Markets

The rating agency cited the university's structural budget imbalance and management turnover among factors that drove the outlook revision to negative from stable.

The muni market "exhibited similar themes from the past few weeks as extremely rich valuations and the upcoming unfavorable supply/demand picture have led to a measured buyer base," said Birch Creek Capital strategists in a report.

The San Diego Community College District is among those joining the trend of buying back bonds in a tender to refund for savings.

The city and its related issuers picked financial advisors to work on upcoming bond deals, including GO issuances, TFA deals and water authority sales.

The bank has also hired some analysts to its infrastructure group over the past several weeks as it plans to beef up its muni team.

The negotiated calendar is led by the Regents of the University of California with nearly $1 billion of general revenue bonds.

A power struggle over the governance of the Oklahoma Turnpike Authority and a Houston mayor ending a legal dispute with firefighters that could improve the city's Fitch rating are among the legal stories bond market professionals are watching.

High rates and high inflation, coupled with rich reserves, pushed off or delayed issuers coming to market in 2023, noted James Pruskowski, chief investment officer at 16Rock Asset Management.

Municipals look poised to close out February a touch in the black following a more constructive tone Thursday after being in a 'holding pattern' for much of the past two weeks.

Analysts say states can avoid short-term issues as a result of strong reserves but some may face challenges over the longer term.