, but since the corporate debacle of 2001-2002, things have changed. Not only has there been an increased use of structured finance as a funding tool, but...

US Company News.
June 30, 2003... PG&E Corp. expected to price a $600 million offering of five-year, non-call three senior secured notes just as its utility company, Pacific Gas & Electric, is preparing to emerge from bankruptcy - but investors cannot wait for the issue. ...

US Company News.(Reliant Resources Inc.)
June 30, 2003... It was big and it was cheap. Well, by recent standards, that is, and so the demand for fallen angel Reliant Resources' new deal was so huge that it was not only upsized to $550 million from an original $350 million, but the issuer also added a...

Europe.
June 30, 2003... "Innovation" is the word of the moment in European high yield. Origination teams are hard at work trying to find novel ways to bring deals that might otherwise have had a tough time coming to market, and several of the new deals that have...

The Word Is.(Brief Article)
June 30, 2003... There was no way that the Federal Reserve wouldn't cut rates this time around. By how much was the big question in financial markets last week: A quarter- or a half-percentage point? In the end, the 25 basis point betters won: The Fed last...

Sector Analysis.(public utiilities)
June 30, 2003... Debt-heavy utility companies came under tremendous pressure last year, as concerns about their ability to refinance weighed on investors' minds. But the strength of the market over the past six months has enabled even the less creditworthy...

Leveraged Loans.
June 30, 2003... LoanX, a market-supported platform created to increase syndicated loan secondary market liquidity and transparency, has launched the first and sole one-stop shop for loan, bond and equity prices. The new product, called RISKMarker, was...

Profile.(Michael Vaughn Jr.)
June 30, 2003... One man's loss is another man's gain, they say, and it's certainly true that the recent backlash against sellside research has benefited independent research providers like Stamford-based CRT Capital Group LLC, a research-driven, institutional...

People Moves.
June 30, 2003... Mark Pinto, head of credit research in the Americas for Merrill Lynch, has put together a new team of analysts designed to increase their capabilities in the area of credit analysis. "The high yield business for Merrill Lynch is taking on...

Opinion.
June 30, 2003... Saddam, Spiders and other examples of "Synergy" Synergy: Is there any word in the lexicon of financial markets more abused, more hackneyed? Probably not. The Oxford English Dictionary defines synergy as: "increased effectiveness,...

Economy.(interest rate cut)
June 30, 2003... High yield market participants must be happy the Federal Reserve cut interest rates by 25 basis points and not 50. According to a panel of high yield strategists speaking at a breakfast meeting organized by Deutsche Bank last week in New...