Live Nation Prices $730 Million And €600 Million Of Notes To Pay Off 6.500% Debt
Live Nation says swaps on its dollar notes put the blended rate at about 5.89%, against 6.500% on the 2027 notes it will redeem.
Live Nation Entertainment priced $730 million of 7.125% senior notes and €600 million of 6.125% senior notes, both due 2032, according to an 8-K covering events on Wednesday. The money is meant to retire its 6.500% senior secured notes due 2027 in full.
What the 8-K says
Both tranches were issued at 100.000% of face value. The sale is a private placement, offered only to qualified institutional buyers and, outside the United States, to non-U.S. persons. The offering is expected to close October 15, subject to customary conditions.
The company and its domestic restricted subsidiaries that guarantee its senior secured credit facilities will guarantee the notes.
Proceeds are earmarked to redeem the 2027 notes, pay offering fees and expenses, and for general corporate purposes, which may include repaying or repurchasing other debt.
What it changes for the debt
In connection with the deal, Live Nation entered into cross-currency swaps that effectively convert the $730 million of dollar notes into about €652 million of euro-denominated fixed-rate obligations through October 2031. The filing puts the resulting blended rate at about 5.89% across the notes, compared with 6.500% on the 2027 notes being redeemed.
The nominal coupons are higher on the dollar notes (7.125%) than the euro notes (6.125%); the blended figure reflects the swaps.
According to Music Business Worldwide, the company launched the deal Tuesday aiming for $840 million of dollar notes and €500 million of euro notes. At pricing it cut the dollar tranche by $110 million and raised the euro tranche by €100 million. The notes being redeemed date to May 2020, when Live Nation issued $1.2 billion of them.
LYV shares closed at $170.33 at Friday's close, down about 0.6% for the session, before the filing was accepted at 5:01 p.m. ET (market data).
What to watch
The deal is scheduled to close October 15, when the redemption of the 2027 notes is to be funded. The company also carries antitrust exposure: it booked a $450 million legal accrual in the first quarter after a jury found it illegally monopolized primary ticketing, and a ruling on the Justice Department settlement under the Tunney Act is pending.
The next date that matters is October 15, the scheduled closing, when the offering is to fund the full redemption of the 6.500% notes.
Sources
- 8-K Filing — Live Nation Entertainment, Inc. (LYV) — SEC EDGAR
- Exhibit ex991prpricingofprivatesen.htm — Live Nation Entertainment, Inc. 8-K exhibit — SEC EDGAR
- Live Nation to sell $730M and €600M of bonds to refinance its 6.5% notes due 2027 - Music Business Worldwide — musicbusinessworldwide.com
- Live Nation Entertainment Announces Launch of Private Senior Notes Offering – Company Announcement - FT.com — Financial Times
- Live Nation Entertainment Announces Pricing of Private Senior Notes Offering — prnewswire.com
