Germany-Based Automotive Supplier FTE Ratings Raised To 'BBB' And Then Withdrawn At The Company's Request
- On Oct. 31, 2017, Valeo S.A. completed the acquisition of FTE Automotive group (FTE), a Germany-based auto parts manufacturer.
- Valeo has fully repaid FTE's €263 million senior secured notes and has cancelled FTE's €42.5 million revolving credit facility.
- We are raising our corporate credit rating on FTE to 'BBB' from 'B', and removing the rating from CreditWatch with positive implications.
- We are withdrawing all of our ratings on FTE at the company's request.
PARIS (S&P Global Ratings) Nov. 23, 2017--S&P Global Ratings today raised its long-term corporate credit rating on Germany-based FTE Verwaltungs GmbH (FTE), the holding company of FTE Automotive group, to 'BBB' from 'B'. At the same time, we removed the rating from CreditWatch with positive implications, where we placed it on Oct. 19, 2017 (see "Germany-Based Automotive Supplier FTE On Watch Positive Pending Acquisition By France-Based Valeo" published on RatingsDirect). We subsequently withdrew the long-term rating at the company's request. The outlook was positive at the time of the withdrawal. Finally, we withdrew our issue and recovery ratings on FTE's senior secured facilities following full repayment of the facilities. On Oct. 31, 2017, French auto supplier Valeo S.A. (BBB/Positive/A-2) acquired auto parts manufacturer FTE and also repaid and cancelled FTE's existing outstanding debt facilities. As a result, there are no outstanding instruments at FTE. Before the withdrawal, we raised our long-term corporate credit rating on FTE to 'BBB' to align it with the long-term rating on the owner, Valeo S.A., reflecting our view of FTE as a core subsidiary of Valeo. At the time of the withdrawal, the outlook was positive, reflecting the positive outlook on Valeo.
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