Rumours of Apple issuing bonds in euros surfaced yesterday, and the Wall Street Journal has posted a follow-up report with additional details of the deal. As previously mentioned, this will be an Apple first – borrowing money in euros.
The iPhone maker will raise €2.8 billion ($3.5 billion) from two chunks of euro debt maturing in eight and 12 years.
Bankers managing the bond sale said the eight-year notes will give investors a yield of roughly 1.1% and the 12-year notes around 1.7%.
Those will beat the lowest yields ever paid for euro-denominated, corporate bonds of these maturities, according to Dealogic data, reflecting solid confidence that the bonds represent a safe bet.
Apple’s ratings give the company a great advantage: AA+ from S&P’s and Aa1 from Moody’s Investors Service. The iPhone maker has issued bonds before, even earlier this April, raising $12 billion, and last year managed to raise a record $17 billion.
The money was used to finance general corporate purposes, stock buyback, and dividend payments. Apple plans to do the same with the latest sale of bonds in euros.
