Thirty-Year Bond Auction Attracts Above Average Demand

The Treasury Department announced the results of its auction of $16 billion worth of thirty-year bonds on Thursday, revealing the sale attracted above average demand.

The thirty-year bond auction drew a high yield of 2.607 percent and a bid-to-cover ratio of 2.32.

Last month, the Treasury sold $19 billion worth of thirty-year bonds, drawing a high yield of 2.892 percent and a bid-to-cover ratio of 2.20.

The bid-to-cover ratio is a measure of demand that indicates the amount of bids for each dollar worth of securities being sold.

The ten previous thirty-year bond auctions had an average bid-to-cover ratio of 2.26.

Earlier this week, the Treasury announced the results of its auctions of $38 billion worth of three-year notes and $24 billion worth of ten-year notes.

Company buys 2 Texas water parks in deal with Schlitterbahn

A Texas-based water park company has sold two of its attractions and given the buyer the right to acquire its Kansas site where a 10-year-old boy was killed nearly three years ago.

Schlitterbahn on Thursday announced the $261 million agreement with Cedar Fair Entertainment to sell a water park and resort in New Braunfels, Texas, and another property in Galveston, Texas. Sandusky, Ohio-based Cedar Fair will also have the right to buy the company's Kansas water park for $6 million in cash.

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The deal comes after Schlitterbahn remained mum on its plans for the Kansas City, Kansas, park where Caleb Schwab was decapitated in August of 2016 on the 17-story Verruckt slide.

Caleb's family received nearly $20 million in settlements and two women who were seriously injured while riding with him settled for an undisclosed amount.

Energy stocks in a broad rally, as crude prices bounce sharply after attacks on two oil tankers

Energy stocks rallied in unison Thursday to pace the S&P 500’s sector gainers, with crude oil futures surging as U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Iran was to blame for a number of recent incidents, including the attacks Thursday on two oil tankers in the Middle East. The SPDR Energy Select Sector ETF XLE, +1.19% rallied 1.3% in afternoon trade, with all 29 equity components gaining ground. Among the more-active components, shares of Halliburton Co. HAL, +2.63% hiked up 2.8%, Marathon Oil Corp. MRO, +1.73% gained 1.8%, Schlumberger NV SLB, +3.77% rose 3.7%, Exxon Mobil Corp. XOM, +0.80% tacked on 0.8% and Kinder Morgan Inc. KMI, +0.79% advanced 0.8%. Meanwhile, crude oil futures surged 2.8%, after settling Wednesday at a 5-month low. The energy ETF has lost 6.9% year to date, while the S&P 500 SPX, +0.29% tacked on 2.8%.

Councilman seeks change to hookah bar liquor license rule

A Nebraska city councilman says an ordinance that forces the Muslim owners of a new hookah lounge to serve alcohol in violation of their faith must change.

The ordinance requires businesses in Lincoln that allow smoking indoors to have a liquor license. Those businesses must stock and serve booze.

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The Lincoln Journal-Star reports that Councilman Roy Christensen has been working with city lawyers to write a new ordinance that would allow businesses like 88 Hookah Lounge to operate in compliance with the owners' faith and local rules.

Cigar bars are legal in Nebraska under the state's Clean Indoor Air Act as long as they do not sell anything else. City Attorney Jeff Kirkpatrick says the difficulty will be drafting a law that allows the hookah lounge to serve non-alcoholic beverages.

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Information from: Lincoln Journal Star, http://www.journalstar.com

Chewy Updates Potential Pricing for Unicorn IPO

Chewy has registered an amended S-1 form with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for its initial public offering (IPO). The firm intends to price its 41.6 million shares in the range of $19 to $21, with an overallotment option for an additional 6.24 million shares. At the maximum price, the entire offering is valued up to $1.004 billion. Chewy intends to list its shares on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol CHWY.

The underwriters for the offering are Morgan Stanley, JPMorgan, Allen, Merrill Lynch, Barclays, Jefferies, RBC Capital Markets, UBS Investment Bank, Wells Fargo Securities, Nomura, Raymond James and William Blair.

Chewy basically runs an online pet store with virtually everything a pet needs. Management believes that it is the preeminent online destination for pet parents as a result of its broad selection of high-quality products, which the firm offers at great prices and delivers with an exceptional level of care and a personal touch.

The firm partners with more than 1,600 of the best and most trusted brands in the pet industry, and it creates and offers its private brands. The loyalty of Chewy’s customers has helped the firm deliver more than 100 million orders since 2011.

From fiscal years 2012 to 2018, net sales per active customer grew from $223 to $334 and net sales grew from $26 million to $3.5 billion. In addition, Autoship customer sales have grown from $115 million in fiscal 2014 to $2.3 billion in fiscal 2018.

Oil futures boosted after attacks on crude tankers, but end off session highs

Oil futures ended higher Thursday after attacks damaged two oil tankers off the coast of Iran, near the Strait of Hormuz, escalating tensions between Washington and Tehran and sparking fears of supply disruptions. West Texas Intermediate crude for August delivery CLN19, +2.29% rose $1.14, or 2.2%, to end at $51.14 a barrel, after trading as high as $53.45 a barrel. U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, speaking ahead of the closing bell, blamed Iran for the attacks and said the U.S. would take the issue to the U.N. Security Council, while warning that the U.S. "will defend our forces." Iran has denied responsibility for the attacks.