Despite a flurry of competitive deals hitting the market Tuesday afternoon, some traders said the muni market felt relatively subdued.
"I'm seeing some things on Bloomberg but it's still a little slow," a San Francisco trader said. "We aren't paying attention to the new issues because it's not the right structure for us." This trader said he looks at 5% coupon bonds with shorter call structures.
"You can find some 5% coupon bonds but prices seem to be a little full for what we are willing to pay," he said. "We want to be defensive given where we are with rates now."
The new issues Tuesday were bringing out some activity in the secondary and the trader said the market was about flat.
The competitive market took most of the attention Tuesday. Triple-A rated Washington Suburban Sanitary District in Maryland auctioned $252.3 million of consolidated public improvement bonds in two pricings: $150 million and $102.3 million.
JPMorgan won the bid for $150 million. The bonds had coupons ranging from 3% in 2014 to 4% in 2032. Prices were not yet available.
Bank of America Merrill Lynch the bid for $102.3 million. Yields ranged from 0.21% with a 2% coupon in 2014 to 2.51% with a 2.25% coupon in 2026. The bonds are callable at par in 2023.
New Jersey Health Care Facilities Financing Authority auctioned $243.34 million of revenue bonds in two pricings: $173 million and $70.34 million.
Barclays won the bid for $173 million of lease revenue refunding bonds for the Greystone Park Psychiatric Hospital. B of A Merrill won the bid for $70.34 million. Prices were not available by press time.
B of A Merrill won the bid for $191.4 million of New York City Transitional Finance Authority recovery bonds, rated Aa1 by Moody's Investors Service and AAA by Standard & Poor's and Fitch Ratings.
Yields ranged from 0.18% with a 4% coupon in 2013 to 1.85% with a 5% coupon in 2022.
Triple-A rated Wake County, N.C., auctioned $176.5 million of general obligation bonds in two pricings: $125.3 million and $51.2 million.
JPMorgan bought the first series of $125.3 million of general obligation public improvement bonds. Yields ranged from 0.20% with a 3% coupon in 2014 to 2.70% with a 4% coupon in 2032. The bonds are callable at par in 2023.
Citi won the bid for $51.2 million of GO school bonds. Yields ranged from 0.20% with a 3% coupon in 2014 to 3.15% with a 3% coupon in 2032. The bonds are callable at par in 2023.
In the negotiated market, Morgan Stanley priced $174.3 million of Mississippi Development Bank special obligation refunding bonds, rated Aa3 by Moody's and AA-minus by Standard & Poor's.
Yields on the first series of $64.3 million ranged from 0.94% with a 5% coupon in 2017 to 2.90% with a 5% coupon in 2026.
Yields on the second series of $20.9 million ranged from 0.94% with a 4% coupon in 2017 to 2.90% with a 5% coupon in 2026.
Yields on the third series of $89.1 million ranged from 1.17% with a 5% coupon in 2018 to 3.03% with a 5% coupon in 2027.
Municipal bond scales ended steady to one basis point firmer Monday after posting big gains late last week.
Yields on the Municipal Market Data triple-A GO scale ended flat. The 10-year yield and 30-year yield finished steady at 1.71% and 2.93%, respectively. The two-year also closed steady at 0.29% for the second session.
Yields on the Municipal Market Advisors 5% coupon triple-A benchmark scale ended as much as one basis point lower. The 30-year yield fell one basis point to 3.04%. The two-year and 10-year yields closed flat at 0.32% and 1.79%, respectively.
Treasuries were slightly weaker. The benchmark 10-year yield increased one basis point to 1.75% while the 30-year yield rose two basis points to 2.93%. The two-year was steady at 0.23%.
