In September 2014, Twitter raised $1.8 billion in a convertible bond offering. The offering includes a 5-year tranche, with notes due in 2019 carrying a .25% interest rate and 7-year notes due in 2021 carrying a 1% interest rate. Twitter's stock price was $52.57 at the time.
The conversion rate is 12.8793 shares per $1000 bond. Calculate the conversion price in dollars and the premium as a percentage. Then discuss reasons to explain the size of the premium. Explain why Twitter decided to issue convertible bonds instead of regular bonds or stock. And why would an investor prefer convertible bonds to the company's stock?