Distressed debt firms as new Centene deal takes focus; Freeport rebounds; commodities rise

By Stephanie N. Rotondo

Seattle, Jan. 29 – The distressed debt market ended the week on a positive note, market sources reported Friday.

“Stocks were up a lot,” a trader noted, though GDP data was weak. Still, that encouraged investors that perhaps the Federal Reserve would slow its pace of interest rate increases.

While the distressed space was higher, traders noted that Centene Corp.’s $2.4 billion two-tranche offering was taking up the bulk of trading volume.

Freeport-McMoran Inc. continued to be active following the four-notch downgrade from Moody’s Investors Service on Wednesday. Instead of falling, as it did in Thursday trading, it was moving up.

Other commodity-linked names were also doing better on the day.

Continued gains in the price of crude oil helped oil and gas-linked securities gain ground on Friday – at least for the most part.

Williams Co.’s 4.55% notes due 2024 pushed up nearly a point to 65¼, while the 5¾% notes due 2044 inched up a quarter-point to 56¼.

Carrizo Oil & Gas Inc.’s 6¾% notes due 2023 also firmed, rising over 2 points to 70¼.

For its part, domestic crude improved 1.29% on the day, finishing at $33.65 a barrel. The commodity was up even higher earlier in the session. The modest retreat was due to word that Iran did not intend to participate in any plan to cut production.

Earlier in the week, Russia said that it would be willing to lower oil output amid a global supply glut.

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