Evening star., 1928-04-08
BOND PRICES FIRM
IN WEEKS TRADING
Preferred Stocks in Good
fDemand--Volume I of New
Offerings Light.
Special Dispatch to The star.


NEW YORK. April THE stream
Of new bond issues Rowing into the
market is small at present compared
with those earlier III the year. ThlS
serves to limit composition with olo
issues and thereby helps their prices.
This fact and this broader markets al
for6ed by different classes Of bonds and
preferred stock by the new legal PRIV
ilegas have Offset this week the eHec!
of the highest rates for call money aro
the sirmeSt rates for time money III
wen over wear.
II Is somewhat difficult 10 interest the
private investor in bonds newly intro
duced 10 him. with stocks ofernlg such
attractive speculative poSslohafleS:
Therefore. the heaviest absorption OF
hoth new and old bonds is for the ac~
count of insurance companies ana oanES
which buy mainly for income. 4fley
have had 20 find new outlets Tor tile NJ
eressing volume OF funds for invest
nent. This has meant st2aoy Veaolu luSt-
nnent in their policy es TO the return
they will he willing TO accept. Recently
they have been takin4 public utility
bonds on as low basis as S,2o per
cent which would have been considered
too little for them to consider even on
the legal rails six and nine naonths ago,
No department Of the investment
market has had greater stimulus
lately than that devoted TO preferred
stocks. With the life insurance COM
nanies in New York State now per-
mitted 10 buy such stocks the supply
has quickly been absorbed ana prices
have Jumped rapidly. AS late as the
middle of March il was possible 10 pur-
chase some Of the new puoiic 0tlilty
S oer cent preferred shares little
under a 5 per cent income basis. To-
day they are quoted TO weld around "a
per cent. This includes Sucn ISSUES as
Dunuesne, Light Consotldateo SSSs %
New York and Consolidated Gas oI
EaIttreore Tfae first named covered its
dividend requirements last year nearly
nine times.
Turnjng to the 6 per cent puollc
utility preferreuS, such as Coiumola
Gas & Electric, American Gas & Eiec- /
trfc. Ohio Power. American Power d
Iisht and North American Edison, we
find the yield ranging from 5ie per cent
To SIS. per cent. North American Edl- /
son. last year earned its 6 per cent I
dividend 10 times over.
Few Preferred Rails.
There are only g comparatively few |
tllnse who desire securities Of this class. I
The Weld on them averages a little
less than that on the best public utiilty !
preferred shares. 1t ranges from 4.6O 4
per cent on Union Pacific preferred, !
which is earning its dividend nearly 10 !
times. to 434 per cent on Baltimore |
e. Ohio preferred, which In 1927 earned |
its dividend over 9l2 times, The "olo /
line" industrial preferred issues. such !
as United States Steel Corporation, In /
teTnationai Harvester. National Biscuit. /
American Tobacco. Corn Products and |,
American Smelling & Refining. are
yielding from $50 per cent 10 per
CENT Whereas practically all OF the
public utility preferred stocks are caL-
able at prices varying between l05 /
and lis, the Standard railroad and M /
Gusgr1aI preferred stocks are non-call- /
able, which gives them an added value /
70 the institutions desiring permanent \
Investments
There have been q number Of ircuS-
trial bonds the past week that have
gone steadily forward as the stocks into
which fhev may be converted have ao-
vsnced. TIaiE has brought high level
of prices 10 such issues as Anaconda
Copper and Andes Copper rs, j.
Kayser 5sas and 10 same Of the
and per cent issues Of oil pTDouciIg l
and refining companies. There have
also been strong markets IN the new
St. Paul per cent bonds, IN the local 1
fractions and In the bonds Of sugar, |
tobacco. coal and merchandising con- /
Germs. The general average Of the do |
regtsc list has passed the high OF the 4
year made ca March 30.
Foreign Bends High
Poreirn bends this week have also /
touched 0 lev high average fcr the /
year. This has been due 70 the strength !
in Japanese, Scandinavian South /
American. German and Central Amer
ican issues. The investment trusts have /
been buying those issues that st1n yield |
between and 61a per cent. The most /
slgy1t0cant inci6ent Of the week. and !
one thai forecasts another decline in 4
the average return on dollar bonds, is /
the loan 60 the Kingdom Of Denmark !
that carries a 4l2 per cent coupon, the 1
first rate at 50 low figure TO be placed 1
on any foreign bond except that Of /
Canada. since the war.
Among this weeks new issues the /
isrgeS. were those Of the American Gas |
a. Electric Co, whose 4 per cent denen- /
tures were sold at 1Oi and the New /
England Power Association, with an
other per cent debenture al par. The /
total amount Of these two loans was |
S75JOO0, 600 and with other and smaller /
public utility offerings the aggregate Of /
borrowing by power and light COM /
panieg this week is approximately $780, /
100000 This brings this group for /
ward as the leader again after falling /
behind the railroads IL March in point /
Of loan volume
There has been a fair amount Of
money borrowing. with more In prospect
as the Spring opens and public i'm .
pToEeEnenGS get under way again. Actual /
offerings Of foreign bonds have beer /
fn1an. but with supply In sight that /
VIII De coming on In the next few
weeks.