Item 8.01 Other Events
On March 7, 2023, V.F. Corporation (the “Company”) closed its sale of €500,000,000 aggregate principal amount of 4.125% Senior Notes due 2026 (the “2026 Notes”) and €500,000,000 aggregate principal amount of 4.250% Senior Notes due 2029 (the “2029 Notes” and together with the 2026 Notes, the “Notes”) pursuant to the Underwriting Agreement, dated February 23, 2023, among the Company, J.P. Morgan Securities plc, Morgan Stanley & Co. International plc, Barclays Bank PLC and Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC, as representatives of the several underwriters named therein. The Notes have been registered under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Act”), pursuant to a registration statement on Form S-3 (File No. 333-254093) previously filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission under the Act.
The net proceeds received by the Company, after deducting the underwriting discount and estimated offering expenses payable by the Company, were approximately €990.5 million. The Company intends to use the net proceeds from this offering for general corporate purposes, including the repayment of borrowings under its commercial paper program.
The Company intends to use an amount equivalent to the net proceeds from the offering of the 2029 Notes to finance, in whole or in part, one or more Eligible Projects (as defined in the prospectus supplement for the Notes) designed to contribute to selected Sustainable Development Goals as defined by the United Nations. These Eligible Projects include new, existing and prior investments made by the Company during the period from two years prior to the date of issuance of the 2029 Notes through the maturity date of such Notes, in the following categories:
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Investments in, or expenditures on, identifying and/or developing innovative and more sustainable materials and/or sustainable packaging solutions. |
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Investments in, or expenditures on, the acquisition, development, construction and/or installation of, renewable energy production units or energy storage units. |
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Investments in projects to improve the energy efficiency and/or reduce the greenhouse gas footprint of the Company’s operations and supply chain. |
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Investments in sustainable building design features and in buildings that receive a third-party verified certification of Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (“LEED”) Platinum, LEED Gold, or Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method (“BREEAM”) rating of Very Good or higher. |
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Investments to achieve the zero-waste status for all the Company’s distribution centers (with zero-waste defined as a site that diverts 95% or more of its waste away from disposal through recycling, composting and reuse). |
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Upgrade costs for improvement of wastewater quality across the supply chain. |
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Investments in “natural carbon sinks,” which are designed to create and restore natural sources of carbon capture, such as reforestation conservation projects, and investments in regenerative farming, grazing and ranching practices. |
The Notes are the unsecured obligations of V.F. Corporation and rank equally with all of its other unsecured and unsubordinated indebtedness.
The Notes were issued pursuant to an Indenture, dated as of October 15, 2007 (the “Base Indenture”), between the Company and The Bank of New York Mellon Trust Company, N.A., formerly known as The Bank of New York Trust Company, N.A., as trustee (the “Trustee”), as supplemented by the Sixth Supplemental Indenture, dated as of March 7, 2023, among the Company, the Trustee and The Bank of New York Mellon, London Branch, as paying agent (the “Supplemental Indenture” and, together with the Base Indenture, the “Indenture”).
The 2026 Notes will bear interest at a fixed rate of 4.125% per annum, and the 2029 Notes will bear interest at a fixed rate of 4.250% per annum. Interest on the Notes is payable annually on each March 7, commencing March 7, 2024. The 2026 Notes will mature on March 7, 2026, and the 2029 Notes will mature on March 7, 2029. The Notes are redeemable at the option of the Issuer. The Indenture also contains certain covenants as set forth in the Indenture and requires the Issuer to offer to repurchase the Notes upon certain change of control events.