Prices of top rated municipal bonds were lower at mid-session, traders said, with yields on some maturities rising by as much as three basis points.
In the primary, Atlanta sold $252 million of general obligation bonds in the competitive arena.
Secondary Market
The yield on the 10-year benchmark muni general obligation rose by as much as two basis points from 2.36% on Tuesday, while the yield on the 30-year GO was up one to three basis points from 3.33%, according to a read of Municipal Market Data's triple-A scale.
Since June 1, yields on the 10-year muni and the 30-year muni yield are each up 14 basis points.
Treasury prices were lower on Wednesday with the yield on the two-year Treasury note rising to 0.73% from 0.70% on Tuesday, while the 10-year yield increased to 2.47% from 2.41% and the 30-year yield rose to 3.21% from 3.15%.
The 10-year muni to Treasury ratio was calculated on Tuesday at 97.6% versus 98.8% on Monday, while the 30-year muni to Treasury ratio stood at 105.7% compared to 106.7%, according to MMD.
Primary Market
Bank of America Merrill Lynch won Atlanta's $252 million of Series 2015 GO public improvement bonds with a true interest cost of 3.37%. The bonds were priced to yield from 1.00% with a 5% coupon in 2017 to 3.50% with a 4.75% coupon in 2034.
First Southwest and Grant & Associates were co-financial advisors for Atlanta's offering. Hunton & Williams and the Haley Law Firm were co-bond counsel and Greenberg Traurig and Riddle & Schwartz were co-disclosure counsel.
The bonds were rated Aa2 by Moody's Investors Service, AA by Standard & Poor's and AA-plus by Fitch Ratings.
The issue will finance municipal building improvements, recreation centers, traffic projects, storm water drainage, street lights, and sidewalks.
Atlanta last sold comparable bonds competitively back on March 5, 2007, when Wachovia Bank bought $8 million of Series 2007A various purpose GOs with a TIC of 3.98%.
Issuance of GO debt has not been frequent in the A. Since 1995, Atlanta has only sold about $875 million of bonds with the most issuance occurring in 1998 and 2005 when the city offered $102 million and $94 million, respectively. The city sold no debt in 2006 or from 2010 through 2013.
RBC Capital Markets priced Miami-Dade County, Fla.'s $537.68 million deal for institutions on Wednesday after holding a one-day retail order period.
The $499.12 million of Series 2015A aviation revenue and refunding bonds, subject to the alternative minimum tax, were priced to yield from 0.63% with a 3% coupon in 2016 to 4% with a 5% coupon in 2033; a 2036 term bond was priced as 4 1/4s to yield 4.39%; a 2038 term bond was priced as 5s to yield 4.18%; and a 2045 term bond was priced as 4 1/2s to yield 4.60%.
The $38.57 million of Series 2015B non-AMT aviation revenue refunding bonds were priced as 5s to yield 2.91% in 2025, 3.09% in 2026 and 3.25% in 2027.
The deal was rated A by S&P and Fitch and AA-minus by Kroll Bond Rating Agency.
Citi received the written award on the city of Los Angeles' $231.35 million of wastewater system revenue and refunding bonds. The $100.84 million of Series 2015C green bonds were priced as 5s to yield from 2.96% in 2028 to 3.38% in 2035; a 2045 term was priced as 5s to yield 3.58%. The $108.86 million of Series 2015D refunding bonds were priced to yield 0.30% with a 2% coupon in 2016 and priced as 5s to yield from 1.60% in 2020 to 2.20% in 2023 and from 2.54% in 2025 to 3.34% in 2034. Both series are rated AA-plus by S&P, Fitch and Kroll Bond Rating Agency. The $21.65 million of Series 2015A subordinated refunding bonds were priced as 5s to yield 2.10% in 2022 and 2.45% in 2024. The series is rated AA by S&P, Fitch and Kroll.
In the short-term sector, the state of Idaho came to market with $500 million of tax anticipation notes. Piper Jaffray priced the Series 2015 TANs as 2s to yield 0.29% on June 30, 2016. The issue is rated MIG1 by Moody's, SP1-plus by S&P and F1-plus by Fitch.
MSRB Previous Session's Activity
The Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board reported 42,081 trades on Tuesday on volume of $10.047 billion.
The most active bond, based on the number of trades, was the Houston, Texas, Higher Education Finance Corp.'s Series 2014A revenue and refunding bonds for the Harmony Public Schools 4s of 2038, which traded 170 times at an average price of 99.477 with an average yield of 4.005%. The bonds were initially priced at 99.392 to yield 4.04%.
Bond Buyer Visible Supply
The Bond Buyer's 30-day visible supply calendar decreased $1.83 billion to $10.72 billion on Wednesday. The total is comprised of $4.30 billion competitive sales and $6.41 billion of negotiated deals.
