Biotechnology giant Amgen Inc. began talks with investors on Tuesday about a potential jumbo bond deal to help finance its roughly $28 billion acquisition of Dublin-based Horizon Therapeutics, according to the company, investors, analysts and deal documents.
Amgen AMGN and Horizon HZNP announced plans for the mash up in December, with Amgen receiving a $28.5 billion bridge credit facility from Citibank and Bank of America to help aid the transaction. Shares of Amgen were fractionally lower Tuesday, while those of Horizon were 0.1% higher, according to FactSet.
The yield on the ICE BofA US Corporate Index was last pegged near 5.3% , down from a roughly 6% peak in October, but still around levels last seen in the wake of the 2007-2008 global financial crisis. “It feels like a pretty good environment versus the fourth-quarter of last year,” said Tom Murphy, head of investment-grade credit at Columbia Threadneedle, by phone. “There is more confidence that you could sidestep a deep and long recession.”