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Long-Term Borrowings
6 Months Ended
Mar. 25, 2017
Debt Disclosure [Abstract]  
Long Term Borrowings

7.

Long-Term Borrowings

Long-term borrowings consist of the following:

 

 

 

As of

 

 

 

March 25,

 

 

September 24,

 

 

 

2017

 

 

2016 (1)

 

7.375% senior notes, due August 1, 2021, including

   unamortized premium of $-0- and $16,992, respectively

 

$

 

 

$

363,172

 

5.5% senior notes, due June 1, 2024

 

 

525,000

 

 

 

525,000

 

5.75% senior notes, due March 1, 2025

 

 

250,000

 

 

 

250,000

 

5.875% senior notes due March 1, 2027

 

 

350,000

 

 

 

 

Revolving Credit Facility, due March 3, 2021

 

 

129,845

 

 

 

100,000

 

Less: unamortized debt issuance costs

 

 

(16,490

)

 

 

(13,670

)

 

 

$

1,238,355

 

 

$

1,224,502

 

(1)

Long-term borrowings as of September 24, 2016 reflect the retrospective impact from the adoption of new accounting guidance regarding the balance sheet classification of debt issuance costs (See Note 2).

Senior Notes

2021 Senior Notes

On August 1, 2012, the Partnership and its 100%-owned subsidiary, Suburban Energy Finance Corp., issued $503,443 in aggregate principal amount of unregistered 7.375% senior notes due August 1, 2021 (the “2021 Senior Notes”) in a private placement in conjunction with the acquisition of the retail propane assets and operations of Inergy, L.P.  The 2021 Senior Notes require semi-annual interest payments in February and August.  On December 19, 2012, the Partnership completed an offer to exchange its then-outstanding unregistered 7.375% senior notes due 2021 for an equal principal amount of 7.375% senior notes due 2021 that have been registered under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended.

On August 2, 2013, the Partnership repurchased, pursuant to an optional redemption, $133,400 of its 2021 Senior Notes using net proceeds from a public offering of Common Units and net proceeds from the underwriters’ exercise of their over-allotment option to purchase additional Common Units.  In addition, on August 6, 2013, the Partnership repurchased $23,863 of 2021 Senior Notes in a private transaction using cash on hand.  

On February 14, 2017, the Partnership repurchased and satisfied and discharged all of its previously outstanding 2021 Senior Notes with net proceeds from the issuance of the 2027 Senior Notes, as defined below, and borrowings under the Revolving Credit Facility, also as defined below, pursuant to a tender offer and redemption.  In connection with this tender offer and redemption, the Partnership recognized a loss on the extinguishment of debt of $1,567 consisting of $15,078 for the redemption premium and related fees, as well as the write-off of $2,272 and ($15,783) in unamortized debt origination costs and unamortized premium, respectively.

2024 Senior Notes

On May 27, 2014, the Partnership and its 100%-owned subsidiary, Suburban Energy Finance Corp., completed a public offering of $525,000 in aggregate principal amount of 5.5% senior notes due June 1, 2024 (the “2024 Senior Notes”).  The 2024 Senior Notes were issued at 100% of the principal amount and require semi-annual interest payments in June and December.  The net proceeds from the issuance of the 2024 Senior Notes, along with cash on hand, were used to repurchase and satisfy and discharge all of its then-outstanding 7.5% senior notes due in 2018.

2025 Senior Notes

On February 25, 2015, the Partnership and its 100%-owned subsidiary, Suburban Energy Finance Corp., completed a public offering of $250,000 in aggregate principal amount of 5.75% senior notes due March 1, 2025 (the “2025 Senior Notes”).  The 2025 Senior Notes were issued at 100% of the principal amount and require semi-annual interest payments in March and September.  The net proceeds from the issuance of the 2025 Senior Notes, along with cash on hand, were used to repurchase and satisfy and discharge all of its then-outstanding 7.375% senior notes due in 2020.  

2027 Senior Notes

On February 14, 2017, the Partnership and its 100%-owned subsidiary, Suburban Energy Finance Corp., completed a public offering of $350,000 in aggregate principal amount of 5.875% senior notes due March 1, 2027 (the “2027 Senior Notes”).  The 2027 Senior Notes were issued at 100% of the principal amount and require semi-annual interest payments in March and September.  The net proceeds from the issuance of the 2027 Senior Notes, along with borrowings under the Revolving Credit Facility, were used to repurchase and satisfy and discharge all of the 2021 Senior Notes.

The Partnership’s obligations under the 2024 Senior Notes, 2025 Senior Notes and 2027 Senior Notes (collectively, the “Senior Notes”) are unsecured and rank senior in right of payment to any future subordinated indebtedness and equally in right of payment with any future senior indebtedness.  The Senior Notes are structurally subordinated to, which means they rank effectively behind, any debt and other liabilities of the Operating Partnership.  The Partnership is permitted to redeem some or all of the Senior Notes at redemption prices and times as specified in the indentures governing the Senior Notes.  The Senior Notes each have a change of control provision that would require the Partnership to offer to repurchase the notes at 101% of the principal amount repurchased, if a change of control, as defined in the indenture, occurs and is followed by a rating decline (a decrease in the rating of the notes by either Moody’s Investors Service or Standard and Poor’s Rating Group by one or more gradations) within 90 days of the consummation of the change of control.

