Month: October 2024

Municipals improved Friday after a volatile week for the asset class, ignoring losses in U.S. Treasuries, while equities closed the week mixed. Investors will see higher yields and ratios along with a nearly $11 billion new-issue slate for the final week of the month and the last ahead of the election. Triple-A yields fell three

Tom Vales, a muni bond electronic trading expert, has joined Build America Mutual’s board as an independent director. The bond insurer has seven board members, including three independent directors. Vales will succeed John White, who is retiring, according to a press release. “Tom’s career has been about making fixed-income markets more transparent and efficient,” said Seán

Shreveport, Louisiana, was downgraded by Moody’s Ratings.Adobe Stock Shreveport, Louisiana, was downgraded to Baa2 from Baa1 Wednesday by Moody’s Ratings. The agency maintains a negative outlook on the rating. The downgrade of Shreveport’s issuer, general obligation and senior revenue ratings will affect $2.1 billion in debt when the city completes the anticipated $88 million Series

North Carolina’s largest transportation project to date may be structured as a public-private partnership after the controversial toll lanes proposal won a pair of key votes last week. The Charlotte City Council and transportation planning group Charlotte Regional Transportation Planning Organization gave the green light to the North Carolina Department of Transportation to pursue a

Houston Controller Chris Hollins’ investor conference took place Tuesday without the  participation of key city officials after Mayor John Whitmore raised “pay-to-play” concerns about corporate sponsorships for the event and requested a city probe. Hollins countered on Tuesday, calling on the Houston inspector general’s office to also investigate corporate sponsorships for the mayor’s Sept. 17

Half Day Forest Preserve in Lake County, Illinois. Lake County Forest Preserves is asking voters to approve a $155 million bond referendum on Nov. 5.Jennifer Shea Voters in the Midwest will see a half-dozen conservation referendums on their ballots, three of them involving bonds. Such local issues have one advantage amid the polarization that has

Municipals extended their selloff with the largest losses on the short end amid another busy day in the primary market, led by an upsized JFK Airport Terminal 6 Redevelopment Project deal. U.S. Treasuries were little changed and equities ended mixed. Triple-A yields rose three to 12 basis points, playing some catch up after recent outperformance.

The Securities and Exchange Commission’s Examination Division will take a closer look at municipal advisors, specifically non-solicitor municipal advisors in FY 2025, and will begin enforcing the move to a T+1 settlement cycle. That comes on the backs of the Commission’s first case enforcing Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board Rule G-42, which was established in 2016

Municipals were weaker Monday following U.S. Treasury market pressures while equities ended down. Triple-A yields rose up to seven basis points while govies were higher by eight to 12 basis points. Short ratios fell as a result of the day’s moves. The two-year muni-to-Treasury ratio Monday day was at 61%, the three-year at 61%, the

PNC bank has recently made several new hires, beefing up its banking presence in the west and in Texas. Christopher Roberts joined the firm in August as managing director and head of Western Region & National Public Power/Utilities, and Joey Dierker joined as an associate director. More recent hires include Soledad Mancias and Steve Bassett,

Houston Mayor John Whitmire took aim Thursday at city Controller Chris Hollins for soliciting sponsorships from municipal bond firms for an upcoming investor conference, saying it smacks of pay-to-play and calling for an investigation. The mayor said he received calls from bond underwriting firms about sponsorships for Tuesday’s event with price tags ranging from $10,000

The public private partnership that took over Puerto Rico toll roads out of the territory’s bankruptcy is gearing up to sell municipal debt for the enterprise. The Wisconsin-based Public Finance Authority will be pricing the $286.2 million in senior revenue bonds on behalf of Puerto Rico Tollroads, LLC. Barclays is an underwriter. Fitch Ratings rates

Broward County, Florida’s Tourism Development Tax, sales tax, and Professional Sports Facilities tax and revenue refunding bonds were upgraded by Moody’s Ratings, affecting about $628 million in bonds. Moody’s upgraded the county’s TDT revenue bonds, Series 2021 (Convention Center Expansion Project) to Aa2 from Aa3; sales tax bonds, Series 2020, to Aaa from Aa1; and