Uniti Group Inc. Announces Pricing of Exchangeable Notes Offering
The Issuer granted to the initial purchasers of the Exchangeable Notes an option to purchase up to an additional
The Exchangeable Notes will be general senior unsecured obligations of the Issuer, guaranteed by the Company and each of the Company’s subsidiaries (other than the Issuer) that is an issuer, obligor or guarantor under its existing senior notes.
The Exchangeable Notes will bear interest at a fixed rate of 4.00% per year, payable semiannually in arrears on
Prior to
If the Company or the Issuer undergoes a fundamental change (as defined in the indenture governing the Exchangeable Notes), subject to certain conditions, holders may require the Issuer to repurchase for cash all or part of their Exchangeable Notes at a repurchase price equal to 100% of the principal amount of the Exchangeable Notes to be repurchased, plus accrued and unpaid interest, if any, to, but excluding, the fundamental change repurchase date.
The Issuer may redeem all or a portion of the Exchangeable Notes, at any time, at a cash redemption price equal to 100% of the principal amount of the Exchangeable Notes to be redeemed, plus accrued and unpaid interest to, but not including, the redemption date, if the Company’s board of directors determines such redemption is necessary to preserve the Company's status as a real estate investment trust for U.S. federal income tax purposes. The Issuer may not otherwise redeem the Exchangeable Notes prior to
The Issuer intends to use a portion of the net proceeds of the offering to repay the
In connection with the pricing of the Exchangeable Notes, the Issuer has entered into privately negotiated exchangeable note hedge transactions with one or more of the initial purchasers and/or their respective affiliates (the “option counterparties”). The exchangeable note hedge transactions will cover, subject to customary anti-dilution adjustments substantially similar to those applicable to the Exchangeable Notes, the same number of shares of Common Stock that will initially underlie the Exchangeable Notes. The exchangeable note hedge transactions are expected generally to reduce potential dilution to the Common Stock and/or offset potential cash payments the Issuer is required to make in excess of the principal amount, in each case, upon any exchange of the Exchangeable Notes. Concurrently with the Issuer’s entry into the exchangeable note hedge transactions, the Company has entered into warrant transactions with the option counterparties relating to the same number of shares of Common Stock, subject to customary anti-dilution adjustments. These warrant transactions could separately have a dilutive effect on the Common Stock to the extent that the market price per share exceeds the applicable strike price of the warrants on one or more of the applicable expiration dates unless, subject to the terms of the warrant transactions, the Company elects to cash settle the warrants. If the initial purchasers exercise their option to purchase additional Exchangeable Notes, we intend to repay additional outstanding debt under our revolving credit facility. In addition, the Issuer may enter into additional exchangeable note hedge transactions with the option counterparties and the Company may enter into additional warrant transactions with the option counterparties.
In connection with establishing their initial hedges of the exchangeable note hedge transactions and warrant transactions, the option counterparties and/or their respective affiliates have advised the Issuer and the Company that they expect to purchase Common Stock or securities of the Issuer in secondary market transactions and/or enter into various derivative transactions with respect to the Common Stock concurrently with or shortly after the pricing of the Exchangeable Notes, including with certain investors in the Exchangeable Notes. This activity could increase (or reduce the size of any decrease in) the market price of Common Stock or the Exchangeable Notes at that time. In addition, the option counterparties and/or their respective affiliates may modify their hedge positions by entering into or unwinding various derivatives with respect to the Common Stock and/or purchasing or selling shares of Common Stock or securities of the Issuer in secondary market transactions following the pricing of the Exchangeable Notes and prior to the maturity of the Exchangeable Notes (and are likely to do so following exchange of the Exchangeable Notes, during any observation period related to an exchange of the Exchangeable Notes or upon any repurchase of Exchangeable Notes by the Issuer (whether upon a fundamental change or otherwise)). The effect, if any, of these activities on the market price of the Common Stock or the Exchangeable Notes will depend in part on market conditions and cannot be ascertained at this time, but any of these activities could cause or prevent an increase or a decline in the market price of the Common Stock or the Exchangeable Notes, which could affect the ability of noteholders to exchange Exchangeable Notes and could also affect the amount of cash and/or the number and value of the shares of Common Stock noteholders receive upon exchange of the Exchangeable Notes.
The Exchangeable Notes will not be registered under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), or any state securities laws, and may not be offered or sold in
This press release does not constitute an offer to sell, or a solicitation of an offer to buy, nor shall there be any sale of these securities in any state or jurisdiction in which such an offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities laws of any such state or jurisdiction.
ABOUT UNITI
Uniti, an internally managed real estate investment trust, is engaged in the acquisition and construction of mission critical communications infrastructure, and is a leading provider of wireless infrastructure solutions for the communications industry. As of
FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS
Certain statements in this press release may constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, as amended from time to time. Those forward-looking statements include all statements that are not historical statements of fact including those regarding our offering of the Exchangeable Notes.
Words such as “anticipate(s),” “expect(s),” “intend(s),” “estimate(s),” “foresee(s),” “plan(s),” “believe(s),” “may,” “will,” “would,” “could,” “should,” “seek(s)” and similar expressions, or the negative of these terms, are intended to identify such forward-looking statements. These statements are based on management’s current expectations and beliefs and are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties that could lead to actual results differing materially from those projected, forecasted or expected. Although we believe that the assumptions underlying the forward-looking statements are reasonable, we can give no assurance that our expectations will be attained. Factors which could materially alter our expectations include, but are not limited to, the future prospects of our largest customer,
Uniti expressly disclaims any obligation to release publicly any updates or revisions to any of the forward-looking statements set forth in this press release to reflect any change in its expectations or any change in events, conditions or circumstances on which any statement is based.
INVESTOR AND MEDIA CONTACTS:
Executive Vice President, Chief Financial Officer & Treasurer
mark.wallace@uniti.com
Director, Finance and Investor Relations
bill.ditullio@uniti.com
Source: Uniti Group Inc.