FirstCash Inc. Proposed Senior Unsecured Notes Due 2030 Rated 'BB'

NEW YORK (S&P Global Ratings) Dec. 7, 2021--S&P Global Ratings today said it assigned its 'BB' issue rating to FirstCash Inc.'s (BB/Negative/--) proposed $525 million senior unsecured notes due 2030. The recovery rating on the debt is '3', reflecting our expectation for meaningful recovery (50%) in a simulated default scenario. The company expects to use the gross proceeds from the new notes to finance the cash consideration for the proposed acquisition of American First Finance Inc. (AFF), repay the outstanding debt under the AFF credit facility, repay related fees and costs, and repay a portion of the borrowings under its senior unsecured revolving credit facility. FirstCash is also funding part of the acquisition with equity, which we view favorably because

...December 7, 2021 NEW YORK (S&P Global Ratings) Dec. 7, 2021--S&P Global Ratings today said it assigned its '##' issue rating to FirstCash Inc.'s (##/Negative/--) proposed $525 million senior unsecured notes due 2030. The recovery rating on the debt is '3', reflecting our expectation for meaningful recovery (50%) in a simulated default scenario. The company expects to use the gross proceeds from the new notes to finance the cash consideration for the proposed acquisition of American First Finance Inc. (AFF), repay the outstanding debt under the AFF credit facility, repay related fees and costs, and repay a portion of the borrowings under its senior unsecured revolving credit facility. FirstCash is also funding part of the acquisition with equity, which we view favorably because it mitigates the impact on leverage. Pro forma for the transaction, we expect debt to EBITDA to approach 4x. However, we forecast leverage to decline toward 3.0x over the next 12-18 months through solid revenue growth...

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