Comcast, Verizon, Kimco Realty, Ryder, KfW price; Nordic Investment Bank markets notes

By Cristal Cody

Tupelo, Miss., Aug. 1 – Investment-grade bond issuance stayed strong for a second consecutive session on Tuesday with corporate and SSA deals in the primary market.

In corporate issuance, Comcast Corp. sold $2.5 billion of notes in two tranches.

Verizon Communications Inc. came with two bond deals.

Kimco Realty Corp. priced an $850 million two-part offering of notes.

Washington Prime Group LP placed $750 million of seven-year notes.

Celgene Corp. sold $500 million of four-year senior notes.

Ryder System, Inc. brought $300 million of five-year medium-term notes to the primary market on Tuesday.

In SSA primary action, KfW priced $1 billion of four-year notes.

Nederlandse Waterschapsbank NV sold $500 million of 18-month floating-rate notes.

Coming up, Nordic Investment Bank (Aaa/AAA) plans to price a $500 million offering of two-year global notes.

The Markit CDX North American Investment Grade index firmed about 1 basis point to close at a spread of 56 bps.

Comcast sells $2.5 billion

Comcast sold $2.5 billion of notes (A3/A-/A-) in two parts on Tuesday, according to an FWP filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Comcast priced $1.65 billion of 3.15% notes due Feb. 15, 2028 at 99.937 to yield 3.157% and a spread of Treasuries plus 90 bps.

The company sold $850 million of 4% 30-year notes at 99.808 to yield 4.011% and with a Treasuries plus 115 bps spread.

Citigroup Global Markets Inc., J.P. Morgan Securities LLC, Mizuho Securities USA LLC, Credit Suisse Securities (USA) LLC, RBC Capital Markets, LLC and SMBC Nikko Securities America, Inc. were the bookrunners.

The notes are guaranteed by Comcast Cable Communications, LLC and NBCUniversal Media, LLC.

Proceeds will be used for working capital and general corporate purposes, which may include the redemption or repayment of its 6.3% notes due Nov. 15, 2017 and the repayment of a portion of its outstanding commercial paper.

Comcast is a media and technology company based in Philadelphia.

Verizon brings two deals

Verizon Communications (Baa1/BBB+/A-) sold $3 billion of 4.5% 16-year notes at 99.718 and a spread of 165 bps over Treasuries on Tuesday, according to a market source and an FWP filing with the SEC.

The notes were talked to price with a spread in the Treasuries plus 170 bps area, plus or minus 5 bps.

Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC, Credit Suisse Securities, MUFG, Academy Securities, Inc. and Great Pacific Securities were the bookrunners.

Verizon also priced a $950 million dollar-denominated offering on Tuesday of 5.15% notes due Sept. 15, 2050 at par in Taiwan, according to an FWP filing with the SEC.

BNP Paribas Securities Corp., Taipei branch, and Citibank Taiwan Ltd. were the underwriters for the Taiwan offering.

The company intends to use net proceeds from the offerings for its planned 29 separate cash tender offers for its notes and notes of several of its subsidiaries, which are conditional upon the company raising at least $3 billion from new debt securities.

Kimco raises $850 million

Kimco Realty sold $850 million of notes (Baa1/BBB+/BBB+) in two tranches on Tuesday, according to an FWP filed with the SEC.

The company priced $500 million of long seven-year notes with a 3.3% coupon at 99.843 to yield 3.324% and a spread of Treasuries plus 125 bps.

Kimco Realty priced $350 million of 4.45% 30-year notes at 99.259 to yield 4.495% and a 163 bps Treasuries spread.

Citigroup Global Markets, BofA Merrill Lynch, RBC Capital Markets, Wells Fargo Securities LLC, Jefferies LLC, Mizuho Securities and Morgan Stanley were the bookrunners for the seven-year notes.

Citigroup Global Markets, BofA Merrill Lynch, RBC Capital Markets, Wells Fargo Securities, TD Securities (USA) LLC, UBS Securities LLC and U.S. Bancorp Investments, Inc. were the bookrunners on the 30-year notes.

Proceeds will be used to finance a tender offer to purchase for cash any and all of the company’s 4.3% series E medium-term notes due 2018 and for general corporate purposes, including to reduce borrowings under the company’s revolving credit facility due March 2021.

Kimco is a New Hyde Park, N.Y., real estate investment trust that owns and operates neighborhood and community shopping centers.

Washington Prime prices

Washington Prime Group priced $750 million of 5.95% seven-year notes (Baa3/BBB-/) on Tuesday at 98.467 to yield 6.222% and a spread of Treasuries plus 415 bps, according to a market source and a company news release.

BofA Merrill Lynch, Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC, Jefferies LLC and U.S. Bancorp Investments, Inc. were the bookrunners.

Proceeds will be used to repay the outstanding debt under the company’s May 2014 term loan and to reduce outstanding debt under its June 2015 term loan.

Washington Prime Group is a majority owned operating partnership subsidiary of Columbus, Ohio-based real estate investment trust Washington Prime Group Inc.

Celgene in primary

Celgene sold $500 million of 2.25% four-year senior notes (Baa2/BBB+/) on Tuesday at 99.706 to yield 2.327%, according to an FWP filing with the SEC.

The notes priced with a spread of 83 bps over Treasuries.

Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC was the bookrunner.

Proceeds will be used for general corporate purposes, including development of clinical and pre-clinical programs, capital expenditures, general corporate development activities, meeting working capital needs, common share repurchases and repaying $500 million of the company’s 1.9% senior notes due August 2017.

The global biopharmaceutical company is based in Summit, N.J.

Ryder prints notes

Ryder System sold $300 million of 2.5% five-year medium-term notes on Tuesday at 99.758 and a spread of Treasuries plus 75 bps, according to a market source and a 424B3 filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

The notes were talked to price in the Treasuries plus 80 bps area, plus or minus 5 bps.

BNP Paribas Securities Corp., BofA Merrill Lynch, Mizuho Securities, Morgan Stanley and RBC Capital Markets were the bookrunners.

Ryder System is a Miami-based truck rental and fleet management company.

KfW sells $1 billion

KfW (Aaa/AAA/) sold $1 billion of 1.75% global notes due Sept. 15, 2021 on Tuesday at 99.551 and a spread of mid-swaps plus 5 bps, according to a market source and an FWP filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

The notes were initially talked to price at mid-swaps plus 5 bps.

BNP Paribas Securities, Citigroup Global Markets and Morgan Stanley were the bookrunners.

The notes will be guaranteed by the Federal Republic of Germany.

KfW is a Frankfurt-based government-backed bank.

NWB prices

Nederlandse Waterschapsbank (Aaa/AAA/) priced a $500 million dollar-denominated offering of 18-month floating-rate notes at Libor plus 1 bp on Tuesday, according to a market source.

The notes were initially talked to price in the Libor plus 1 bp area.

BMO Capital Markets Corp., Barclays and Nomura Securities International Inc. were the bookrunners for the Rule 144A and Regulation S offering.

The local government funding agency is based in The Hague, the Netherlands.

© 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.