Convertible securities are an obscure but increasingly popular stock-bond hybrid that usually offer current income, can be converted into company stock and whose fortunes are closely tied to the underlying stock price.
Experts say they are inappropriate for ordinary investors to buy directly.
If it does, its sale would match Tyco's in size. Many companies find convertible securities, and their low yields, an attractive way to raise cash at low cost. A spokesman for Verizon, David Frail, declined Wednesday to comment further. Bonds with this structure have become increasingly popular among issuers. Hedge funds favor these, and use them in complex trading strategies.