Credit Suisse First Boston and Salomon Smith Barney are on the road with a $250 million senior note offering for NMHG Holding Co., a holding company for NACCO Industries, in addition to the $175 million three-year revolver launched at the start of the month. The agencies have given the lift-truck company loan a BB-/B1 rating, according to a banker. Pricing on the credit is LIBOR plus 3%, with a 1/2% upfront fee. The company is refinancing existing debt, he said. CSFB is the syndication agent and Salomon is the administration agent on the loan. Price talk on the notes could not be ascertained and Ira Gamm, manager of investor relations for the company, declined comment until the note offering is complete.
The forklift truck industry is cyclical and volatile and demand for trucks has been weak during the past year, according to Joel Levington, an analyst at Standard & Poor's. Additionally, volume is not expected to materially improve until 2003. The company has a temporarily stretched balance sheet, with total debt to EBITDA at about 6 times. As the economy improves though this is expected to go to around 3 times.