Morning Commentary: High-grade primary action quiet on Friday, ends busy week of issuance

By Devika Patel

Knoxville, Tenn., Aug. 18 – The high-grade bond market stayed quiet over the morning on Friday, with no new deals announced or pricing.

The week, however, had been busy, bringing 10 new issues to market.

On Monday, Philip Morris International Inc., the New York-based producer of cigarette and tobacco products, priced a two-part offering of fixed-rate notes.

On Tuesday, Englewood, Colo.-based money transfer network Western Union Co. priced $350 million of fixed- and floating-rate notes in two tranches, and Cupertino, Calif., computer and mobile communications device company Apple Inc. priced C$2.5 billion of 2.513% seven-year notes.

Meanwhile, E*Trade Financial Corp., a New York online brokerage firm, priced a $1 billion offering of fixed-rate senior notes in two tranches.

And Laboratory Corp. of America Holdings sold fixed-rate notes in two parts on Tuesday after market close.

Also tapping the market, Chicago-based energy provider Commonwealth Edison Co. priced a $1 billion two-tranche issue of first mortgage bonds (A1/A-/A).

Palo Alto, Calif., virtualization solutions provider VMware, Inc. priced $4 billion of fixed-rate senior notes in three parts on Wednesday after the market close, and Bank of New York Mellon Corp., a New York financial products and services company, sold $750 million of 12-year senior subordinated notes (A2/A-/A+) late Wednesday.

On Thursday, Indianapolis Power & Light Co. holding company Ipalco Enterprises Inc. issued $405 million of 3.7% seven-year split-rated senior secured notes, and Rosemead, Calif., energy company Edison International Inc. priced $400 million of 2.4% five-year senior notes (A3/BBB/A-).

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