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Texas-based Alamosa PCS, the largest of the Sprint affiliates, is working to renegotiate the covenants on its $305 million senior secured credit facility, and may face higher pricing if it cannot renegotiate them, according to an analyst who is in discussions with the wireless company. Alamosa violated its first quarter covenant on the loan when it reported an EBITDA deficit of $16.7 million. Under the covenant, Alamosa could not exceed an EBITDA deficit of $9.7 million. The loan was priced at LIBOR plus 4%, and Alamosa could face as much as a 25 basis point penalty if it exceeds the EBITDA deficit for the second quarter, according to analysts. The syndicate gave the company a pass on the violation for the first quarter, but analysts contend that if it happens again, Alamosa will be penalized. Kendall Cowen, cfo at Alamosa, did not return calls by press time. Lead arrangers are TD Securities and First Union.

A recent company announcement that it may default on its credit facility prompted Arch Wireless' debt to take a 20 point drop last week and finally land in the mid-20s, dealers reported. There was a small trade on Tuesday at 26, and dealers said roughly $10 million total has traded. Buyers and sellers could not be ascertained, but one dealer said levels have dropped so quickly because "there are no buyers." Levels were in the 50 range just two weeks ago. "It's getting crushed like a grape," a trader marveled. Another market watcher called the plummet "really ugly." When asked why Arch's debt has traded down so quickly, he replied, "How many people do you see using pagers?" The company has a $600 million deal led by Bank of New York, Barclays Capital, Royal Bank of Canada and TD Securities that breaks down into three tranches. Pricing is LIBOR plus 3 1/2 %. Officials at all banks either declined comment or did not return calls. Calls to Roy Pottle, cfo at Arch, were not returned by press time.

Joy Global, the new company name for Harnischfeger Industries, which has emerged from bankruptcy protection, has closed on a new $350 million four-and-a-half-year senior secured credit facility withDeutsche Bank. Kenneth Hiltz, senior v.p. and cfo of the Milwaukee, Wisconsin-based company, said the facility will be used to fund emergence costs from bankruptcy, to refinance the debtor-in-possession facility and for general corporate purposes.

Market players are expressing concerns over Sumitomo Bank's proposed new $205 million refinancing for the Detroit Tigers. "The Tigers are not doing that well, attendance is very low and at LIBOR plus 17/ 8%, the deal is woefully underpriced," said a banker following the loan. Calls to officials at Sumitomo and the Tigers were not returned. Other lenders on the existing $145 million credit are Société Générale, Provident Bank, First Chicago NDB, First of America Bank, Standard Federal Bank and Michigan National Bank. Calls were either not returned or officials declined to comment at the banks.

Barclays and J.P. Morgan are launching a $100 million credit for Itasca, Ill.-based PrimeCo Personal Communications, the Chicago-based service provider that is being acquired by Clarity Partners and Pacific Capital Group. Green Leaf Ridge Company, J.P. Morgan Capital Partners and Tregan Partners are in on the acquisition, which is being primarily funded by equity. Calls to officials at the buyout shops were referred to a spokeswoman for Clarity, who referred questions to Michael Hannon at J.P. Morgan Partners. Hannon was unavailable by press time. Calls to officials at Barclays and J.P. Morgan were not returned.

C-Bass responded to market enthusiasm by upsizing its credit line to $550 million in late June, replacing a $390 million line that was due to expire. Eric Freeman, senior v.p. and treasurer, said the company sought to replace its line with a same-sized deal but that it was oversubscribed by $160 million. "We were very pleasantly surprised," he said, noting the syndication climate in a weaker economy. C-Bass, based in New York City, secures and services credit-sensitive residential mortgages. "We seek to restore performing status on the loans rather than foreclose them," he said. "Foreclosure is a last resort."

Charter Communications' debt softened to 99 3/8 in a $2.5 million trade last week. Dealers say rumors of more cable paper pushed levels down. It could not be determined which firm traded the piece. Dealers believe another cable deal is in the pipeline, although specifics could not be determined. "It's either Charter's doing a new deal or another cable company," a trader speculated, regarding the expectation that an increase in cable paper may be on the horizon. Charter, a cable systems operator with more than six million subscribers, is based in St. Louis, Mo. Another dealer noted that Comcast's move to buy AT&T may also flood the market with additional cable paper.

A $15 million piece of Comdisco's bank debt traded on Tuesday in an auction. Deutsche Bank was rumored to be the buyer, and Citibank was reportedly the seller. Officials at both shops would not comment. Exact levels could not be ascertained, although the market for the credit is said to be 80-81. Comdisco, based in Rosemont, Ill., is a technology services provider. A company spokeswoman declined to comment. "We don't comment on market rumors," she said.

Credit Suisse First Boston and National City Bank held a bank meeting July 25 for Cleveland-based chemical company Ferro's $900 million credit. The loan backs the $540 million acquisition of dmc2, OM Group's electronics materials, ceramics and pigments operations. It also refinances debt. The package consists of a $200 million, 364-day revolver that carries a 3/8% commitment fee, a $400 million, five-year revolver that has a 1/2% commitment fee and a $300 million six-month bridge loan. The out-of-the-box spread is LIBOR plus 2%. CSFB is the syndication agent and National City has the administration role. The credit is rated BBB-/Baa3. Officials at CSFB and National City did not return calls.

Responding to difficult times in the pro rata market, Deutsche Bank came to investors last week with an innovative $150 million synthetic term-loan, functioning as a fund to back letters of credit for Premcor Refining Group, but structured to bring institutional dollars into the $500 million pro rata part of the deal. The tranche is the first large-scale synthetic to meet letter-of-credit requirements. Jeff Ogden, managing director at Deutsche Bank, explained "the structure is fairly unique to Premcor, which has a large letter of credit need, but could be used for other companies with significant letter of credit requirements."

The two major ratings agencies have seen a sharp spike in employment inquiries in recent weeks, with many coming from the biggest users of their information: The New York dealer community. Brian Clarkson, asset finance group chief at Moody's Investors Service, says he is getting more resumes and calls than ever before from Street bankers seeking ratings analyst positions. Clarkson received 500 resumes recently from an ad Moody's placed in the Wall Street Journal, 50 of which came from people at different levels of investment banking. "We used to get only a few inquiries from bankers, but with the recent downsizing seen on the Street, we get more and more of these calls everyday," notes Clarkson. "This is a higher than usual ratio," he notes.

Vertical Crossings, the New York-based structured-product electronic trading network, has added John "Chip" Montgomery, the former director and national sales manager of high-grade products at SG Cowen. Montgomery left Cowen in 2000 and joined wireless trading application provider SmartServ Online, where he was in charge of global sales and business development. He was unavailable for comment, and a spokesman for SmartServ did not return a call seeking comment. His position is newly created, and he will be responsible for expanding VCross' institutional customer base, either via facilitating telephone-assisted trading, or selling the electronic trading platform itself, according to Steve Beck, executive v.p. Montgomery, who will be a v.p., will be based in New York and report to Pat Downes, president, and Beck.