Schlumberger, Devon price notes amid oil price slide; Visa, Dollar General notes firm

By Aleesia Forni and Cristal Cody

New York, Dec. 10 – A pair of energy names, Schlumberger Holdings Corp. and Devon Energy Corp., priced new bonds to fund acquisitions on Thursday amid another bout of market volatility.

Oil prices were again under pressure during the session, sliding to near seven-year lows below $37 per barrel on concerns of a global supply glut.

In light of the rocky backdrop, Schlumberger faced some pushback from investors with its new $6 billion offering.

Tranches on the $6 billion five-part deal were each tightened by around 8 basis points compared to initial price thoughts.

The deal follows an earlier $1.5 billion trade by crude oil refiner Marathon Petroleum that saw the spread on its 30-year tranche widen by around 20 bps at the guidance stage, while pricing on the three- and five-year tranches was unchanged from initial thoughts.

Devon Energy, meantime, sold its $850 million offering at Treasuries plus 362.5 bps, inside initial price guidance set in the high-300 bps area over Treasuries.

Investment-grade bonds were mixed during the session, and credit spreads leaked wider.

Visa Inc.’s senior notes (A1/A+) that priced on Wednesday tightened in the secondary market.

Dollar General Corp.’s 4.15% senior notes due 2025 firmed 4 bps over the day.

Kraft Heinz Co.’s 3.95% notes due 2025 traded 3 bps weaker during the session.

The Markit CDX North American Investment Grade 25 index closed 2 bps wider at a spread of 88 bps.

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