Blue Bird details $250 million credit facility refinancing

By Mary-Katherine Stinson

Lexington, Ky., Nov. 21 – Blue Bird Corp. shared details of its $250 million refinancing of its credit facility on Nov. 17, according to an 8-K filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

The agreement, which lists indirect subsidiary Blue Bird Body Co. as the borrower, provides for a $100 million term loan A facility and a $150 million revolver, each maturing on Nov. 17, 2028.

The senior secured facility bears interest at SOFR plus an applicable margin of between 175 basis points and 325 bps, depending on the company’s consolidated total leverage ratio. The initial margin will be 300 bps.

There are commitment fees ranging between 25 bps and 45 bps on the undrawn commitments under the revolver.

The term loan facility is subject to amortization of principal, payable in equal quarterly installments beginning March 30, 2024, with 5% of the aggregate principal amount of all initial term loans outstanding at closing to be payable each year with the remaining due at maturity.

The borrower may prepay outstanding loans without penalty subject to customary breakage costs if applicable. Prepayments would be required with proceeds of asset sales, condemnation, casualty insurance and/or proceeds of debt under certain circumstances.

The agreement includes financial covenants requiring the company to maintain a pro forma consolidated total leverage ratio of not greater than 3x and a pro forma fixed charge coverage ratio of not less than 1.2x on the last day of any fiscal quarter.

BMO Capital Markets led the syndicate.

Bank of Montreal is the administrative agent, swingline lender and an issuing lender.

Bank of America, NA, CIBC Bank USA, Fifth Third Bank, NA and Regions Bank are the co-documentation agents.

TD Bank, NA is the documentation agent.

BMO Capital Markets Corp. and BofA Securities, Inc. join CIBC, Fifth Third and Regions as joint lead arrangers and joint bookrunners.

Proceeds were used to repay all outstanding debt and terminate the company’s previous credit agreement, which was scheduled to mature on Dec. 31, 2024. There were no prepayment penalties.

Blue Bird is a Macon, Ga.-based designer and manufacturer of school buses.

© 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.