Category: Bonds

  • One-year triple-A muni yields rise above 3%

    Municipal triple-A yield curves saw another round of cuts Tuesday amid elevated secondary selling pressure, pushing one-year munis to end the session above 3%. U.S. Treasuries and equities saw losses after more hawkish Fed speak and a continued global bond rout. Triple-A yields rose by as many as seven to eight basis points across the…

  • End of Moody’s review sign of less pressure on West Haven, Connecticut

    Under the oversight of a state review board, the troubled finances of West Haven, Connecticut, are moving in the right direction, according to Moody’s Investors Service, which last week affirmed the city’s Baa3 general obligation bond rating after a two-month review. Financial mismanagement and federal corruption charges have dogged the New Haven suburb, which is…

  • Hallacy on munis

    Transcription:Chip Barnett: (00:03)Hi and welcome to another Bond Buyer podcast. I’m Chip Barnett, and my guest today is John Hallacy, and he’s the founder of John Hallacy Consulting LLC. And today we’re gonna be taking a look at the state of the municipal bond market, where it is right now, and where it’s heading for…

  • Climate change top issue for California’s Newsom at bill deadline

    California Gov. Gavin Newsom, who has been bouncing around the country making appearances fueling further talk of a presidential run, has signed hundreds of bills ahead of Thursday’s deadline to sign or veto bills the Legislature sent him. The final bill signings also serve as a demarcation of sorts for when the governor moves from…

  • PREPA mediators call for simultaneous mediation, litigation and plan creation

    The Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority mediation team called for simultaneous mediation, litigation and plan of adjustment creation. In response to Judge Laura Taylor Swain’s request for input, the mediators Shelley Chapman, Robert Drain and Brendan Shannon filed two documents with their proposals Thursday. Swain ordered mediation in the PREPA bankruptcy in late March to…

  • New York City comptroller urges BlackRock to walk the walk on ESG commitments

    Walk the walk, not talk the talk on fighting climate change and supporting environmental, social and governance goals, New York City Comptroller Brad Lander told BlackRock CEO Larry Fink on Thursday. Voicing concern that BlackRock Inc.’s investment actions don’t match up with its ESG policy commitments, Lander sent a letter to the company requesting immediate…

  • How 2022 volatility is shifting muni ownership

    The municipal market has grown in overall size, market value has fallen and retail ownership trends are shifting amid the massive outflows from municipal bond mutual funds this year, the latest Federal Reserve data show. Retail investors may be moving out of mutual funds and into separately managed accounts, largely due to the headline shock…

  • Tax appeal may impact PILOTs for American Dream mall in New Jersey

    Owners of the American Dream Mall in East Rutherford, New Jersey, want a downward reassessment of the shopping center’s property assessment, a move that if successful will reduce the amount of money paid to the municipality via a payment-in-lieu-of-taxes bond agreement. Those PILOT payments back $800 million of tax-exempt bonds issued to fund completion of…

  • Illinois makes sales pitch for its paper ahead of $700 million deal

    Illinois basked in a brighter fiscal picture as it met with the buy side this week than it did at its last event in 2019 when its ratings sat on the verge of junk, but investors still fret over how the state would weather a potential recession and its prospects for further progress. Illinois’ top…

  • Munis extend selloff on front end, calendar rebounds to $6.2B

    Municipals extended their selloff on the front of the curve Friday following U.S. Treasuries while equities sold off. Triple-A yields rose 11 to 15 basis points five years and in, depending on the scale, while UST saw smaller losses on the short end and improved slightly out long. Two- and three-year muni-UST ratios climbed to…

  • Kaufman Hall bulks up with acquisition of Claro Healthcare

    Kaufman Hall & Associates LLC will acquire the consulting firm Claro Healthcare to scale up on the depth of its professional services for hospital and health systems that are navigating ongoing COVID-19 wounds made worse by a labor shortage and high expenses. Kaufman Hall, which specializes in the healthcare and higher education sectors, said Thursday…

  • Munis walloped on front end, $2B more outflows

    Municipals were hit hard on the front end of the curve but the damage was felt throughout as triple-A yields rose up to 15 basis points and mutual fund outflows topped $2 billion. U.S. Treasuries sold off and equities were mixed. Municipal yields rose up to 15 basis points on the one- and two-year with…

  • Fed rate hike pushes 2-year UST above 4%; munis slow to respond

    Municipals were mixed after the Federal Open Market Committee implemented a third straight 75 basis point rate hike as it continues to combat inflation, pushing the two-year U.S. Treasury above 4% while the 10-, 20- and 30-year made gains. Equities ended in the red. The FOMC raised the fed funds rate target 75 basis points…

  • Bankruptcy court complicates suits over failed NFL facility in South Carolina

    The failed endeavor to build the Carolina Panthers football franchise a new headquarters in York County, South Carolina, has resulted in a thorny legal battle over who is to blame. Construction on the planned $800 million mixed-used facility in Rock Hill, meant to include state-of-the-art training facilities, office space, millions in utility investments, and green…

  • New York City’s first social bonds will fund affordable housing

    New York City will dip its toes into the social bond municipal market for the first time next month when it offers a $400 million taxable general obligation deal to a growing investor base seeking bonds that address specific social objectives. This is the city’s first sale of social bonds, Mayor Eric Adams and New York…

  • Munis sell off ahead of Fed rate hike

    Municipals sold off across the yield curve amid elevated selling pressure as the first day of the Federal Open Market Committee meeting began Tuesday, with the one-year muni well above 2.5% and the 10-year surpassing 3%. U.S. Treasuries were weaker and equities ended down. Triple-A benchmark yields rose eight to 10 basis points, depending on…

  • SIFMA still leader of the muni-lobbying pack

    A look at lobbying action prior to election day shows some familiar sources making big contributions with the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association showing $3.58 million dispensed through 49 lobbyists, according to nonprofit transparency group Open Secrets. The totals for the entire financial sector through the second quarter of the year, are over $66…

  • Another move to higher yields on short end on FOMC jitters

    Municipals were weaker on the front end of the curve ahead outperforming larger losses on U.S. Treasuries that saw the two- and three-year yields rise to near 4% and the highest they’ve been since 2007. Triple-A muni yields rose another five basis points on the short end while UST rose up to seven. Two- and…

  • Puerto Rico looks to restructure Municipal Finance Agency bonds

    Puerto Rico’s government is taking steps to restructure Municipal Finance Agency bonds and other government debt. Puerto Rico’s Fiscal Agency and Financial Advisory Authority, which oversees debt for the administration of Gov. Pedro Pierluisi, on Friday told The Bond Buyer it would seek to restructure the MFA bonds and other non-bonded debt.  To pursue a…

  • ProMedica loses last investment-grade rating in Moody’s cut to junk

    Ohio-based ProMedica Health System lost its final investment grade rating when Moody’s Investors Service cut the credit citing ongoing losses as the system struggles with ongoing COVID-19 related challenges that have hit its senior care business especially hard. Moody’s dropped the rating two notches to Ba2 from Baa3 Monday and warned of further deterioration by…