$400 million of new debt rated
Toronto, August 03, 2021 -- Moody's Investors Service ("Moody's") assigned
a B3 rating to GFL Environmental Inc.'s ("GFL")
proposed new $400 million senior unsecured notes due in 2029.
The B1 corporate family rating, B1-PD probability of default
rating, Ba3 ratings on GFL's existing term loan and senior
secured notes and B3 ratings on its existing senior unsecured notes remain
unchanged. The Speculative-Grade Liquidity Rating also remains
unchanged at SGL-2. The outlook remains stable.
The proceeds from the new senior unsecured notes will be used to partially
fund the acquisition of Terrapure Environmental Ltd., which
GFL committed to acquire in March 2021. The acquisition is expected
to close in October and is valued at approximately C$900 million.
GFL will fund the acquisitions with the net proceeds from the new issuance,
cash on hand (C$200 million) and amounts drawn on its revolving
credit facility. The transaction is expected to increase GFL's
pro forma leverage for FY2021E from 4.8x to 4.9x.
Assignments:
..Issuer: GFL Environmental Inc.
....Senior Unsecured Notes, Assigned
B3 (LGD5)
RATINGS RATIONALE
GFL's B1 CFR is constrained by: 1) its history of aggressive debt-financed
acquisition growth strategy; 2) Moody's expectation that leverage
will remain above 4x in the next 12 to 18 months (about 4.9x pro
forma for new issuance and Terrapure acquisition); 3) the short time
frame between acquisitions which increases the potential for integration
risks and creates opacity of organic growth; and 4) GFL's majority
ownership by private equity firms, which may continue to hinder
deleveraging. However, GFL benefits from: 1) the company's
diversified business model; 2) high recurring revenue supported by
long term contracts; 3) its good market position in the stable Canadian
and US non-hazardous waste industry; 4) EBITDA margins that
compare favorably with those of its investment grade rated industry peers;
and 5) good liquidity.
The stable outlook reflects Moody's view that GFL will sustain leverage
in the high 4x range and continue to maintain its stable margins and good
liquidity in the next 12 to 18 months.
GFL has good liquidity (SGL-2). Sources are approximately
C$650 million compared to C$60 million ($46 million)
of mandatory payments payable under the amortizing notes of the tangible
equity units over the next 12 months. GFL will have limited cash
after the acquisition of Terrapure, approximately C$250 million
of availability under its C$628 million and $40 million
revolving credit facilities, and Moody's expected free cash flow
of about C$400 million over the next 12 months to June 2022.
GFL's revolver is subject to a net leverage covenant, which Moody's
expects will have at least a 40% cushion over the next four quarters.
GFL has limited flexibility to generate liquidity from asset sales as
its assets are encumbered.
Environmental risks considered material are the various regulations and
requirements that GFL is subjected to for the collection, treatment
and disposal of waste. GFL has a long track record of adhering
to the requirements for the proper handling of the waste materials encountered.
The governance considerations we make in GFL's credit profile include
the majority ownership by private equity firms as well as its history
of debt-financed acquisitions and aggressive financial policies,
which may be reversed after the completion of the IPO earlier this year.
We also considered GFL's track record of successfully integrating its
acquisitions for the expansion of its business as well as the management
team's experience in the amalgamation of the businesses.
FACTORS THAT COULD LEAD TO AN UPGRADE OR DOWNGRADE OF THE RATINGS
The ratings could be upgraded if GFL demonstrates consistent and visible
organic revenue growth, maintains good liquidity and sustains adjusted
debt/EBITDA below 4.0x (4.9x pro forma 2022E pro forma for
refinancing and acquisition). The ratings could be downgraded if
liquidity weakens, possibly caused by negative free cash flow,
if there is a material and sustained decline in margins due to challenges
integrating acquisitions or if adjusted Debt/EBITDA is sustained above
5.0x (4.9x pro forma 2022E).
The Ba3 ratings on the existing senior secured notes and term loan are
one notch above the CFR due to the senior debt's first priority
access to substantially all of the company's assets as well as loss absorption
cushion provided by the senior unsecured notes. The B3 ratings
on the new and existing senior unsecured notes are two notches below the
CFR due to the senior unsecured notes' junior position in the debt
capital structure.
The principal methodology used in these ratings was Environmental Services
and Waste Management Companies published in April 2018 and available at
https://www.moodys.com/researchdocumentcontentpage.aspx?docid=PBC_1113573.
Alternatively, please see the Rating Methodologies page on www.moodys.com
for a copy of this methodology.
GFL Environmental Inc., headquartered in Toronto, provides
solid waste and liquid waste collection, treatment and disposal
solutions and soil remediation services to municipal, industrial
and commercial customers in Canada and the US. Pro forma for acquisitions,
annual revenue is approximately C$5.5 billion. GFL
is publicly traded on the Toronto Stock Exchange and New York Stock Exchange.
REGULATORY DISCLOSURES
For further specification of Moody's key rating assumptions and
sensitivity analysis, see the sections Methodology Assumptions and
Sensitivity to Assumptions in the disclosure form. Moody's
Rating Symbols and Definitions can be found at: https://www.moodys.com/researchdocumentcontentpage.aspx?docid=PBC_79004.
For ratings issued on a program, series, category/class of
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same series, category/class of debt, security or pursuant
to a program for which the ratings are derived exclusively from existing
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issued on a support provider, this announcement provides certain
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provides certain regulatory disclosures in relation to the provisional
rating assigned, and in relation to a definitive rating that may
be assigned subsequent to the final issuance of the debt, in each
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and governance (ESG) risks in our credit analysis can be found at http://www.moodys.com/researchdocumentcontentpage.aspx?docid=PBC_1288435.
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3 of the Regulation (EC) No 1060/2009 on Credit Rating Agencies.
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Louis Ko
Vice President - Senior Analyst
Corporate Finance Group
Moody's Canada Inc.
70 York Street
Suite 1400
Toronto, ON M5J 1S9
Canada
JOURNALISTS: 1 212 553 0376
Client Service: 1 212 553 1653
Donald S. Carter, CFA
MD - Corporate Finance
Corporate Finance Group
JOURNALISTS: 1 212 553 0376
Client Service: 1 212 553 1653
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JOURNALISTS: 1 212 553 0376
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