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Moody's Investors Service has placed the Ba2-rated bank debt of Moore North America, a wholly owned subsidiary of Moore Corp., on review for possible downgrade following the announcement that the company has signed a definitive merger agreement to acquire Wallace Computer Services. In contrast, Standard & Poor's has placed the company, which it currently rates BB+, on CreditWatch with positive implications. S&P said that the combined entity, Moore Wallace, would have a stronger business risk profile.

Ambac Assurance Corp. has added Quan Do as a modeler for its cash flow collateralized debt obligation group. Do, who started two weeks ago, reports to Scott Gordon, managing director who runs the structured finance CDO group. The position is newly created because demand for financially guaranteed CDOs is growing, says Gordon. Do joins from Lehman Brothers where he also worked as a CDO quant. He reported to Mark Zusy, managing director. Zusy did not return calls seeking comment on the firm's potential replacement plans.

American Tower Corp.'s bank debt was one to two points stronger this week as the company announced that it would pursue some $420 million in new financing. Proceeds will be used to pay down $200 million of the company's term loans and possibly to deal with roughly $210 million of convertible notes that are puttable Oct. 22. Dealers and buysiders quoted the market for the company's "B" loan in the 94 3/4 to 95 3/4 range and a small piece is believed to have changed hands in the 95 context. The funds will be raised through an issue of 123/ 4% senior subordinated discount notes due 2008 and warrants to purchase Class A common shares of American Tower.

Owens Corning's bank debt was a few points lower this week after the company filed its plan of reorganization and a couple of lenders were looking to unload the name. A $20 million piece was believed to have changed hands around the 63 1/2 level early in the week and a $5 million piece was said to have traded at 64 1/4 later. Neither trade could be confirmed. The name was softer after the company filed its reorganization plan because asbestos liabilities were larger than expected, according to traders.

CRT Capital Group, a research and brokerage firm based in Stamford, Conn., is actively seeking a trader and three or four salespeople this year to ramp up its presence as a specialized brokerage firm in the loan market. The salespeople will cover banks, insurance companies, and other primary lenders that are looking to sell pieces of specific credits, said Michael Vaughn Jr., managing member of CRT.

Casella Waste Systems broke into the secondary market last week with traders quoting the company's new "B" piece in the 100 3/8-100 3/4 range. Small pieces changed hands in that context. The new facility consists of a $175 million revolver and a $150 million term loan "B" (see story, page 3). The company is also completing a $150 million offering of 93/ 4% senior subordinated notes due 2013.

Casella Waste Systems' $150 million "B" loan blew out after launching last Tuesday, prompting lead banks, Bank of America and FleetBoston Financial, to slap LIBOR plus 31/ 4% pricing on the institutional piece. That pricing was the low end of the previous LIBOR plus 31/ 4-31 /2% price talk range, said a banker familiar with the deal. The $325 million credit also includes a $175 million revolver with pricing at LIBOR plus 3%. "We're trying to position our balance sheet," said Richard Norris, senior v.p., cfo and treasurer of Casella, declining to comment specifically on the blowout. Casella plans to use the proceeds from the credit and a concurrent note offering to repay its current facility. Norris also noted that the proceeds would go toward acquiring more disposal sites (see story, page 4). A B of A official declined to comment, while a Fleet banker did not return calls.

A handful of collateralized loan obligations are making the rounds and looking to take advantage of an improved market that had slowed to a crawl at the end of 2002. Insurance companies, foreign institutions and funds of funds seem to be picking up their checkbooks again, and that is coloring a healthier pipeline for CLOs and an increased demand for loan products, according to managers. There are between 10 to 15 deals in the pipeline, according to research by Christopher Flanagan, managing director and head, global structured finance research at J.P. Morgan.

Christopher Wilcox has joined ABN Amro as a v.p. and collateralized debt obligation structurer from TD Securities. He started January 17 and reports to Fernando Guerrero, global head of CDOs. Guerrero himself joined ABN Amro last year from TD Securities, where he was the structured product group's head for three years. The position is newly created, as ABN Amro wants to build its CDO team for both its New York and London offices (BW, 11/3). Wilcox is based in New York.

TRW Automotive's $1.81 billion acquisition bank deal is finally steering into the U.S. retail market today, but many prospective investors are idling in neutral on the credit's hefty $900 million "B" piece. Market players are weighing the mammoth size of the loan, the company's 3.5 times total leverage and declining margin figures-- all against the backdrop of a lackluster auto industry. "The auto sector's a tough sector. There's a lot of problems there," one buysider noted. "I would expect mixed reviews on this," a banker acknowledged, but stated that TRW is one of the strongest names in its sector. The credit backs The Blackstone Group's $4.7 billion buyout of Northrop Grumman's TRW Automotive business, announced last quarter.

Jonathan Laredo, formerly co-head of securitization at J.P. Morgan Securities in London, has been replaced by Ed Giera, who was head of the debt origination team of the financial institutions group. The moves are part of an overall realignment of J.P. Morgan's London-based credit business. Tamara Adler remains as co-head of securitization.

Roughly $20-30 million of Kmart's bank debt changed hands last week as the company rushed to file a disclosure statement Friday, as Loan Market Week went to press. Dealers said pieces of the company's 364-day revolver and three-year facility changed hands in the 34-35 range. The buzz suggested that Edward Lampert of ESL Investments was coming back to the table offering to help fund a buyout of the company's bank debt, albeit with a few tweaks to the original agreement. Calls to Lampert were not returned by press time.