Credit Agreement.  The Operating Partnership has an amended and restated credit agreement, dated March 3, 2016 (the “Amended Credit Agreement”) that provides for a five-year $500,000 revolving credit facility (the “Revolving Credit Facility”) with a maturity date of March 3, 2021, of which $129,845 and $100,000 was outstanding as of March 25, 2017 and September 24, 2016, respectively.  Borrowings under the Revolving Credit Facility may be used for general corporate purposes, including working capital, capital expenditures and acquisitions.  The Operating Partnership has the right to prepay any borrowings under the Revolving Credit Facility, in whole or in part, without penalty at any time prior to maturity.  In connection with the March 3, 2016 amendment and restatement, the Partnership recognized a non-cash charge of $292 during the second quarter of fiscal 2016 to write-off a portion of unamortized debt origination costs of the previous credit agreement.  

The Amended Credit Agreement contains certain restrictive and affirmative covenants applicable to the Operating Partnership, its subsidiaries and the Partnership, as well as certain financial covenants, including (a) requiring the Partnership’s consolidated interest coverage ratio, as defined in the Amended Credit Agreement, to be not less than 2.5 to 1.0 as of the end of any fiscal quarter, (b) prohibiting the total consolidated leverage ratio, as defined in the Amended Credit Agreement, of the Partnership from being greater than 5.5 to 1.0 as of the end of any fiscal quarter and (c) prohibiting the senior secured unconsolidated leverage ratio, as defined in the Amended Credit Agreement, of the Operating Partnership from being greater than 3.0 to 1.0 as of the end of any fiscal quarter.  

On May 1, 2017, the Operating Partnership secured an amendment to the Amended Credit Agreement that provides for certain modifications to the terms of the Amended Credit Agreement.  See Note 16, “Subsequent Event.”

The Partnership and certain subsidiaries of the Operating Partnership act as guarantors with respect to the obligations of the Operating Partnership under the Amended Credit Agreement pursuant to the terms and conditions set forth therein.  The obligations under the Amended Credit Agreement are secured by liens on substantially all of the personal property of the Partnership, the Operating Partnership and their subsidiaries, as well as mortgages on certain real property.

Borrowings under the Revolving Credit Facility bear interest at prevailing interest rates based upon, at the Operating Partnership’s option, LIBOR plus the applicable margin, or the base rate, defined as the higher of the Federal Funds Rate plus ½ of 1%, the administrative agent bank’s prime rate, or LIBOR plus 1%, plus in each case the applicable margin.  The applicable margin is dependent upon the Partnership’s ratio of total debt to EBITDA on a consolidated basis, as defined in the Amended Credit Agreement.  As of March 25, 2017, the interest rate for the Revolving Credit Facility was approximately 3.5%.  The interest rate and the applicable margin will be reset following the end of each calendar quarter.

In connection with the previous credit agreement, the Operating Partnership entered into an interest rate swap agreement with a notional amount of $100,000, an effective date of June 25, 2013 and a termination date of January 5, 2017.  Under this interest rate swap agreement, the Operating Partnership paid a fixed interest rate of 1.63% to the issuing lender on the notional principal amount outstanding, and the issuing lender paid the Operating Partnership a floating rate, namely LIBOR, on the same notional principal amount.  The interest rate swap was designated as a cash flow hedge.  The Partnership did not enter into a new interest rate swap agreement upon termination.

As of March 25, 2017, the Partnership had standby letters of credit issued under the Revolving Credit Facility of $43,256 which expire periodically through April 3, 2018.

The Amended Credit Agreement and the Senior Notes both contain various restrictive and affirmative covenants applicable to the Operating Partnership, its subsidiaries and the Partnership, respectively, including (i) restrictions on the incurrence of additional indebtedness, and (ii) restrictions on certain liens, investments, guarantees, loans, advances, payments, mergers, consolidations, distributions, sales of assets and other transactions.  Under the Amended Credit Agreement and the indentures governing the Senior Notes, the Operating Partnership and the Partnership are generally permitted to make cash distributions equal to available cash, as defined, as of the end of the immediately preceding quarter, if no event of default exists or would exist upon making such distributions, and with respect to the indentures governing the Senior Notes, the Partnership’s consolidated fixed charge coverage ratio, as defined, is greater than 1.75 to 1.  The Partnership and the Operating Partnership were in compliance with all covenants and terms of the Senior Notes and the Amended Credit Agreement as of March 25, 2017.

The aggregate amounts of long-term debt maturities subsequent to March 25, 2017 are as follows: fiscal 2017: $-0-; fiscal 2018: $-0-; fiscal 2019: $-0-; fiscal 2020: $-0-; fiscal 2021: $129,845; and thereafter: $1,125,000.