If you like your financial news shaken, not stirred, I have three words for you:
Bond. Amazon bonds.
In 1997, Pierce Brosnan was James Bond, and Amazon was considered a junk-rated bond issuer.
How things have changed.
Nowadays, Daniel Craig is James Bond and Amazon is a powerhouse in the industry, and planning to sell three-, five- and 10-year bonds in a deal that is expected to soar into the $2.5 billion range.
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The proceeds will be for general corporate purposes, such as the purchase of Amazon’s corporate headquarters, according to Moody’s.
"Demand should be strong because it's a new name for the marketplace," Sean Simko, head of global fixed-income management at SEI Investments, told foxbusiness.com. Experts expect the bonds to yield .5, .75 and 1.05 percent over the three-, five- and 10-year Treasury rates.
But not everyone is excited about the offering. Andrew Hofer, portfolio manager at Brown Brothers Harriman in New York, is not impressed. "This Cyber Monday (News - Alert) promotion is still too expensive, as much as we admire the company," he said.
Moody’s cited online retails sales as a strength for the company, helping boost its credit rating, but other factors are working against it, and Moody’s gave Amazon a AA-minus rating.
Aside from the corporate headquarters, the mind boggles at the thoughts of what Amazon might do with billions of dollars. Perhaps it is planning for the zombie apocalypse, or looking to ship extra Hostess goodies to Colorado and Washington State. Or maybe the company wants to promote books by independent authors. Only time will tell.