Abengoa Bonds Fall to Records After Report HSBC Withdrew Support
Abengoa SA’s bonds fell to records after a report that HSBC Holdings Plc withdrew support for the company’s planned capital increase.
By Katie Linsell - 21 set 2015, 13:10:55
Abengoa SA’s bonds fell to records after a report that HSBC Holdings Plc withdrew support for the company’s planned capital increase.
The Spanish renewable energy company’s 500 million euros ($564 million) of 6 percent notes due March 2021 fell 12.6 cents on the euro to 27.7 cents, pushing the yield to 38.5 percent, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Credit-default swaps insuring Abengoa’s debt signal a 93 percent probability of default within five years, CMA prices show.
HSBC retracted an agreement to back 120 million euros of the Seville-based company’s 650 million-euro share sale last week, Spanish news website El Confidencial reported today without saying where it got the information. HSBC, Banco Santander SA and Credit Agricole SA had agreed to be standby underwriters of the increase last month, according to people familiar with the matter.
Abengoa declined to comment on El Confidencial’s article.
The company is struggling to convince investors that its plan to raise capital and sell assets will succeed after forecasting that free cash-flow will be lower than previously estimated. The share sale is critical for Abengoa’s near-term liquidity, according to Navann Ty, a credit analyst at Bank of America Corp., who has an underweight recommendation on the bonds.
Radical Plans
“If working capital deteriorates and the capital increase is not executed, liquidity could become tight” as soon as this year, Ty wrote in a note to investors today. “Irrespective of the capital increase, which would be positive for near-term liquidity, we think Abengoa may look to engage in a more radical plan.”
While Abengoa’s focus is on the share sale, it may also consider a debt restructuring in the future, Bloomberg reported on Sept. 4. Abengoa is discussing a variety of options with financial advisory firm Lazard Ltd. and banks, according to people familiar with the matter.
The risk of a ratings downgrade has increased because Abengoa hasn’t yet achieved the capital increase, Moody’s Investors Service said last week. Banks are finding it difficult to sell loans even at a 60 percent discount to face value, people familiar with the matter said last week.
It costs 6.8 million euros in advance and 500,000 euros annually to insure 10 million euros of Abengoa’s bonds for five years, CMA prices show. Abengoa’s Class B shares fell 5.7 percent to 86 euro cents, the lowest in more than two weeks.
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