S&P lifts E.W. Scripps unsecured notes

S&P said it raised the rating on E.W. Scripps Co.'s senior unsecured debt to B+ from B and revised the recovery rating to 4 from 5. The 4 recovery rating indicates an average (30%-50%; rounded estimate: 35%) recovery in default. A 5 rating indicates a modest recovery (10%-30%).

E.W. Scripps recently boosted its revolving credit facility by $185 million to $585 million and then borrowed $283 million from the facility to pay off the $283 million balance on its term loan maturing in 2024.

“While the current amount of total debt outstanding remains unchanged, these actions reduce the estimated amount of secured debt outstanding in our hypothetical default scenario and as a result, increases recovery prospects for unsecured debtholders. This is because we assume the revolving credit facility is 85% drawn in our recovery analysis,” S&P said in a press release.

The company’s B+ issuer rating and negative outlook are unchanged, the agency said.

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