J.B. Hanauer & Co., a Livingston, N.J.-based investment firm, has relocated its headquarters to Parsippany, N.J., the company announced.
As part of the move, close to 250 traders, brokers, investment advisers, and support staff were relocated, said Helen Lawler, a spokeswoman for the firm. She added that the move into larger office space will allow J.B. Hanauer to consolidate its securities clearing operations, which had been divided between offices in Livingston and New York City.
The new headquarters at the Gatehall Corporate Center will house the company's data processing center, securities clearance facilities, expanded sales areas, training and seminar facilities, and private consultation rooms.
In a press release, Barry H. Zucker, president of the firm, said the new headquarters with its enlarged trading and sales space will help J.B. Hanauer assist investors in dealing with the record amount of municipal bonds expected to be redeemed in January 1993.
"We're projecting that on Jan. 1, $14 billion in bonds will be redeemed early," Zucker said. "That's an all-time record - and almost double the record early call of last July. With that much cash being refunded, investors who don't take precautions are apt to find themselves with lots of cash and nothing attractive to reinvest in.
"We've been using the time leading up to Jan. 1 to review portfolios and advise our bondholders on strategies to protect themselves," Zucker added.
According to the Bond Buyer Redemption Report, $10.12 billion of municipals are slated to be redeemed on Jan. 1. This includes $7.36 billion of prerefunded bonds or bonds escrowed to maturity, plus another expected $2.1 billion of high coupon bonds, and $664 million of bonds maturing on that date.
The early bond redemptions are a response to the decline in interest rates. Municipalities and other bond issuers are taking advantage of early refunding clauses to call in high-coupon bonds and replace them with bonds offering lower interest rates.
Founded in Newark in 1931, J.B. Hanauer & Co. has been based in Livingston since 1978. The company, which deals primarily with high net worth individuals, many of whom are retired, also has three offices in Florida, in North Palm Beach, West Palm Beach, and Tampa.
The firm provides a broad range of investment services but is best known as a municipal bond broker-dealer. For 1992, it is ranked 85th among managing underwriters when full credit is given to each manager, according to Securities Data Co. J.B. Hanauer has served as a co-manager for seven issues totaling $3,07 billion so far this year. The firm was ranked 219th among co-managers in 1991.
