New York, January 13, 2021 -- Moody's Investors Service today assigned a Caa1 rating to Mohegan
Tribal Gaming Authority's ("MTGA") proposed $1.175
billion 2nd lien notes due 2026. Moody's also assigned a
B1 rating to the company's proposed amended and extended $263
million first lien revolver.
At the same time, MTGA's Caa2 Corporate Family Rating,
Caa2-PD Probability of Default Rating, and Ca senior unsecured
notes rating were placed on review for upgrade pending completion of the
proposed refinancing. MTGA's Speculative Grade Liquidity
rating is unchanged at SGL-4 indicating weak liquidity due to MTGA's
reliance on external capital to address the October 2021 maturities.
Proceeds from the proposed offerings along with $49 million of
cash will be used to refinance MTGA's $232 million term loan
A and $814 million term loan B in full at par, along with
$55 million of other debt. The proceeds will also be used
to repay $100 million of the $197 million of borrowings
currently outstanding under the company's existing $250 million
revolving credit facility. The $97 million of remaining
revolver borrowings outstanding will carry over to the amended and extended
revolver. The Caa1 ratings on the existing revolver, term
loan A and term loan B are not affected and Moody's expects to withdraw
the ratings on those facilities upon completion of the transaction.
The Caa1 assigned to the proposed 2nd lien notes and B1 assigned to the
amended and extended revolver are both subject to the transaction being
completed as planned and the Corporate Family Rating being raised to Caa1
from Caa2.
The review will focus on MTGA's ability to complete the proposed
transaction and the final terms. Upon completion of the deal,
Moody's expects to upgrade MTGA's Corporate Family Rating to Caa1,
Probability of Default Rating to Caa1-PD, and senior unsecured
notes rating to Caa3. Moody's also expects to upgrade MTGA's
Speculative Grade Liquidity rating.
On Review for Upgrade:
..Issuer: Mohegan Tribal Gaming Authority
.... Probability of Default Rating,
Placed on Review for Possible Upgrade, currently Caa2-PD
.... Corporate Family Rating, Placed
on Review for Possible Upgrade, currently Caa2
....Senior Unsecured Regular Bond/Debenture,
Placed on Review for Possible Upgrade, currently Ca (LGD6)
Assignments:
..Issuer: Mohegan Tribal Gaming Authority
....Senior Secured Revolving Credit Facility,
Assigned B1 (LGD1)
....Senior Secured 2nd Lien Regular Bond/Debenture,
Assigned Caa1 (LGD6)
Outlook Actions:
..Issuer: Mohegan Tribal Gaming Authority
....Outlook, Changed To Rating Under
Review From Negative
RATINGS RATIONALE
Although the transaction will be largely neutral in terms of debt and
leverage, the review for upgrade and the expected CFR upgrade to
Caa1 reflects that the refinancing will have a meaningful positive impact
on MTGA's liquidity in that it will alleviate near-term maturity
concerns and eliminate scheduled debt amortization requirements related
to the existing term loans. MTGA's existing revolver and
term loan A mature this coming October. The company's term
loan A amortizes in quarterly installments at a rate of $33.4
million per annum with the balance payable at maturity this October,
while its term loan B amortizes in quarterly installments at a rate of
$8.7 million per annum with the balance payable at maturity
in October 2023.
The completion of the proposed refinancing as currently planned,
along with Moody's view that MTGA will continue to generate positive
free cash flow after interest, cash distributions and capital expenditures
despite the continued challenges related to the coronavirus pandemic,
will help the company circumvent a potential default later this year as
well as improve the company's ability to manage through the coronavirus
challenges and reduce leverage over time.
The coronavirus outbreak, the government measures put in place to
contain it, and the weak global economic outlook continue to disrupt
economies and credit markets across sectors and regions. Moody's
analysis has considered the effect on the performance of MTGA from the
current weak US economic activity and a gradual recovery for the coming
year. Although an economic recovery is underway, it is tenuous,
and its continuation will be closely tied to containment of the virus.
As a result, the degree of uncertainty around our forecasts is unusually
high. Moody's regards the coronavirus outbreak as a social risk
under our ESG framework, given the substantial implications for
public health and safety. The gaming sector has been one of the
sectors most significantly affected by the shock given its sensitivity
to consumer demand and sentiment. More specifically, the
weaknesses in MTGA's credit profile, including its exposure to travel
disruptions and discretionary consumer spending have left it vulnerable
to shifts in market sentiment in these unprecedented operating conditions
and MTGA remains vulnerable to the outbreak continuing to spread.
Financial policies are aggressive including use of debt to fund development,
and regular cash distributions to the Tribe. These factors lead
to high leverage and weak free cash flow.
FACTORS THAT COULD LEAD TO AN UPGRADE OR DOWNGRADE OF THE RATINGS
MTGA's ratings could be upgraded if the company completes the proposed
refinancing transaction as planned. Conversely, MTGA's
ratings could be downgraded if the company is unable to successfully complete
the proposed refinancing. Ratings could also be downgraded if Moody's
anticipates renewed weakness in MTGA's earnings or cash flow generation
because of competition, actions to contain the spread of the virus
including but not limited to renewed facility closings, or reductions
in discretionary consumer spending.
MTGA's owns and operates Mohegan Sun, a gaming and entertainment
complex in Uncasville, Connecticut, and Mohegan Sun Pocono,
a gaming and entertainment facility offering slot machines and harness
racing in Plains Township, Pennsylvania. MTGA's restricted
group also receives fees for the management of several nonaffiliated casinos.
MTGA is owned by the Mohegan Tribe of Indians of Connecticut, a
federally recognized Native American tribe. MTGA's restricted
group generated net revenue of about $896 million for the fiscal
year ended 30-September 2020.
The principal methodology used in these ratings was Gaming Methodology
published in October 2020 and available at https://www.moodys.com/researchdocumentcontentpage.aspx?docid=PBC_1244702.
Alternatively, please see the Rating Methodologies page on www.moodys.com
for a copy of this methodology.
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.
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Keith Foley
Senior Vice President
Corporate Finance Group
Moody's Investors Service, Inc.
250 Greenwich Street
New York, NY 10007
U.S.A.
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John E. Puchalla, CFA
Associate Managing Director
Corporate Finance Group
JOURNALISTS: 1 212 553 0376
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