Some highly rated companies are turning to term loans instead of bonds for their financing needs, taking advantage of cheaper pricing as banks have been slower to adjust to rising interest rates than the credit markets. Highly rated companies raised $998.8 billion in bonds in the U.S. this year through Monday, compared with $177.9 billion in term loans, according to Refinitiv, a data provider. For all of last year, fundraising through bonds amounted to $1.46 trillion versus $236.7 billion for term loans for investment-grade-rated companies. Term loans often have a shorter duration than bonds, with many of them ranging from three to five years. Term loans tend to be secured,” Mr. Holtz said, pointing to the mixture of bonds and term loans that make up the company’s capital structure.

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