A rumored buyout of Wyndham International by the British company Bass Hotels & Resorts was said to push up Wyndham's term loan "B" up around 98 7/8 to 99 1/2, while the revolver traded at 99 1/4 to 7/8. One dealer said as much as $20 million of the name may have changed hands. Calls to the company were not returned. A company spokeswoman for Bass Hotels did not return calls.
Dealers, while all acknowledging the rumor, differ on the likelihood of it happening. "The buyout is a rumor as far as I can tell, but nonetheless the paper has traded up two points on the news," a trader observed. Another dealer believes the possibility is quite real. "I think it's better than a rumor. The chances of a deal in some way, shape or form happening is better than 50%," he noted, adding that Bass "has money to spend."
Wyndham "B" traded in the 98 1/4 range earlier this year, with dealers attributing the uptick to everything from a rumored bond deal to credit quality. Wyndham has a $1.3 billion deal that breaks down into three tranches. Pricing is LIBOR plus 3 3/4 %. J.P. Morgan Chase leads the deal, according to Capital DATA Loanware.