Morning Commentary: Preferreds slightly higher despite forex fines; Sotherly offers $25-par notes

By Stephanie N. Rotondo

Phoenix, Nov. 12 – Preferred stocks were modestly higher Wednesday, even as six banks were fined about $4.3 billion in regards to a foreign-currency exchange rigging probe.

The Wells Fargo Hybrid and Preferred Securities index was up 3 basis points at mid-morning.

Regulators from the United States, Britain and Switzerland levied the fines against Bank of America Corp., Citigroup Inc., JPMorgan Chase & Co., UBS AG, Royal Bank of Scotland Group plc and HSBC Holdings plc.

Barclays Bank plc was reportedly not ready for a deal.

Criminal investigations are still ongoing.

Back in the preferred space, Sotherly Hotels LP announced an offering of $25-par senior unsecured notes due 2019.

A trader said price talk was in the 7% area, though he had yet to see any gray markets for the paper.

Sandler O’Neill + Partners LP is the bookrunner. Boenning & Scattergood Inc., J.J.B. Hilliard, W.L. Lyons, LLC, Incapital LLC and Ladenburg Thalmann are the co-managers.

Proceeds will be used to repay bridge financing and for general corporate purposes, including the acquisition of hotels, the repayment of other outstanding debt, capital expenditures, hotel improvements, working capital and other general purposes.

The Williamsburg, Va.-based real estate investment trust has applied to list the notes on the Nasdaq Global Market under the ticker symbol “SOHOM.”

© 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.