NII Holdings inks deal with Telefonica, bonds lifted; RadioShack bonds shrug off hiring of CFO

By Stephanie N. Rotondo

Phoenix, Jan. 13 - NII Holdings Inc. was the nom du jour in the distressed debt space on Monday, traders reported.

The company's bonds moved up as much as 5 to 6 points on the day, following news the company had inked a network sharing deal with Telefonica.

"[NII] was by far the most active name," a trader said.

Meanwhile, RadioShack Corp. paper continued to tick down, even as the company named a new chief financial officer. The new finance chief, John. W. Feray, was formerly employed by Dollar General Corp. While at that post, he was part of the finance team that helped the dollar store retailer turn itself around.

NII jumps on Telefonica deal

NII Holdings saw its bonds pop on news that company had signed a network sharing agreement with rival Telefonica.

One trader said $60-plus million of the 10% notes due 2016 changed hands, rising 5½ to 6 points during the session. He said the issue hit a high of 61 before settling back in around 60.

The trader also saw the 7 5/8% notes due 2021 at 431/2, up almost 3 points on the day.

At another desk, a trader said the 10% notes put on 5 to 6 points, ending around 59.

He also noted that the paper had hit intra-day highs around 61.

A third trader deemed the 10% notes up as much as 7 points at 60. He called the 7 5/8% notes up 3 points at 431/2.

"They're up, I know there was a lot of activity in them," he said.

As for the company's equity (Nasdaq: NIHD), it was up 54.5 cents, or 24.38%, at $2.78.

Under the terms of the agreement with Telefonica, NII Holdings will be able to provide voice and data coverage on a 3G network throughout Mexico and Brazil. The deal will help NII avoid paying to upgrade its entire Nextel network for the near term, allowing it to potentially deal with some of its leverage issues and stem customer losses.

RadioShack names new CFO

Fort Worth, Texas-based RadioShack continued to see activity in its debt on Monday, as the company announced it had hired John. W. Feray as its new CFO.

But bondholders were not all that jazzed about the news and the debt remained on the weaker side.

One trader said the 6¾% notes due 2019 were off half a point at 57. Another trader pegged the issue at 561/2, which he said was "down another point."

Feray was part of the team that helped lead Dollar General's turnaround. RadioShack, for its part, is hopeful Feray can add valuable expertise in that regard.

"We are extremely pleased to have a finance professional with John's experience join us as we move forward with our turnaround plan," said Joseph C. Magnacca, chief executive officer, in a statement. "John worked as a key member of the finance team that was responsible for the significant financial improvement at Dollar General, and has the strong operational orientation needed to contribute to our strategic efforts.

"We will benefit from his leadership and insight as we look to increase our operational efficiency and rebuild the business in 2014 and beyond."

Elsewhere in the retail space, a trader said J.C. Penney Co. Inc.'s 7.95% notes due 2017 dipped a point to 86.

Another trader called the 5.65% notes due 2020 down 1 to 1½ points at 77.

A third source placed the 5.65% notes at 77 bid, down a point.

Exide climbs up

Exide Technologies Inc.'s 8 5/8% notes due 2018 were on the rise, though on no specific news.

One trader said the debt was "stronger," trading around 75. A second trader saw the bonds rising over a point to 751/4.

Exide is a Milton, Ga.-based battery producer and recycler.

Paul Deckelman contributed to this article

© 2015 Prospect News.
All content on this website is protected by copyright law in the U.S. and elsewhere. For the use of the person downloading only.
Redistribution and copying are prohibited by law without written permission in advance from Prospect News.
Redistribution or copying includes e-mailing, printing multiple copies or any other form of reproduction.