NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Fitch Ratings assigns the following ratings to Canyon Capital CLO 2015-1, Ltd./LLC:
--$260,000,000 class A notes 'AAAsf'; Outlook Stable.
Fitch does not rate the class B, C, D, E notes or the subordinated notes.
TRANSACTION SUMMARY
Canyon Capital CLO 2015-1, Ltd. (the issuer) and Canyon Capital CLO 2015-1, LLC (the co-issuer) comprise an arbitrage cash flow collateralized loan obligation (CLO) that will be managed by Canyon Capital Advisors LLC (Canyon). Net proceeds from the issuance of the secured and subordinated notes will be used to purchase a portfolio of approximately $400 million of primarily senior secured leveraged loans. The CLO will have a four-year reinvestment period and a two-year noncall period.
KEY RATING DRIVERS
Sufficient Credit Enhancement: Credit enhancement (CE) of 35% for class A notes, in addition to excess spread, is sufficient to protect against portfolio default and recovery rate projections in a 'AAAsf' stress scenario. The degree of CE available to class A notes is lower than the average CE of recent CLO issuances; however, cash flow modeling indicates performance in line with other Fitch-rated 'AAAsf' CLO notes.
'B+/B' Asset Quality: The average credit quality of the indicative portfolio is approximately 'B+/B', which is comparable to recent CLOs. Issuers rated in the 'B' rating category denote a highly speculative credit quality; however, in Fitch's opinion, class A notes are unlikely to be affected by the foreseeable level of defaults. Class A notes are projected to be able to withstand default rates of up to 58.5%.
Strong Recovery Expectations: The indicative portfolio consists of 97.1% first lien loans. Approximately 90.1% of the indicative portfolio has strong recovery prospects or a Fitch-assigned Recovery Rating of 'RR2' or higher, and the base case recovery assumption is 76.6%. In determining the class A note rating, Fitch stressed the indicative portfolio by assuming a higher portfolio concentration of assets with lower recovery prospects and further reduced recovery assumptions for higher rating stresses, resulting in a 36.3% recovery rate in Fitch's 'AAAsf' scenario.
RATING SENSITIVITIES
Fitch evaluated the structure's sensitivity to the potential variability of key model assumptions, including decreases in recovery rates and increases in default rates or correlation. Fitch expects the class A notes to remain investment grade, even under the most extreme sensitivity scenarios. Results under these sensitivity scenarios ranged between 'A-sf' and 'AAAsf' for the class A notes.
Key Rating Drivers and Rating Sensitivities are further described in the accompanying new issue report, available at 'www.fitchratings.com' or by clicking on the above link.
For more information about Fitch's comprehensive subscription service FitchResearch, which includes all presale reports, surveillance and credit reports on more than 20 asset classes, contact product sales at +1-212-908-0800 or at 'webmaster@fitchratings.com'.
Additional information is available at 'www.fitchratings.com'.
Sources of information used to assess these ratings were provided by the arranger, Goldman, Sachs & Co., and the public domain.
Applicable Criteria and Related Research:
--'Global Structured Finance Rating Criteria' (March 31, 2015);
--'Global Rating Criteria for Corporate CDOs' (July 25, 2014);
--'Criteria for Interest Rate Stresses in Structured Finance Transactions and Covered Bonds' (Dec. 19, 2014);
--'Counterparty Criteria for Structured Finance and Covered Bonds' (May 14, 2014).
Applicable Criteria and Related Research: Canyon Capital CLO 2015-1, Ltd./LLC
http://www.fitchratings.com/creditdesk/reports/report_frame.cfm?rpt_id=864690
Global Structured Finance Rating Criteria
http://www.fitchratings.com/creditdesk/reports/report_frame.cfm?rpt_id=864268
Global Rating Criteria for Corporate CDOs
http://www.fitchratings.com/creditdesk/reports/report_frame.cfm?rpt_id=753057
Criteria for Interest Rate Stresses in Structured Finance Transactions and Covered Bonds
http://www.fitchratings.com/creditdesk/reports/report_frame.cfm?rpt_id=838868
Counterparty Criteria for Structured Finance and Covered Bonds
http://www.fitchratings.com/creditdesk/reports/report_frame.cfm?rpt_id=744158
Additional Disclosure
Solicitation Status
http://www.fitchratings.com/gws/en/disclosure/solicitation?pr_id=983163
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