Piper Jaffray starts $300 million dollar commercial paper program

Piper Jaffray Companies plans to start a $300 million commercial paper program, the investment bank said in a regulatory filing on Wednesday.The program will in part fund Piper Jaffray’s securities portfolio and provide general working capital, the filing said.

Piper Jaffray, which caters to small and mid-size business customers, is recovering from five consecutive quarters of quarterly losses, beginning in the first quarter 2008 through first quarter 2009.

But that began to reverse in second and third quarter 2009, when the company reported its first profits since 2007.

During the company’s third-quarter earnings call, CEO Andrew Duff said he was optimistic about the recovering global capital markets, and the company would look to expand in certain business lines, like Piper Jaffray’s fixed income and equities businesses.

Piper Jaffray share price rose 0.64 percent to $50.64 in morning trading.\

Source: Reuters