NOTE 10 – LONG-TERM DEBT

A summary of long-term debt is as follows:

LONG-TERM DEBT

(dollars in thousands)


	Original
	Date	Interest			Balances at February 28,
	Borrowed	Rates		Matures	2015		2014
$37.61 million unsecured loan with the Mississippi Business Finance Corporation, interest is set and payable quarterly at a Base Rate, plus a margin of up to 1.00%, or applicable LIBOR plus a margin of up to 2.00%, as determined by the interest rate elected and the Leverage Ratio. Loan subject to holder's call on or after March 1, 2018. Loan can be prepaid without penalty. (1)	03/13	1.92	%	03/23	$	35,707	$	37,607
$75 million unsecured floating interest rate Senior Notes. Interest set and payable quarterly at three month LIBOR plus 90 basis points. Principal was due and paid on June 30, 2014. (2)	06/04	6.01	%	06/14		-		75,000
$100 million unsecured Senior Notes payable at a fixed interest rate of 3.90%. Interest payable semi-annually. Annual principal payments of $20 million began in January 2014. Prepayment of notes are subject to a "make whole" premium.	01/11	3.90	%	01/18		60,000		80,000
Credit Agreement. (3)	01/15	Floating		01/20		337,500		-
Total long-term debt						433,207		192,607
Less current maturities of long-term debt						(21,900)		(96,900)
Long-term debt, excluding current maturities					$	411,307	$	95,707

(1)

A $1.90 million principal payment was made on March 1, 2014. The remaining loan balance is payable as follows: $1.90 million on March 1 in each of 2015, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, and 2022; $3.80 million on March 1, 2016; $5.70 million on March 1, 2017; and $14.81 million on March 1, 2023. Any remaining outstanding principal and interest is due upon maturity on March 1, 2023.

(2)

Floating interest rates were hedged with an interest rate swap to effectively fix interest rates while the Senior Notes were outstanding. Additional information regarding the swap is provided in Notes (12) and (13) to these consolidated financial statements.

(3)

See Note (7) to these consolidated financial statements for further information regarding the terms of the Credit Agreement.

The fair market value of the fixed rate debt at February 28, 2015 computed using a discounted cash flow analysis was $62.01 million compared to the $60 million book value and represents a Level 2 liability. Our other long-term debt has floating interest rates, and its book value approximates its fair value at February 28, 2015.

All of our debt is unconditionally guaranteed, on a joint and several basis, by the Company and certain of its subsidiaries. Our debt agreements require the maintenance of certain financial covenants, including maximum leverage ratios, minimum interest coverage ratios and minimum consolidated net worth levels (as each of these terms is defined in the various agreements). Our debt agreements also contain other customary covenants, including, among other things, covenants restricting or limiting the Company, except under certain conditions set forth therein, from (1) incurring debt, (2) incurring liens on its properties, (3) making certain types of investments, (4) selling certain assets or making other fundamental changes relating to mergers and consolidations, and (5) repurchasing shares of our common stock and paying dividends.

As of February 28, 2015, our debt agreements effectively limited our ability to incur more than $296.82 million of additional debt from all sources, including our Credit Agreement. We were in compliance with the terms of these agreements as of February 28, 2015.

The following table contains a summary of the components of our interest expense for the periods covered by our consolidated statements of income:

INTEREST EXPENSE

(in thousands)


	Fiscal Years Ended the Last Day of February,
	2015		2014		2013
Interest and commitment fees	$	11,958	$	5,610	$	8,858
Deferred finance costs		1,846		911		903
Interest rate swap settlements, net		1,218		3,672		3,584
Total interest expense	$	15,022	$	10,193	$	13,345