S&P may up Gaylord Entertainment

Standard & Poor's said it placed its ratings for Gaylord Entertainment Co., including the B corporate credit rating, on CreditWatch with positive implications following news that Gaylord has entered into an agreement to sell its equity stake in Bass Pro Group LLC to Bass Pro for $222 million.

The sale is expected to close in June 2007. Gaylord is expected to use the sale proceeds to fund its hotel expansion plans.

The CreditWatch listing reflects S&P's expectation that borrowings to fund Gaylord's capital spending will be lower than previously expected and that credit measures could improve over the next few years and be sustained at levels consistent with higher ratings.

The agency said it expects that Gaylord National would have a strong opening, which is currently estimated to be in April 2008. Total lease-adjusted debt-to-EBITDA ratio was about 6x in December 2006. Leverage is expected to spike in 2007 and decline after the Gaylord National opening, S&P said.

© 2015 Prospect News.
All content on this website is protected by copyright law in the U.S. and elsewhere. For the use of the person downloading only.
Redistribution and copying are prohibited by law without written permission in advance from Prospect News.
Redistribution or copying includes e-mailing, printing multiple copies or any other form of reproduction.