Star Tribune bid firms ahead of lender call; Burger King better on financials

By Sara Rosenberg

New York, Aug. 24 - The Star Tribune Co.'s term loan B saw bids inch higher as the company is getting ready to hold a private lender call, and Burger King Holdings Inc.'s term loan B was a touch better on the release of positive fiscal fourth-quarter earnings.

Star Tribune's first-lien term loan B saw better bids on Friday ahead of a private first- and second-lien bank loan lender call that is scheduled to take place on Monday, according to a trader.

The term loan B was quoted at 86½ bid, 87 offered, compared with previous levels of 84 bid, 87 offered, the trader said.

"I have no idea what the call is about. They already announced that they're doing an asset sale so that's baked into levels already and it's out of sequence for an earnings update. They just did that like a month ago," the trader remarked.

"People are speculating as to what the positive could be but no idea what it is yet. Assuming there's a positive because it's bid up. It's a direction it hasn't gone in a while, up," the trader continued.

"You struggle to think that it's performance related because it's a tough market [for the newspaper sector]. Look at Tribune. They put out July numbers [Friday] and they were down, but no one expected otherwise," the trader added.

Tribune Co., a Chicago-based media company, reported its summary of revenues and newspaper advertising volume for the period ended Aug. 5 on Friday.

For the period, consolidated revenues were $467 million, down 5.9% from last year's $496 million, publishing revenues were $319 million, down 8.6% from last year's $349 million, and advertising revenues were $247 million, down 10.3% from last year's $275 million.

Tribune's term loan B was said to be unchanged on the day following the release of the July numbers, but a specific level was unavailable.

Star Tribune is a Minneapolis-based information provider and includes the Star Tribune newspaper, StarTribune.com and other print and digital products and services.

Burger King higher with numbers

Burger King's term loan B was a bit stronger on Friday after the company came out with fiscal fourth-quarter numbers that were pretty good, according to a trader.

The term loan B ended the session at 97 5/8 bid, 98 7/8 offered, up about an eighth of a point from previous levels, the trader said.

On Friday morning, Burger King released fiscal fourth-quarter numbers that included revenues of $590 million, up 11% from revenues of $533 million in last year's fiscal fourth quarter.

Net income for the quarter ended June 30 was $36 million, compared with a net loss of $10 million in the comparable period last year, and adjusted net income was $40 million, up 60% from last year's $25 million.

Diluted earnings per share were $0.26, up from a loss per share of $0.08 in last year's fiscal fourth quarter, and adjusted diluted earnings per share were $0.29, up 61% from $0.18.

For the fiscal year ended June 30, the company reported record worldwide revenues of $2.23 billion, up 9% from last year's $2.05 billion.

Net income for the full year was $148 million, an increase of 448% from last year's $27 million, and adjusted net income was $152 million, up 32% from $115 million in the previous year.

Diluted earnings per share for the full year were $1.08, up from a $0.24 per share last year, or 350%, and adjusted diluted earnings per share were $1.11, up 31% from $0.85.

The company said that the robust results for the fiscal fourth quarter and a record 2007 fiscal year were driven by significant improvement across key business drivers - marketing, products, development and operations.

Burger King met or exceeded its revenue, adjusted EBITDA and adjusted net income goals for fiscal 2007 and the momentum is expected to continue into fiscal 2008.

"For fiscal 2008, we expect to perform at the top of our industry. Our strategies remain the same; we plan to successfully execute against our multi-faceted growth opportunities by focusing on operational excellence, and by sustaining our reputation as a socially relevant brand with provocative marketing and product innovation," John Chidsey, chief executive officer, said in a company news release.

As for debt, during fiscal 2007, the company paid down $125 million in debt, and, subsequent to year-end, an additional $25 million in debt was retired on July 31.

"Given the current debt market environment and excess cash on hand, we determined that paying down debt to lower interest expense best aligned with our strategic plan," Ben Wells, chief financial officer, said in the release.

Burger King is a Miami-based fast food hamburger chain.

LCDX holds steady, cash firm

LCDX ended the day pretty much unchanged from previous levels, and the cash market felt a little bit better, with very little trading activity going on, according to traders.

The index went out at 95.60 bid, 95.85 offered, according to one trader, 95.55 bid, 95.75 offered, according to a second trader and 95.60 bid, 95.80 offered, according to a third trader, with the one thing that all the traders agreed upon being that levels went out in the same context on Thursday.

At one point during the session, the index did drop to 95.45 bid, but then it bounced right back up, one trader added.

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