PolyOne breaks; Ntelos dips after paydown; Chrysler slides; Boyd, CBRE attract interest

By Sara Rosenberg

New York, Nov. 1 - PolyOne Corp.'s term loan B allocated and freed up for trading on Tuesday, with levels seen above the debt's original issue discount price, and Ntelos Holdings Corp.'s term loan headed lower in a soft secondary market after the company completed a partial repayment.

Also, Chrysler Group LLC saw its term loan B fall despite the release of positive October sales results as it succumbed to market technicals.

Over in the primary, Boyd Gaming Corp.'s incremental term loan filled out in less than a day, which is pretty much all the time lenders were given to the commit to the deal, and CBRE Group Inc.'s term loan A-1 was fully subscribed ahead of its deadline.

Furthermore, B&G Foods Inc. set timing on the launch of its pro rata bank debt, while leaving the institutional debt for a later date.

PolyOne starts trading

PolyOne's $300 million six-year term loan B (Ba1/BB-) made its way into the secondary market on Tuesday, with levels quoted at 99½ bid, par ½ offered, and then it moved to 99¾ bid, par ¼ offered, according to a trader.

Pricing on the B loan is Libor plus 375 basis points with a step down to Libor plus 350 bps when leverage is 2.25 times or less. There is a 1.25% Libor floor as well as 101 soft call protection for one year, and it was sold at an original issue discount of 99.

During syndication, the spread was reduced from Libor plus 425 bps, the pricing step down was added and the discount firmed at the tight end of the 98 to 99 guidance.

The company's $600 million credit facility also includes a $300 million five-year ABL revolver priced at Libor plus 200 bps.

PolyOne lead banks

Bank of America Merrill Lynch and Wells Fargo Securities LLC are leading PolyOne's credit facility, with Bank of America left lead on the B loan and Wells Fargo left lead on the revolver.

Proceeds, along with cash on hand, will be used to fund the acquisition of ColorMatrix Group Inc. for $486 million. The purchase is being made on a cash-free, debt-free basis, and the price is subject to a customary working capital adjustment and other closing conditions.

Closing is targeted for Nov. 17, subject to regulatory approvals.

PolyOne is an Avon Lake, Ohio-based provider of specialized polymer materials and services. ColorMatrix is a Berea, Ohio-based specialty provider of liquid colorants, additives and fluoropolymers.

Ntelos loan softens

Ntelos' term loan dropped to 97 bid, 98 offered, from 98¼ bid, 99¼ offered, following completion of the spin-off of Lumos Networks Operating Co. (Ntelos Wireline One Inc.) and a previously disclosed paydown, according to a trader.

The weakening in the loan may have been a result of investors no longer having a repayment to look forward to, but the "market's getting popped on Greek news with lots of loans down one point, so a little hard to disentangle," a second source remarked.

By Greek news, the source was referring to the announcement on Monday by prime minister George Papandreou that a referendum would be held on the recently announced bailout plan for the debt crisis, creating some fears that the plan will be rejected.

Ntelos spin-off details

Ntelos' spin-off of Lumos, a Waynesboro, Va.-based wireline communications company, was done through a tax-free dividend involving the distribution of all Lumos common stock to Ntelos stockholders.

With the spin-off, Lumos arranged a new $370 million senior secured credit facility, consisting of a $60 million five-year revolver and a $110 million five-year term loan A, both priced at Libor plus 325 bps, and a $200 million six-year term loan B priced at Libor plus 350 bps, regulatory filings said.

CoBank and SunTrust Robinson Humphrey Inc. led the Lumos deal that was used to fund a working capital cash reserve and to pay about $315 million to Ntelos, which Ntelos planned to use for the repayment of intercompany debt and to make a $282.6 million mandatory paydown on its credit facility.

Ntelos is a Waynesboro, Va.-based communications provider.

Chrysler retreats with market

Chrysler reported October sales results that showed year-over-year improvements. The news, however, was not enough to shield the company's term loan B from the negative tone in the general market, in which higher quality names were down around a half a point to a point and beta names were down a point or more, a trader told Prospect News.

The Auburn Hills, Mich.-based automotive company's term loan B was quoted at 91½ bid, 92½ offered, down from 93¼ bid, 94¼ offered, the trader said.

"For October, our retail sales increased 40% year-over-year with sales of the Chrysler 300 more than doubling and Jeep Compass sales increasing nearly fivefold. The month of October also marked our 19th-consecutive month of year-over-year sales gains," said Reid Bigland, president and chief executive officer, in a news release.

Specifically, Chrysler reported U.S. sales of 114,512 for October, a 27% increase from 90,137 in October 2010. The results were split between 81,930 in truck sales, up 17% from 69,775 last year, and 32,582 in car sales, up 60% from 20,362.

Boyd well met

Moving to the primary, Boyd Gaming's $300 million incremental term loan (Ba3/BB-) due December 2015 was already fully subscribed by Tuesday morning, and lenders still had until 5 p.m. ET to place their orders, according to a market source.

The loan, which launched this past Monday, is being talked at Libor plus 475 bps to 500 bps with a 1.25% Libor floor and an original issue discount of 97 to 98, and includes 101 soft call protection for one year.

Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Wells Fargo Securities LLC, J.P. Morgan Securities LLC, Deutsche Bank Securities Inc. and Barclays Capital Inc. are leading the deal that will be used to pay down revolver borrowings.

Boyd is a Las Vegas-based owner and operator of gaming entertainment properties.

CBRE sees demand

Also going well is CBRE Group's roughly $250 million senior secured sterling term loan A-1 due May 2016, with the tranche filled out by Tuesday's 5 p.m. ET commitment deadline, according to a market source.

The company has the option to upsize the loan if it's oversubscribed.

Pricing on the A-1 tranche, which could allocate as early as Wednesday, is a range of Libor plus 200 bps to 375 bps based on leverage - in line with pricing on the company's existing term loan A.

HSBC Securities (USA) Inc. and J.P. Morgan Securities LLC are the lead banks on the deal that will be used to enhance the company's overall financial flexibility and for general corporate purposes.

CBRE is a Los Angeles-based commercial real estate services firm.

B&G readies pro rata

B&G Foods set a bank meeting for Thursday to launch the pro rata piece of its proposed senior secured credit facility, and the institutional piece is expected to come to market later, according to a market source.

Credit Suisse Securities (USA) LLC, Barclays Capital Inc. and RBC Capital Markets LLC are the lead banks on the deal that will be used to the acquisition of six brands - Mrs. Dash, Molly McButter, Sugar Twin, Baker's Joy, Static Guard and Kleen Guard - from Unilever United States Inc. for $325 million.

Additionally, the new credit facility will be used to refinance the company's existing bank debt.

Closing on the transaction is expected before the end of the year.

B&G Foods is a Parsippany, N.J.-based manufacturer, seller and distributor of shelf-stable food.

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