Warrior Met Coal “B+” Credit Rating Affirmed By S&P Global Ratings; Issue Level Rating Raised To “BB”
January 23 2019 - 6:29PM
Business Wire
Warrior Met Coal, Inc. (“Warrior” or the “Company”) (NYSE: HCC)
announced today that Standard & Poor’s (“S&P”) Rating
Services has affirmed the Company’s corporate credit rating of
“B+”, with a stable outlook. At the same time, S&P raised the
issue-level rating on the Company’s Senior Secured Notes due 2024
from “BB-” to “BB” and the recovery rating to “1” from “2”. S&P
cited the Company’s strong performance, strong credit metrics and
stable outlook as reasons for its new ratings. The upgrade reflects
S&P’s view about Warrior’s ability to maintain strong EBITDA
margins, low debt leverage and strong free cash flow in 2019.
Warrior is a large-scale, low-cost U.S. based producer and
exporter of premium hard coking coal (“HCC”) operating highly
efficient longwall operations in its underground mines located in
Alabama. The HCC that Warrior produces from the Blue Creek coal
seam contains very low sulfur and has strong coking properties, and
is of a similar quality to coal referred to as the premium HCC
produced in Australia. The premium nature of Warrior’s HCC makes it
ideally suited as a base feed coal for steel makers and results in
price realizations near the HCC industry average index price.
Warrior sells all of its met coal production to steel producers in
Europe, South America and Asia. For more information about Warrior
Met Coal, please visit www.warriormetcoal.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains, and the Company’s officers and
representatives may from time to time make, forward-looking
statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act
of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act
of 1934, as amended. All statements, other than statements of
historical facts, included in this press release that address
activities, events or developments that the Company expects,
believes or anticipates will or may occur in the future are
forward-looking statements, including statements regarding sales
and production growth, ability to maintain cost structure, demand,
the future direction of prices, expected capital expenditures and
future effective income tax rates. The words “believe,” “expect,”
“anticipate,” “plan,” “intend,” “estimate,” “project,” “target,”
“foresee,” “should,” “would,” “could,” “potential,” or other
similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking
statements. However, the absence of these words does not mean that
the statements are not forward-looking. These forward-looking
statements represent management’s good faith expectations,
projections, guidance or beliefs concerning future events, and it
is possible that the results described in this press release will
not be achieved. These forward-looking statements are subject to
risks, uncertainties and other factors, many of which are outside
the Company’s control, that could cause actual results to differ
materially from the results discussed in the forward-looking
statements, including, without limitation, fluctuations or changes
in the pricing or demand for the Company’s coal (or met coal
generally) by the global steel industry; federal and state tax
legislation; changes in interpretation or assumptions and/or
updated regulatory guidance regarding the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of
2017; legislation and regulations relating to the Clean Air Act and
other environmental initiatives; regulatory requirements associated
with federal, state and local regulatory agencies, and such
agencies’ authority to order temporary or permanent closure of the
Company’s mines; operational, logistical, geological, permit,
license, labor and weather-related factors, including equipment,
permitting, site access, operational risks and new technologies
related to mining; the Company’s obligations surrounding
reclamation and mine closure; inaccuracies in the Company’s
estimates of its met coal reserves; the Company’s expectations
regarding its future tax rate as well as its ability to effectively
utilize its NOLs; the Company’s ability to develop or acquire met
coal reserves in an economically feasible manner; significant cost
increases and fluctuations, and delay in the delivery of raw
materials, mining equipment and purchased components; competition
and foreign currency fluctuations; fluctuations in the amount of
cash the Company generates from operations, including cash
necessary to pay any special or quarterly dividend or the timing
and amount of any stock repurchases the Company makes under its
stock repurchase program; the Company’s ability to comply with
covenants in its credit facility or indenture relating to the
Notes; integration of businesses that the Company may acquire in
the future; adequate liquidity and the cost, availability and
access to capital and financial markets; failure to obtain or renew
surety bonds on acceptable terms, which could affect the Company’s
ability to secure reclamation and coal lease obligations; costs
associated with litigation, including claims not yet asserted; and
other factors described in the Company’s Form 10-K for the year
ended December 31, 2017, Form 10-Q for the quarterly period ended
September 30, 2018 and other reports filed from time to time with
the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”), which could
cause the Company’s actual results to differ materially from those
contained in any forward-looking statement. The Company’s filings
with the SEC are available on its website at www.warriormetcoal.com
and on the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov.
Any forward-looking statement speaks only as of the date on
which it is made, and, except as required by law, the Company does
not undertake any obligation to update or revise any
forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information,
future events or otherwise. New factors emerge from time to time,
and it is not possible for the Company to predict all such
factors.
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Analysts and Investors, contact:Dale W. Boyles, (205)
554-6129News Media, contact:William Stanhouse, (205) 554-6131
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