NORTH AMERICA

摘要

Health insurer centene Corp is backing its US$15.27bn cash-and-stock acquisition of smaller rival WellCare with a US$8.35bn loan initially provided by Barclays. The loan will be used primarily to fund the cash portion of the acquisition. The acquisition has been unanimously approved by the boards of both companies. Centene expects its debt-to-capital ratio tc be around 40% on closing. The company said that it intends to use its strong earnings and cash flows to achieve a targeted debt-to-capital ratio in the mid-to-upper 30% range within 12 to 18 months post close. Including debt, the acquisition has an enterprise value of US$17.3bn. Centene is rated BB+ by S&P and Ba1 by Moody's.