Regal, Lear price drive-by deals, trade up; Open Solutions jumps on acquisition by Fiserve

By Paul Deckelman and Paul A. Harris

New York, Jan. 14 - Regal Entertainment Group priced a quickly shopped $250 million offering of 120-year notes on Monday. The movie theater operator's new bonds rose in the aftermarket.

Auto components maker Lear Corp. drove by with a $500 million issue of 10-year notes, which also moved up when freed for trading.

While those were the only two dollar-denominated, purely junk-rated issues to come to market, Monday was a busy day for the forward calendar. There was also a $300 million split-rated deal from aircraft leasing company Aviation Capital Group Corp.

Irish container company Ardagh Packaging Finance was heard by syndicate sources to be hitting the road with a $1.45 billion-equivalent, three-part issue of dollar- and euro-denominated notes.

Other companies heard to be doing deals were defense contractor GenCorp. Inc., satellite imagery provider DigitalGlobe Inc. and chemical manufacturer Georgia Gulf Corp., all three to be used to fund acquisitions.

Price talk was heard on pending deals from Wells Enterprises, Inc., and Interface Security Holdings Inc. Flash Dutch 2BV and Coating Acquisition Inc.'s coming two-part deal was slightly restructured to change the respective tranche sizes.

Away from the new deals, the day's major name was Open Solutions Inc., whose bonds jumped on the news that the financial technology provider will be acquired by Fiserve Inc., which will assume nearly $1 billion of its debt and repay the rest.

Statistical measures of secondary market performance were mixed.

Lear at the tight end

The primary market churned out a heavy volume of news on Monday as two junk-rated issuers brought single-tranche deals to raise a combined total of $750 million.

Lear priced a $500 million issue of 10-year senior notes (Ba2/BB) at par to yield 4¾%, at the tight end of the 4¾% to 5% yield talk.

Shortly after it was announced, the deal looked cheap to a trader, who said that it was being guided in the low 5% context.

That level likely ended up looking cheap to the issuer and its investment bankers as well, since it ultimately came 12.5 basis points inside of a 5% area context.

Citigroup, Barclays, J.P. Morgan, RBC and UBS were the joint bookrunners.

Proceeds will be used for general corporate purposes, including the potential refinancing of the company's existing senior notes.

Regal 12-year deal

Regal Entertainment priced a $250 million issue of 12-year senior notes (B3/B-) at par to yield 5¾%, on top of yield talk.

Credit Suisse, Barclays, Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Deutsche Bank and Wells Fargo were the joint bookrunners for the general corporate purposes deal.

Aviation split-rated deal

In the crossover market, Aviation Capital priced a split-rated $300 million issue of non-callable five-year senior notes (/BB+/BBB-) at par to yield 4 5/8%.

Credit Agricole, Deutsche Bank, J.P. Morgan, RBC and Wells Fargo were the joint bookrunners for the quick-to-market issue, which was priced on the investment grade desk.

Proceeds will be used for general corporate purposes, including the repayment of debt under the company's revolver.

Talking the deals

A pair of off-the-run names are on tap to price during the Tuesday session.

Wells Enterprises talked its $235 million offering of seven-year senior secured notes (B2/B+) to yield 6¾% to 7%.

BMO and Wells Fargo are the joint bookrunners.

And Interface Security Systems Holdings and Interface Security Systems LLC set price talk for their $225 million offering of five-year senior secured notes (B3/B-) with a coupon of 9¼% to 9½% at par.

Imperial Capital is managing the deal.

DuPont shifts proceeds

The secured portions of the DuPont Performance Coatings leveraged buyout financing were upsized on Monday, and an unsecured tranche of notes was downsized.

The bond portion of the deal now features a downsized $750 million tranche of 8.25-year senior notes (Caa1), which was decreased from $1.1 billion, and an upsized €250 million tranche of eight-year senior secured notes (B1), which was increased from €230 million.

Along with the resizing of the bond tranches, the euro-denominated first lien term loan is upsized to €390 million from €150 million. The $2.3 billion size of the first-lien term loan is unchanged.

A roadshow for the bonds took place in Europe during the Jan. 7 week and is set to run in the United States during the present week.

Credit Suisse, Deutsche Bank, Citigroup, Barclays, UBS, Morgan Stanley, Jefferies and SMBC are the joint bookrunners for the notes.

