Fitch rates American Cellular loans B+

Fitch Ratings said it assigned a B+/RR1 rating to American Cellular Corp.'s planned $1.05 billion senior secured credit facility, downgraded the company's $900 million senior unsecured notes to CCC+/RR5 from B/RR3 and downgraded its $18.5 million senior subordinated notes to CCC/RR6 from CCC+/RR5.

The agency also affirmed the B- issuer default ratings of American Cellular, Dobson Communications Corp. and Dobson Cellular Systems Inc., Dobson Communication's CCC+/RR5 senior notes and CCC-/RR6 convertible preferred stock and Dobson Cellular's BB-/RR1 senior secured credit facility and secured notes.

The outlook is stable.

In February, American Cellular said it planned to fund a cash tender offer and consent solicitation for its $900 million 10% senior notes with proceeds from a $850 million credit facility and a $425 million notes offering. The company then cancelled the note offering and increased the size of the credit facility by $200 million. The facility includes a $75 million five-year senior secured revolving credit facility, a $900 million seven-year senior secured term loan B and a $75 million seven-year senior secured delayed-draw term loan.

The agency said the leverage of the consolidated Dobson group will increase to about 6.4x as a result of the expected drawdown on the credit facilities and that the ratings for American Cellular's senior unsecured notes were downgraded to reflect the diminished recovery prospects, as the consent solicitation seeks to remove substantially all the restrictive covenants.

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