Holiday weighs on convertibles activity; Vipshop, Liberty Media up outright; Scorpio steady

By Stephanie N. Rotondo

Seattle, April 13 – The shortened holiday week continued to constrain activity in the convertible bond market on Thursday.

A lack of any catalyst, such as earnings or M&A news, was also playing a role.

“There’s nothing going on,” a New York-based trader said, noting a sizable portion of the trading volume was tied up in names like Priceline Group Inc. and Intel Corp.

Away from those go-go names, Vipshop Holdings Ltd.’s 1.5% convertible notes due 2019 were on the busier side, trading up just a shade to 101.45.

The company’s equity was off 14 cents, or 1.05%, to $13.15.

There was no fresh news to cause the movement, however.

Neither was there any news in Liberty Media Group Inc., but that didn’t stop its 1% convertible notes due 2023 from trading off almost a point to 108.65.

A market source did note that there were trades with a 110 handle during the session, which represented a gain of about half a point.

The company’s stock also lost ground, falling 53 cents, or 1.59%, to $32.87.

Continuing the slightly weaker trend, Scorpio Tankers Inc.’s 2.375% convertible notes due 2019 were about unchanged to down half a point, according to a source.

The convertibles traded in a 90.25 to 90.75 context, as the equity lost 23 cents, or 5.45%, to close at $3.99.

On the upside, Twitter Inc.’s 1% convertible notes due 2021 ticked up to a range of 91.125 to 91.375, which compared to trades of 91 on Wednesday.

However, Twitter’s shares fell 12 cents to $14.30.

But it was an overall positive day for Microchip Technology Inc. Its 1.625% convertible notes due 2027 ended just north of par in the final trading day of the holiday week, up from levels just south of par previously.

The stock was also better, rising 9 cents to $72.24.

Mentioned in this article:

Liberty Media Group Inc. Nasdaq: FWONK

Microchip Technology Inc. Nasdaq: MCHP

Scorpio Tankers Inc. NYSE: STNG

Twitter Inc. NYSE: TWTR

Vipshop Holdings Ltd. NYSE: VIPS

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