Ericsson Scraps Euro Bond Sale Plan With Little Explanation

(Bloomberg) -- Ericsson decided against pursuing a bond offering, even as the company rides high on better-than-expected earnings.

The Swedish network-equipment vendor confirmed the postponement in an emailed response to Bloomberg News questions. It didn’t elaborate on the reason for delaying the planned 500 million-euro ($600 million) eight-year offering.

Ericsson hired banks on Monday to arrange investor calls about the bond sale as it prepares to refinance debt due next month. The postponement comes with bond-market costs near record lows and with shares of Ericsson approaching a six-year high after management hit a profitability target two years early.

One possible reason for the delay may be investor pushback over pricing, said Maria Staeheli, a portfolio manager at Fisch Asset Management. Bond yields have tumbled in Europe because of central-bank stimulus measures.

“If the postponement is the result of different pricing ideas then the whole thing is a good sign,” said Staeheli, who helps oversee 11 billion Swiss francs ($12 billion). “It shows that investors have discipline in terms of taking risks at the right levels.”

Shares of Ericsson rose more than 1% in Stockholm trading.

Ericsson last sold bonds in 2017, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. The company is the first this year to postpone a bond sale in Europe.

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