UnitedHealth Group Inc. sold $9 billion of bonds, the biggest US bond offering in months, signaling that there is still appetite for jumbo issuances from companies with top-tier ratings, Bloomberg reports.
The health-care giant issued the debt in seven parts, according to people familiar with the matter. The longest-dated portion, a 40-year security, yields 185 basis points above Treasuries, after initial price talk in the 210 basis points range, said the people, who asked not to be identified as the details are private.
The proceeds will go toward general corporate purposes, including refinancing the commercial paper used to partially fund UnitedHealth’s acquisition of Change Healthcare, according to Moody’s Investors Service. The roughly $8 billion merger deal closed earlier this month, a few weeks after a judge rejected a challenge from federal regulators. Read more.
