-

KBRA Assigns Preliminary Ratings to AB Issuer LLC, Series 2026-1 Senior Secured Notes and Places Series 2021-1, Class A-2 and Advance Funding Facility Notes on Watch Upgrade

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--KBRA assigns preliminary ratings to AB Issuer LLC (the Issuer), Series 2026-1 (AB 2026-1), a whole business securitization. AB 2026-1 represents the Issuer’s third securitization following the establishment of the master trust in 2021. In conjunction with the issuance of the Series 2026-1 Notes, KBRA is placing the ratings on the outstanding Series 2021-1 Advance Funding Facility and Series 2021-1, A-2 Notes on Watch Upgrade and anticipates withdrawing the ratings on the Series 2021-1, Class A-1 VFN and Series 2022-1, Class A-1 VFN.

Authority Brands, Inc. (Authority Brands, or the Company) is a residential-focused home services platform headquartered in Columbia, Maryland, that operates across 45 US states, as well as the District of Columbia and Canada. The Company operates through three service segments, Indoor, Outdoor and Trades, and manages a portfolio of 14 brands (12 of which are contributed to the securitization).

To access ratings and relevant documents, click here.

Click here to view the report.

Related Publications

Methodologies

Disclosures

Further information on key credit considerations, sensitivity analyses that consider what factors can affect these credit ratings and how they could lead to an upgrade or a downgrade, and ESG factors (where they are a key driver behind the change to the credit rating or rating outlook) can be found in the full rating report referenced above.

A description of all substantially material sources that were used to prepare the credit rating and information on the methodology(ies) (inclusive of any material models and sensitivity analyses of the relevant key rating assumptions, as applicable) used in determining the credit rating is available in the Information Disclosure Form(s) located here.

Information on the meaning of each rating category can be located here.

Further disclosures relating to this rating action are available in the Information Disclosure Form(s) referenced above. Additional information regarding KBRA policies, methodologies, rating scales and disclosures are available at www.kbra.com.

About KBRA

Kroll Bond Rating Agency, LLC (KBRA), one of the major credit rating agencies (CRA), is a full-service CRA registered with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission as an NRSRO. Kroll Bond Rating Agency Europe Limited is registered as a CRA with the European Securities and Markets Authority. Kroll Bond Rating Agency UK Limited is registered as a CRA with the UK Financial Conduct Authority. In addition, KBRA is designated as a Designated Rating Organization (DRO) by the Ontario Securities Commission for issuers of asset-backed securities to file a short form prospectus or shelf prospectus. KBRA is also recognized as a Qualified Rating Agency by Taiwan’s Financial Supervisory Commission and is recognized by the National Association of Insurance Commissioners as a Credit Rating Provider (CRP) in the U.S.

Doc ID: 1014783

Contacts

Analytical Contacts

Anna Roginkin, Senior Director (Lead Analyst)
+1 646-731-1212
anna.roginkin@kbra.com

Matthew Howard, Director
+1 312-680-4178
matthew.howard@kbra.com

Xilun Chen, Managing Director
+1 646-731-2431
xilun.chen@kbra.com

Shane Olaleye, Senior Managing Director
+1 646-731-2432
shane.olaleye@kbra.com

Kenneth Martens, Managing Director (Rating Committee Chair)
+1 646-731-3373
kenneth.martens@kbra.com

Business Development Contact

Arielle Smelkinson, Senior Director
+1 646-731-2369
arielle.smelkinson@kbra.com

Kroll Bond Rating Agency, LLC

Details
Headquarters: New York City, New York
CEO: Jim Nadler
Employees: 400+
Organization: PRI

Release Versions

Contacts

Analytical Contacts

Anna Roginkin, Senior Director (Lead Analyst)
+1 646-731-1212
anna.roginkin@kbra.com

Matthew Howard, Director
+1 312-680-4178
matthew.howard@kbra.com

Xilun Chen, Managing Director
+1 646-731-2431
xilun.chen@kbra.com

Shane Olaleye, Senior Managing Director
+1 646-731-2432
shane.olaleye@kbra.com

Kenneth Martens, Managing Director (Rating Committee Chair)
+1 646-731-3373
kenneth.martens@kbra.com

Business Development Contact

Arielle Smelkinson, Senior Director
+1 646-731-2369
arielle.smelkinson@kbra.com

Social Media Profiles
More News From Kroll Bond Rating Agency, LLC

KBRA Assigns Preliminary Rating to BX 2026-LBTY

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--KBRA announces the assignment of a preliminary rating to one class of BX 2026-LBTY, a CMBS single-borrower securitization. The collateral for the transaction is a $1.036 billion floating rate, interest-only mortgage loan. The loan is expected to have an initial two-year term with three, one-year extension options and require monthly interest-only payments. The loan will be secured by the borrower’s fee simple interests in 15 multifamily assets. In total, the portfolio...

KBRA Comments on Westlake Portfolio Management Becoming Subservicer for FinBe USA Trust 2025-1

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--On August 1, 2026, FinBe Inc. (“FinBe” or the “Company”), the sponsor and servicer of FinBe USA Trust 2025-1 (“FinBe 2025-1”), an auto loan ABS transaction rated by KBRA, entered into a subservicing agreement with Westlake Portfolio Management (“WPM”). FinBe will continue to be the named servicer for the transaction and WPM will be performing servicing duties. FinBe is an indirect auto finance company headquartered in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. FinBe purchased motor ve...

KBRA Releases Research – Private Credit: Putting Serta to Bed

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--KBRA releases research examining how the recent Serta ruling raises the legal and economic risks of exclusionary liability management exercises, particularly in the private credit market. In a market where J.Crew and Neiman Marcus refer not to storied retailers but to landmark liability management transactions—and the contractual protections designed to prevent them—Serta and its eponymous blocker have become the defining shorthand for the current generation of liabil...
Back to Newsroom