Altice up on debt-cutting plans; energy names off; Murray drops as Bowie buyout dies

By Paul Deckelman

New York, Nov 15 – Traders in distressed debt and in the bonds of other underperforming companies and sectors saw yet another mostly lower session on Wednesday, mirroring continued weakness in the broader high yield bond arena.

Energy issues such as California Resources Corp. continued to retreat, in line with yet another downturn in crude oil prices.

Coal miner Murray Energy Corp.’s paper fell sharply on the news that sector peer Bowie Resources Partners LLC had canceled a deal that would have let Murray and other investors acquire Bowie.

On the upside, however, the various bonds of global telecommunications company Altice moved higher, after the cable, broadband and phone service provider said that it would shift its focus from acquisitions to easing its estimated €50 billion net debt load.

Recently embattled U.S. telecom operator Frontier Communications Corp.’s paper moved up in active dealings, as did sector peer CenturyLink, Inc.

In the convertibles market, Acorda Therapeutics Inc.’s notes fell sharply, in line with a plunge in the biotechnology company’s shares, on the news that it will halt clinical trials on a Parkinson’s disease drug that it is testing due to several patient deaths during those tests.

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