Ardagh brings $1.45 billion

The forward calendar saw a significant buildup on Monday.

Ardagh Packaging Finance and Ardagh Holdings USA began a roadshow in Europe and the United States for their $1.45 billion-equivalent offerings of secured and unsecured high yield notes.

The notes offers are in the market via bookrunner Citigroup.

The deal includes $750 million-equivalent of senior secured notes due Nov. 15, 2022 (existing ratings Ba3/B+) in dollar and euro denominations. The secured notes are non-callable until Nov. 15, 2017.

The unsecured tranche is comprised of $700 million-equivalent of senior notes due Nov. 15, 2020 (existing ratings B3/CCC+), also in dollar and euro denominations. The unsecured notes are non-callable before Nov. 15, 2016.

Proceeds will be used to finance the acquisition of the Verallia North America glass container manufacturing operations from Cie. de Saint-Gobain SA.

PPG starts Tuesday

Eagle SpinCo, which will become a wholly owned subsidiary of Georgia Gulf, plans to start a roadshow on Tuesday in New York City for a $688 million offering of eight-year senior notes (expected ratings Ba3/BB-).

Barclays is the lead left bookrunner. J.P. Morgan, RBC and Wells Fargo are the joint bookrunners.

Proceeds will be used to fund the acquisition of Eagle SpinCo Inc. (PPG Commodity Chemicals) from PPG.

GenCorp starts roadshow

GenCorp began a roadshow on Monday for its $460 million offering of eight-year second-priority senior secured notes.

The deal is expected to price on Friday.

Morgan Stanley, Citigroup and Wells Fargo are the joint bookrunners.

Proceeds will be used to finance the acquisition of Rocketdyne.

Good show for Regal

When Regal Entertainment's 5¾% notes due 2025 were freed for secondary dealings, a trader said that the Knoxville, Tenn.-based movie-theater operator's quick-to-market new deal was trading around 101 bid, after having priced at par.

A second trader quoted the bond at 100¾ bid, 101 offered, while yet another trader pegged them at 100 7/8 bid, 101 1/8 offered.

Lear drives higher

Soutfield, Mich.-based automotive components manufacturer Lear's 4¾% notes due 2023 traded at 100¾ bid, 101¼ offered, a trader said, versus their par issue price.

A second saw that drive-by offering at 101 bid, 101½ offered.

Aviation Capital takes flight

One of the traders saw Aviation Capital Group's 4 5/8% notes due 2018 trading at 101¼ bid, 101¾ offered, up from the split-rated deal's par pricing.

Friday deals near issue

The two junk deals that came to market on Friday were seen trading at, or a perhaps a tad above, their respective issue prices.

A trader saw NeuStar Inc.'s 4½% notes due 2023 at 100 1/8 bud, up a little from the par level at which the Sterling, Va.-based communications services company priced its $300 million scheduled forward calendar offering.

A second trader saw the bonds trade Monday at 100¼ bid, 100 5/8 offered. On Friday, they had firmed to around par bid, 100½ offered after pricing.

U.S. Foodservice Inc.'s add-on to its existing 8½%.notes due 2019 was seen Monday trading at 10 3¾ bid, 104¼ offered.

The Columbia, Md.-based food products company's quick-to-market $375 million offering had priced on Friday at 103.5 to yield 7.588%, after having been upsized from an original $200 million size. The bonds traded on Friday at 103½ bid, 104½ offered.

Going back a little further, a trader said that Kodiak Oil & Gas Corp.'s 5½% notes due 2021 traded at 102½ bid, 102 5/8 offered on Monday.

The Denver-based energy exploration and production company's quickly shopped $350 million deal had priced at par on Thursday after upsizing from $300 million and then had traded above the 102 bid mark, going home Friday at 102¼ bid, 102¾ offered.

He also said that Rockies Express Pipeline LLC's 6% notes due 2019 "started weaker, but were a tad better" going home, quoted at 100½ bid, 101½ offered.

The Houston-based natural gas pipeline company priced its quick-to-market $525 million issue on Thursday at par. The notes were seen on Friday trading as low as 99¾ bid, par offered, although the bonds were quoted as high then as 101.

The trader said that overall, "the market was kind of unchanged. A couple of bids were a little bit lower, but nothing was cheaper on the offered side."

He further said, "Accounts were reluctant to sell things."

Most dealers, he said, were "light in inventory, waiting for the calendar to catch fire."

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