Midday Commentary: Convertibles volume low; SanDisk rallies; WellPoint slips

By Cristal Cody

Tupelo, Miss., April 17 - Volume was light in the convertible bond market as the Street thinned in front of Thursday's early market close and long holiday weekend, sources said.

"Volume [is] $30 million in all converts," one source said.

SanDisk Corp.'s 1.5% convertible senior notes due 2017 rallied as the company's underlying shares climbed $7.45, or 9.82%, to $83.27 in early trading on better-than-expected first-quarter earnings, according to market sources.

SanDisk's notes were quoted better at 168.00 from 158.50 on Wednesday.

The Milpitas, Calif.-based data storage company sold $1 billion of the three-year notes in 2010 at par.

WellPoint Inc.'s 2.75% bonds due 2042 weakened to 136.75 early Thursday from where the notes went out at 141.46 in the previous session after trading actively over the week, a source said Thursday morning.

WellPoint's stock dropped $3.65, or 3.81%, to $92.01 in intraday trading.

The Indianapolis-based health benefits company sold $1.5 billion of the bonds in 2012 at par.

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