Dunkin' Brands' $850 million term loan "B" broke in the secondary market at 100 3/8 and traded steadily in that context. A trader estimated about $100 million of paper changed hands on the break. JPMorgan and Lehman Brothers lead the deal, which is priced at LIBOR 2 1/2% and also consists of a $150 million revolver. The deal backs the $4.425 billion acquisition of Dunkin' Brands by private equity firms, The Carlyle Group, Bain Capital Partners and Thomas H. Lee Partners. The acquisition was completed last week.
The term loan is structured as a seven-year tranche, but may get taken out with a securitization in three to four months (CIN, 2/17). The securitization financing will also be used to repay senior unsecured and senior subordinated loans. Despite the short-term play investors can expect from the deal, a trader said there was an even number of buyers and sellers on the credit.
Moody's Investors Service assigned a B3 corporate family rating to Dunkin' Brands, which reflects the weak credit profile of the company because of the large amount of debt it has from the acquisition. Dunkin' Brand's debt will increase to $1.5 billion from the transaction, according to the ratings agency. A Dunkin' Brands spokeswoman did not return calls.