S&P rates School Specialty loan B+, notes CCC+

Standard & Poor's said it assigned its B corporate credit rating to School Specialty Inc. At the same time, S&P assigned a B+ rating and a recovery rating of 1 to the company's $725 million senior secured bank loan and assigned a CCC+ rating to the $350 million senior unsecured notes and the $300 million subordinated notes.

The outlook is negative.

Proceeds from the debt offerings and a $673 million equity contribution will be used to fund the purchase of School Specialty by Bain Capital LLC and Thomas H. Lee Partners LP.

S&P said the ratings on School Specialty reflect very high debt leverage after the LBO transaction, the company's participation in the competitive and highly fragmented school supplies industry, and the risks associated with its aggressive growth through acquisitions.

These factors are partially offset by the company's leading market position and history of stable operating performance.

© 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.