Search results for

Douglas Colandrea, an investment-grade telecommunications and media analyst, has left Morgan Stanley, where he was an executive director. He will join Bear Stearns in mid-June, according to people at both firms. Colandrea declined comment when reached on his mobile phone. Mike Hyland, head of research at Bear Stearns, did not return calls, nor did Bill Reiland, director of U.S. credit research at Morgan Stanley. Morgan Stanley has not yet announced its plans regarding his replacement, says an analyst at the firm.

Douglas Colandrea, an investment-grade telecommunications and media analyst, has left Morgan Stanley, where he was an executive director. He will join Bear Stearns in mid-June, according to people at both firms. Colandrea declined comment when reached on his mobile phone. Mike Hyland, head of research at Bear Stearns, did not return calls, nor did Bill Reiland, director of U.S. credit research at Morgan Stanley. Morgan Stanley has not yet announced its plans regarding his replacement, says an analyst at the firm.

The $84 billion New York City Retirement Systems will soon issue request for proposals for high-yield bond managers to handle about $4 billion for contracts that are set to expire in June 2003, according to BW sister publication Money Management Letter. One individual familiar with the plans said that the searches would be for managers to handle assets from all of the city's five retirement plans: The New York Employees Retirement System, The New York City Teachers' Retirement System, The New York City Police Pension, The New York City Fire Pension, Police & Fire Variable Funds and The New York City Board of Education Retirement. Horatio Sparkes, assistant comptroller for pensions, declined to comment on the situation.

Banc of America Securities has added two senior salesmen to its high-yield desk in New York, according to Tom White, co-head of global high-yield at the firm. They are Kevin Coleman, a former managing director from Morgan Stanley who left last year, and Chris Gray, who White describes as a "very senior salesperson," from Salomon Smith Barney. Gray will join this week. They will report to Mike Meyer, head of global high-yield sales. Gray and Coleman could not be reached. Vincent Lima, head of high-yield sales at Salomon Smith Barney, did not return calls.

Peconic Securities, an inter-dealer broker, has opened a high-yield operation in New York. Also known as "brokers' brokers" or "Street brokers," firms such as Peconic act as middlemen to allow sell-side desks to buy and sell each other's bonds without disclosing pricing information to their competitors. Peconic already has a convertible bond desk in Garden City, N.Y. The high-yield desk has 12 traders so far and aims to have 15-20 when it is fully staffed, say its three co-heads: Rob DePiro, Tommy Keyes, and Joe Salerno. A few of the traders have sell-side experience, while others come from competing Street brokers, such as Garban Intercapital and EuroBrokers. The firm hopes to eventually broker high-grade bonds as well, says DePiro.

Investors are looking closely at two new leveraged buyout deals, including a UBS Warburg-led deal for Herbalife and a UBS Warburg and Bank of America-led deal for The Columbia House Company. As eager as buysiders are to get paper, they are taking a close look at these credits as price remains a concern on the first and collateral coverage a concern on the latter. An investor considering the Herbalife deal said he thinks the deal should get a 100 basis point hike to make up for risks associated with the credit. "I'd like a 100 [basis points] increase but realistically I'll settle for 25 or 50," said the buysider regarding pricing. He noted positively that roughly $175 million in equity has been pumped into the structure. "Pricing is going to have to increase to get this one done. The assets are a draw back," he said.

Wachovia Securities is working on a $260 million bank deal for Virginia-based Hilb, Rogal, and Hamilton, according to market sources. The deal is reportedly structured to include a $140 million term loan "B" in conjunction with a pro rata piece slated for $120 million. One banker said the term loan is the first for the company. Calls to Carolyn Jones, cfo and treasurer, were not returned by press time. A company spokeswoman confirmed the bank deal but refereed all specific questions to Jones.

The market waited all week for the Deutsche Telekom deal that never came. On the heels of disappointing earnings and a Moody's outlook change, DT decided to put off pricing its jumbo global transaction after an extensive roadshow and several other delays along the way. In theory, the outlook change at pricing is better than the typical rating agency downgrade a week or two after a new deal, but is it too much to ask that the agencies act in advance of a major transaction? Apparently so. Just short of $12 billion in investment grade supply hit the market for the week. Of that, $3 billion was a short global from the European Investment Bank and $2 billion from JPMorgan Chase. The high yield market has also been very active with $2.1 billion in single B paper priced.

RBC Capital Markets has reportedly taken a hit on a credit default swap position on WorldCom and has let go its head of credit trading in New York, according to Derivatives Week, a Loan Market Week sister publication. Simon Howard-Glossop, head of credit, has left the firm, confirmed Paul Wilson, a spokesman in Toronto, declining further comment. A trader on the credit desk in New York declined all comment, as did Walter Gontarek, head of credit derivatives in London.

At least $25-30 million of XO Communications is believed to have traded in the high 40s last week, falling from the low 50s as the company's restructuring negotiations hit a snag. Financier Carl Icahn has pulled his offer for the company off the table, according to reports, but some market players suggested that he will come back to ensure the value of his bond investments. A $15-20 million piece of the name was sold by a bank in the 46-47 context last week.

Daiwa SMBC and UBS Warburg are managing the float of a new property trust on behalf of leasing company Orix Corp - one of two J-REIT deals that banks hope will attract retail investors looking for a return on their trillions of yen of savings. The deal is due to be priced next Friday and listed on June 12. The trust consists of 40 office properties, 98% of which are in Tokyo. The pricing range is ¥470,000-¥520,000, implying a yield of between 6% and 6.7%.

Citic Ka Wah Bank took its first decisive steps in the Asian capital market yesterday (Thursday), when it became the first Asian (ex-Japan) institution to offer a perpetual upper tier two bond. The $250m perpetual, callable after 10 years, proved to be a hit with a receptive investor community keen to gain an attractive yield at a time of narrowing spreads.