High-grade supply robust; Gilead Sciences, BP, Scotiabank, Quebec, Kommuninvest price

By Cristal Cody

Tupelo, Miss., Sept. 14 – Primary action remained heavy in the high-grade bond market on Thursday.

Gilead Sciences Inc. tapped the market with a $3 billion four-part deal.

BP Capital Markets plc sold $3 billion of notes in four tranches.

Bank of Nova Scotia priced $1.4 billion of senior notes in two parts.

Also, Harvest Operations Corp. sold $285 million of dollar-denominated five-year senior notes.

In other issuance, the Province of Quebec priced an upsized $1.25 billion of three-year floating-rate notes.

In addition, Kommuninvest I Sverige AB sold $1 billion of three-year notes.

The Markit CDX North American Investment Grade 28 index eased about 1 basis point to a spread of 57 bps.

Gilead prices $3 billion

Gilead Sciences sold $3 billion of senior notes (A3/A/) in four tranches on Thursday, according to FWP filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

In the fixed-rate tranche, the company sold $1 billion of 1.85% two-year notes at 99.965 to yield 1.868% and a spread of Treasuries plus 50 bps.

Gilead Sciences also priced $750 million of one-year floating-rate notes at par to yield Libor plus 17 bps.

The company sold $750 million of floating-rate notes due March 20, 2019 at par to yield Libor plus 22 bps.

Gilead Sciences also sold $500 million of two-year floaters at par to yield Libor plus 25 bps.

BofA Merrill Lynch, Wells Fargo Securities LLC, Barclays, J.P. Morgan Securities LLC and Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC were the bookrunners.

Proceeds will be used as part of the financing for the company’s planned acquisition of Kite Pharma, Inc.

The biopharmaceutical company is based in Foster City, Calif.

BP Capital in primary

BP Capital Markets priced $3 billion of notes (A1/A-/A) in four tranches on Thursday, according to a market source.

The company sold $500 million of 1.768% two-year notes at a spread of Treasuries plus 40 bps.

BP Capital Markets priced $300 million of five-year floaters at Libor plus 65 bps.

The $700 million tranche of 2.52% five-year fixed-rate notes priced with a spread of Treasuries plus 73 bps.

BP Capital Markets also sold $1.5 billion of 3.279% 10-year notes at a Treasuries plus 108 bps spread.

Credit Suisse, Goldman Sachs & Co., HSBC, J.P. Morgan Securities, Morgan Stanley and UBS Securities LLC were the bookrunners.

BP Capital Markets is a financing arm of the London-based oil and gas company.

Scotia sells $1.4 billion

Bank of Nova Scotia sold $1.4 billion of senior notes (A1/A+/AA-/) in two tranches on Thursday, according to an FWP filing with the SEC.

Scotiabank sold $400 million of five-year floating-rate notes at par to yield Libor plus 62 bps.

The company priced $1 billion of 2.45% five-year fixed-rate notes at 99.818 to yield 2.489% and a spread of 70 bps over Treasuries.

Scotia Capital (USA) Inc., BofA Merrill Lynch, Citigroup Global Markets Inc., J.P. Morgan Securities and UBS Securities were the bookrunners.

Proceeds will be used by the Toronto-based bank for general business purposes.

Quebec sells $1.25 billion

The Province of Quebec (Aa2/AA-/AA-) priced an upsized $1.25 billion of series A medium-term floating-rate notes due Sept. 21, 2020 on Thursday at par to yield Libor plus 13 bps, according to an FWP filing with the SEC.

The notes priced tighter than talk in the Libor plus 15 bps area.

The deal was upsized from an initial $500 million offering.

BMO Capital Markets Corp., CIBC World Markets Corp., HSBC Securities (USA) Inc. and BofA Merrill Lynch were the bookrunners.

Harvest brings deal

Harvest Operations sold $285 million of dollar-denominated 3% five-year senior notes (Aa2/AA/) in a Rule 144A and Regulation S offering on Thursday at a spread of 127.5 bps over Treasuries, according to a market source and a company news release.

The notes priced on the tight side of talk in the 130 bps over Treasuries area.

HSBC Securities (Canada) Inc., CIBC World Markets Inc. and Citibank Global Markets Inc. were the bookrunners.

The notes will be unconditionally and irrevocably guaranteed by Harvest’s parent company Korea National Oil Corp.

The company intends to list the notes on the Singapore Exchange Securities Trading Ltd.

Proceeds from the offering will be used to repay in full Harvest’s outstanding dollar-denominated $282.5 million aggregate principal amount of 6 7/8% senior notes due Oct. 1, 2017.

Harvest Operations is a Calgary, Alta.-based energy industry operator and subsidiary of Korea National Oil.

Kommuninvest prices $1 billion

Kommuninvest I Sverige (Aaa/AAA/) priced $1 billion of 1.625% three-year notes in a Rule 144A and Regulation S deal on Thursday at a spread of Treasuries plus 23.35 bps, according to a market source.

J.P. Morgan Securities plc, Barclays, HSBC Securities (USA) Inc. and SEB Securities, Inc. were the bookrunners.

Kommuninvest is an Orebro, Sweden-based company that offers funding to the municipalities of its home country.

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