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BondWeek is the leading news publication for fixed-income professionals, covering new deals, structures, asset-backed securities, industry and market activity.

BondWeek is the leading news publication for fixed-income professionals, covering new deals, structures, asset-backed securities, industry and market activity.

BondWeek is the leading news publication for fixed-income professionals, covering new deals, structures, asset-backed securities, industry and market activity.

This chart, provided by Citibank/Salomon Smith Barney Inc., tracks bid-ask prices for par credit facilities that trade in the secondary market. It also tracks facility amounts, ratings, pricing and maturities.

Changing the names to protect the innocent, or avoiding the flak of angry bankers? In a recent research report on collateralized loan obligations, UBS Warburg used the example of a retail store chain called Northern to demonstrate how early in the loan market new participants had to learn some painful lessons. After some terrible structuring decisions, the final distribution to bank lenders was a nickel on the dollar for a loan to this company. Next to Northern is a footnote, indicating that the name of the troubled borrower had been changed. Not for Dragnet-style reasons, but to "cut down on the hate mail we receive."

Global Crossing has been trading actively this week in the 201/2-21 context, up about a point from where the paper had come to rest for the last couple of months. Traders said the news that Hutchison Whampoa's Hutchison Telecommunications has decided to bow out of its agreement to acquire Global Crossing alongside partner Singapore Technologies Telemedia has cleared the way for bankruptcy emergence and propped the bank debt. The bank debt is ticking up toward its ultimate take-out value of roughly 23 cents on the dollar, explained one dealer.

Tesoro Petroleum Corp.'s $150 million "B" loan was two times oversubscribed late last week after the $650 million asset-based credit was pitched to investors last Wednesday. The institutional piece is priced at LIBOR plus 31/2% and the $500 million revolver has a spread of 31/4% over LIBOR, according to a trader familiar with the deal. He noted that $300 million of the revolver is expected to be drawn at closing. There is an up-front fee of 25 basis points on the "B" loan and a 100 basis points up-front fee for $35 million commitments to the pro rata. Pro rata tickets for $25 million also receive 75 basis points up-front and $15 million pro rata ticket holders get 50 basis points. The deal also includes a letter of credit sub-limit of $400 million. Bank One and Goldman Sachs are shopping the underwritten deal with FleetBoston Financial and Bank of America also involved, a banker said.

Metal processing company Gibraltar Steel Corp. recently exercised a $50 million expansion feature and received an additional $15 million on its credit in order to help back two recent acquisitions. The company has made 18 strategic acquisitions since 1995 and has used financing besides bank debt to finance the purchases only on three occasions, said Kenneth Houseknecht, director of investor relations.

OMI Corp. recently consolidated, amended and restated two credits into a new $245 million deal in order to take advantage of lower pricing and less restrictive covenants. The international tanker owner and operator felt it was a good time to refinance its previous $310 million credit and $78 million facility because of positive market conditions, said Kathleen Haines, senior v.p., cfo and treasurer.

The bank debt levels for Owens Corning dropped roughly 15 points last week to the 50 level and about $200 million of the paper traded as the market anticipated that a bankruptcy court ruling will cost bank debt holders their claims to certain subsidiary guarantees. The issue at hand is substantive consolidation, which would put all the company's assets into one pot to be shared among the creditors. "The bank debt is supposed to be senior to the bonds. There is a concern that that's not the case," explained one trader. Credit Suisse First Boston is the agent to the company's pre-petition loan. An official from the bank declined to comment.

Rent-A-Center's $400 million "B" loan oversubscribed after lead banks Lehman Brothers and J.P. Morgan pitched the company's $600 million refinancing package to investors last Tuesday. A banker familiar with the deal would not discuss the specific commitment levels, but he confirmed that the "B" piece is being offered at par in the LIBOR plus 21/2-23/4% range. He added that it looks like pricing on the "B" loan could end up closer to the LIBOR plus 21/2% range, but this was not definite. The $80 million letter of credit facility and $120 million revolver are also being pitched to lenders on a three-to-one basis where they commit $3 to the letter of credit facility for every $1 committed to the five-year revolver.

Bank One won the lead role on K2's new credit facility over the incumbent Bank of America by offering the company the best proposal and taking the time to understand the company's sporting goods and recreational products business, said Dudley Mendenhall, senior v.p. of finance for K2. The new credit comprises a $205 million revolver priced at LIBOR plus 21/2% and a $20 million "B" loan with a 4% spread over LIBOR. Both the tranches have a three-year term. A B of A spokeswoman declined to comment.