The bank debt Maxim Crane Works, formerly Anthony Crane Rental, has continued to creep upward over the past month as the company pursues a restructuring. Traders said the paper is now trading in the 78-80 range up from the 75 1/2-77 context where it was quoted last month. Market buzz indicates that a potential restructuring will likely give lenders a portion of restated bank debt and equity in a reorganized company.
There was a rumor that Maxim Crane was seeking a pre-packaged bankruptcy plan by March 15, but no such plan has emerged. No updated timeline could be obtained. The company was acquired by Bain Capital in 1998. Officials from Bain Capital did not comment by press time. Officials at CIBC World Markets, which is advising Maxim Crane, declined comment. Joe Vaccarello, Maxim Crane's cfo, did not return calls.
Meanwhile, a $11 million piece of bank debt for The Spiegel Group traded in an auction this week. The piece was sold around the 71-73 range, according to loan market participants. The trade marks an uptick in the name, which traded in the high 50s earlier this year (LMW, 3/1). Spiegel is currently wading through bankruptcy and is working with its financial advisor, Miller Buckfire Lewis Ying & Co., to sell some of its businesses. One dealer suggested that investors were becoming more comfortable with valuations applied to those businesses.
The company has already reached an agreement to sell substantially all of the assets of Newport News for $25 million in cash and the assumption of certain liabilities to Pangea Holdings Limited. If there are competing bids for the business, an auction will be held on May 11. The company is in negotiations with a party interested in buying its Spiegel Catalog business. A Spiegel spokeswoman would not disclose the identity of the party. The company's Eddie Bauer business is also on the block. But the spokeswoman said the company is still in the early stages of the process and had not yet identified a stalking horse bidder.