Midday Commentary: Micron pushes above par after earnings report; ADM active ahead of maturity

By Rebecca Melvin

New York, Jan. 8 - Micron Technology Inc.'s 3% convertibles due 2043 extended gains in early trading Wednesday after the convertible lifted above par late Tuesday in response to the Boise, Idaho-based chipmaker's fiscal first-quarter results that beat earnings and revenue estimates.

The Micron 3% convertible added 2 to 3 points on an outright basis early Wednesday but looked to have slipped on a dollar-neutral, or hedged, basis.

The Micron 3% convertible was 106.375 bid versus an underlying share price of $24.25 early Wednesday, a New York-based trader said.

Micron said that excluding one-time items, it earned 77 cents a share on revenue of $4.04 billion. Analysts were expecting earnings of 51 cents a share on $3.7 billion in revenue. The company's results benefited from its acquisition of Elpida Memory Inc. at the end of July.

Also trading was Archer-Daniels-Midland Co.'s 0.875% convertibles due Feb. 15, 2014, which changed hands between 103 and 103.44 in the early going, compared to 103 to 103.6 on Tuesday, according to Trace data.

The issue was expected to lose some value heading into its upcoming maturity date, a trader said.

LifePoint Hospitals Inc.'s 3.5% convertible due May 15, 2014 was as another issue that may be "leaking" value "here and there" heading into maturity, the trader said.

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