NEW YORK (Reuters) – The bid deadline for private equity-backed Kosmos Energy’s Ghanaian oil interests has been extended and another date will be announced within the next 30 days, two sources familiar with the matter said on Friday. The bid deadline had previously been on Friday. The extension gives bidders extra time to digest major […]
NEW YORK (Reuters) – Alpha Media, parent of mens magazine Maxim, said on Friday it will cut its debt by way of a debt-to-equity conversion. The publisher was bought by private equity firm Quadrangle Group in 2007 for about $250 million. Quadrangle later said the deal had been a mistake, and wrote the value of […]
As usual, we have a week's worth of ratings agency actions on the debt of LBO-backed companies from Standard & Poor's and Moody's Investor Services. This week the agencies were busy withdrawing ratings on bankrupt companies and issuing new ratings on newly-exchanged debt facilities. Almost every action is related in some way to bankruptcy or a distressed debt exchange, which we may as well get used to, because there's a lot of debt out there to be refinanced. To be specific, around $190 billion worth of speculative-grade bonds will mature between 2009 and 2011, according to Moody's. Fortunately $120 billion of that isn't due until 2011. In addition to the downgrades, upgrades and withdrawals, S&P did some outlook revising: The agency affirmed its ratings on Rite Aid Corp. but revised its outlook from ‘negative' to ‘stable.' The company owes its revised outlook to improved liquidity and financial flexibility. Rite Aid, which has investments on Contrarian Capital and Leonard Green & Partners, recently refinanced of the bulk of its 2010 debt maturities, including a new $1.0 billion asset-based revolving credit facility. Currently the company has a ‘B-‘ corporate credit rating.
The FDIC is two weeks into the comment period on its proposed rules for PE bank investments, and has begun publishing the inbox. Only three up there so far, but I'd expect a slew more to appear before the August 10 deadline. For the uninitiated, many of these rules are pointlessly punative and would literally prevent PE firms from investing in banks (troubled or otherwise). For example, a cross-guarantee requirement not only would violate a private equity fund's charter, but would create the very systemic risk that some other legislation is trying to guard against. The most pertinent comment comes from from Charles Moore, president of Banc Funds. Seems he's okay with the rules for most, but not for firms (like his) that limit their investments to less than 10% ownership. As such, he'd like a safe harbor for those at 9.9% or below. He writes, in part:
WILMINGTON, Del. (Reuters) – Golden Gate Capital won an auction for the assets of Eddie Bauer Holdings Inc with an all-cash bid of $286 million, the bankrupt outdoor apparel retailer said on Friday. Eddie Bauer filed for protection under Chapter 11 of U.S. Bankruptcy Code in June with a plan to sell its assets to […]
Warburg Pincus has committed up to $300 million to the formation of RegionalCare Hospital Partners, a hospital acquisition platform focused on non-urban markets. It will be led by CEO Martin Rash, former CEO of Province Healthcare.
(Reuters) – U.S. buyout firm Silver Lake Partners is eyeing a possible takeover of Norwegian video conferencing systems maker Tandberg (TAA.OL), the Wall Street Journal said, citing people familiar with the matter. If struck at a typical premium to Tandberg’s current share price, the deal could be valued at more than $2 billion, the paper […]
LONDON (Reuters) – British petrochemicals company Ineos secured the overwhelming support of lenders for new terms on its debt, the company said on Thursday. The proposals, which include an easing of its financial covenants and a new business plan, were backed by 96 percent of loan holders, the company said. “The covenant reset provides the […]
LONDON (Reuters) – Manchester Airports Group (MAG), the last bidder in active discussions to buy London’s Gatwick airport from Ferrovial (FER.MC) unit BAA, has walked away over price disagreements, a person familiar with the matter said. The long-running sale of Britain’s second-busiest airport had once sought to raise more than 2 billion pounds, but the […]
TORONTO (Reuters) – Athabasca Potash Inc (API.TO), said on Thursday it is exploring a possible sale of all or part of the company, sending its shares soaring 42 percent. Saskatoon, Saskatchewan-based Athabasca said in March it had sufficient funds to complete a pre-feasibility study of its Burr project in Saskatchewan, but was seeking a strategic […]