Bonds

Municipals were steady, underperforming U.S. Treasuries after the Federal Reserve held rates, as expected. Equities ended up. Wednesday was about setting market participants up for a policy change in September, said Jeff MacDonald, executive vice president and head of fixed-income strategies at Fiduciary Trust International. The muni yield curve has “remained stubbornly inverted” throughout most

Rebuilding America’s roads and bridges with funds from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law is being slowed down by regulations and red tape, but proponents of the legislation point to improvements, even in the troubled public transit sector.  “We are also making critical investments to modernize public transit,” said Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio.  ”Americans take 21 million trips

Municipals were little changed Tuesday as U.S. Treasuries were firmer and equities were mixed toward the end of the session. Muni yields remain near levels seen at the start of summer last year, said Tom Kozlik, managing director and head of public policy and municipal strategy at HilltopSecurities. Yields may move lower after the Federal

Enjoy complimentary access to top ideas and insights — selected by our editors. Bond counsel in the first half of 2024 handled a combined $236.731 billion across 3,933 bond issues, up from $172.268 billion in 3,493 transactions this time last year.  The top 10 bond counsel saw some shuffling and welcomed three new entrants. The

Kim Olsan joined NewSquare Capital last week as a senior fixed-income portfolio manager.  The 30-year industry veteran said she hopes to bring her broker-dealer background and deep knowledge of municipal bonds to the firm.  Olsan said she looks forward to “interacting directly with advisors and investors to grow their municipal footprint and expose them to

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority has charged Florham Park, New Jersey based broker The Jeffrey Matthews Financial Group $110,000 for charging unfair prices on 86 municipal bond transactions. Without admitting or denying the findings, the firm agreed to a censure, a total fine of $125,000, of which $110,000 is for violating Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board

S&P Global Ratings revised the outlook on Arizona’s AA issuer rating to positive from stable, citing the state’s “robust” economic growth, as well as its financial management. The move points to an expectation of a one-in-three chance of a rating upgrade over the next two years, according to the rating agency.  Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs

Municipals were little changed ahead of a smaller $6.6 billion new-issue calendar. U.S. Treasuries were firmer and equities rallied. The two-year muni-to-Treasury ratio Friday was at 65%, the three-year at 66%, the five-year at 67%, the 10-year at 67% and the 30-year at 83%, according to Refinitiv Municipal Market Data’s 3 p.m. EST read. ICE

California Gov. Gavin Newsom issued an executive order instructing state agencies to adopt policies to clear homeless camps on state properties and asked local governments to use the “substantial funding” provided by the state to take similar action. The executive order issued Thursday comes a month after the U.S. Supreme Court’s sweeping Grants Pass decision

Karl Knight was appointed chief executive officer of the U.S. Virgin Islands Water and Power Authority Thursday, effective July 29. The last permanent CEO, Andrew Smith, resigned on June 1 after two and a half years in the position. Since then, Ashley Bryan, who had been the head of electrical operations, has served as interim

Private equity giant KKR is buying Philadelphia-based broker-dealer Janney Montgomery Scott LLC. Janney, which dates to 1832, operates as a full-service wealth management, investment banking, and asset management firm. KKR announced Tuesday that it will acquire the firm from The Penn Mutual Life Insurance Company, its owner since 1982. After the deal closes, Janney, which

The Chicago Public Schools board of education unanimously approved the $9.9 billion fiscal 2025 budget Thursday.  The vote came on the heels of a report from the Civic Federation of Chicago, a nonprofit fiscal watchdog, that warned the budget “presents a temporary solution to a long-term structural financial problem.”  The budget represents an increase of

Municipals were mixed Thursday, while U.S. Treasuries were firmer five years and out and equities ended mixed after data showed the economy grew at a hotter-than-expected pace in the second quarter. “News that U.S. economic growth accelerated faster than expected in the second quarter has sent market participants on a roller-coaster ride,” said José Torres,

A pair of municipal bond veterans have left Preston Hollow Community Capital to launch their own shop that will source high-yield muni deals to alternative asset manager Fundamental Advisors. Charlie Visconsi and Ron Van Den Handel announced the formation of V2 Municipal Capital this week as an independent firm that will partner with New York-based Fundamental.

The Louisiana State Bond Commission approved three bond issues totaling more than $3 billion on Wednesday. The commission approved a $1.33 billion to $2 billion bond to be backed by tolls on the I-10 Calcasieu River Bridge, a state general obligation bond of up to $1 billion, and gave preliminary approval to a state gas

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority has fined Philadelphia-based broker-dealer Janney Montgomery Scott $65,000 for reporting inaccurate times of trade on 391 municipal securities transactions, violating Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board Rules G-14 on time of trade and G-27 on supervision. Without admitting or denying the findings, the firm agreed to a censure and a total fine

Municipals were little changed in secondary trading Tuesday as the busy primary market took focus, led by two billion-dollar-plus deals from the Texas Transportation Commission and South Carolina Public Service Authority. U.S. Treasuries were firmer and equities were up toward the close. The two-year muni-to-Treasury ratio Tuesday was at 63%, the three-year at 65%, the

The First Circuit Court of Appeals signaled an interest in revisiting its decision that Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority bond holders have a lien on net revenues. The three judges who ruled on the lien in mid-June said Monday they wanted written responses from all parties on the petitions for rehearing or rehearing en banc.

On the heels of President Joe Biden’s departure from the presidential race, munis were mixed Monday. U.S. Treasuries gave back some early gains, ending the day slightly weaker, while equities ended up. The two-year muni-to-Treasury ratio Monday was at 63%, the three-year at 65%, the five-year at 66%, the 10-year at 65% and the 30-year

Chicago Transit Authority Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer Jeremy Fine is leaving the agency, CTA President Dorval Carter, Jr., announced at a Wednesday meeting of the CTA’s Committee on Finance, Audit and Budget. Fine will join the Illinois Institute of Technology, CTA spokesperson Manny Gonzales said. Officials at the committee meeting said the CTA made