...TORONTO (S&P Global Ratings) April 12, 2018--S&P Global Ratings today said it assigned its '###-' issue-level rating to Fairfax Financial Holdings Ltd.'s (TSX: FFH) issuance of $600 million 4.85% senior unsecured notes due 2028. The company intends to use the net proceeds from this offering to refinance or repay outstanding debt or other corporate obligations of FFH or its subsidiaries and for general corporate purposes. We do not expect this debt issuance to materially increase its financial leverage and also expect the coverage ratio to somewhat improve on a pro forma basis considering the lower coupon compared to the debt that is likely to be refinanced or repaid. As of Dec. 31, 2017, FFH's consolidated financial leverage was approximately 35% and fixed charge coverage was 0.5x. For full year 2017, FFH reported a pretax operating income of $172 million as compared with $1,073 million in the same period for 2016, largely due to catastrophe losses in second-half 2017, which affected its...
