American Financial, Hatteras, Regency list on NYSE; State Street listing expected Wednesday

By Stephanie N. Rotondo

Phoenix, Aug. 28 - Preferred stocks remained subdued Tuesday, much to the chagrin of one trader.

"Everyone is on vacation," he said. "Nothing is moving."

There was, however, some movement as the day wore on, leaving the market up a nickel or so generally by the bell. Volume was "more active," a market source said, though most of the action continued to be in recent deals.

The trader was surprised that neither State Street Corp.'s $500 million of series C preferreds nor JPMorgan Chase & Co.'s $1.1 billion of 5.5% series O noncumulative preferreds listed on the New York Stock Exchange, especially given that the first settlement for the JPMorgan deal was Monday.

"Maybe tomorrow," he said. He later confirmed that State Street's recent issue would in fact list on Wednesday under the symbol "STTPC."

Though State Street and JPMorgan failed to hit the NYSE, three other recent deals did list Tuesday.

American Financial Group Inc.'s 5.75% senior notes due 2042 listed, as did Hatteras Financial Corp.'s recent 7.625% series A cumulative redeemable preferreds and Regency Centers Corp.'s 6% series 7 cumulative redeemable preferreds.

New issues hit NYSE

American Financial Group's 5.75% notes due 2042 listed on the NYSE Tuesday under the symbol "AFA." The $125 million deal priced Aug. 21.

The issue was trading at $25.17 at midday and ended at $25.16. That compared to opening levels around par.

The company said Monday that it will redeem all $115 million of its 7.125% senior debentures due 2034 on Sept. 28 at par plus accrued interest. The issue (NYSE: AFE) was unchanged at $25.21 come Tuesday.

Hatteras Financial's $250 million of 7.625% series A preferreds also hit the NYSE Tuesday under the ticker symbol "HTSPA." The issue came Aug. 16.

Paper was trading up 4 cents at $25.06 in midafternoon trading, and it closed at $25.09, up 7 cents. The preferreds made the day's most actively traded list.

And Regency Centers' $75 million of 6% preferreds were assigned the ticker symbol "REGPG" during the session.

The preferred shares were up 3 cents at midday at $24.99. After the bell, the issue had risen a dime to $25.07.

The issue priced Aug. 14, the same day as State Street.

State Street listing Wednesday

A trader reported that State Street's 5.25% series C preferreds will list on Wednesday under the ticker symbol "STTPC."

A market source said the issue was trading in a range "a little bit above par" on Tuesday, between par and $25.05. The volume-weighted average price was $25.02, which was "up a touch" from previous closing levels around par.

JPMorgan's 5.5% series O preferreds meantime dominated the trading day. The issue finally breached par, ending at $25.05, up 15 cents on the day, according to a source.

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