Moody’s: Holland and Barrett, facilities B2

Moody's Investors Service said it assigned a B2 corporate family rating and B2-PD probability of default rating to L1R HB Finance Ltd., a holding company of Holland and Barrett.

Concurrently, the agency assigned a B2 instrument rating to the £900 million equivalent worth of senior secured credit facilities comprising a £75 million revolving credit facility due 2023 and £825 million equivalent term loan B, incorporating a Sterling tranche of £550 million and a euro-denominated £275 million equivalent tranche, both due in 2024.

Proceeds from the transaction will be used to finance the acquisition of the company by LetterOne, a privately owned investment vehicle set up by five Russian investors, the largest individual shareholder is Mikhail Fridman.

The outlook is stable.

Moody’s said the B2 corporate family rating reflects: (a) The small scale and niche nature of H&B's operations relative to Moody's rated universe of retailers; (b) its concentration in the U.K. market; and (c) its leveraged capital structure.

The agency estimates that, pro forma for the transaction, Moody's-adjusted gross leverage (defined as debt to EBITDA) will be around 5.5 times.

© 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.