SPRINGDALE, Ark., Feb. 19, 2009 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Tyson Foods, Inc. (NYSE:TSN) is initiating an offering, subject to market and other conditions, of $500 million of unsecured senior notes due 2014. The company intends to use the proceeds from the note offering to repay borrowings and terminate commitments under its existing accounts receivables facility, repay and/or refinance other indebtedness and for other general corporate purposes.
The Senior Notes will be offered and sold to qualified institutional buyers in the United States pursuant to Rule 144A and outside the United States pursuant to Regulation S under the Securities Act of 1933. The notes will be guaranteed on a senior unsecured basis by the company's domestic subsidiaries.
The company also announced it will be arranging a new senior secured credit facility of up to $1 billion which will be secured by the company's cash, accounts receivable and inventory and will be guaranteed by the company's domestic subsidiaries. The new credit facility will replace the company's existing revolving credit facility for which the company and certain of its material subsidiaries pledged substantially all their assets as collateral.
The sale of the notes and closing of the new credit facility are expected to be consummated in March 2009, subject to market and other customary conditions.
The notes have not been registered under the Securities Act of 1933 or any state securities laws and may not be offered or sold in the United States absent registration or an applicable exemption from the registration requirements of the Securities Act of 1933 and applicable state laws.
This press release shall not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to purchase the notes or any other securities, and shall not constitute an offer, solicitation or sale in any state or jurisdiction in which such an offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful. This press release is being issued pursuant to and in accordance with Rule 135c under the Securities Act of 1933.
Tyson Foods, Inc., founded in 1935 with headquarters in Springdale, Arkansas, is the world's largest processor and marketer of chicken, beef and pork, the second-largest food production company in the Fortune 500 and a member of the S&P 500. The company produces a wide variety of protein-based and prepared food products and is the recognized market leader in the retail and foodservice markets it serves. The company provides products and services to customers throughout the United States and more than 90 countries. The company has approximately 107,000 Team Members employed at more than 300 facilities and offices in the United States and around the world.
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Certain information contained in the press release may constitute forward-looking statements, such as statements relating to expected earnings and results. These forward-looking statements are subject to a number of factors and uncertainties which could cause our actual results and experiences to differ materially from the anticipated results and expectations, expressed in such forward-looking statements. We wish to caution readers not to place undue reliance on any forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date made. Among the factors that may cause actual results and experiences to differ from anticipated results and expectations expressed in such forward-looking statements are the following: (i) fluctuations in the cost and availability of inputs and raw materials, such as live cattle, live swine, feed grains (including corn and soybean meal) and energy; (ii) market conditions for finished products, including competition from other global and domestic food processors, supply and pricing of competing products and alternative proteins and demand for alternative proteins; (iii) successful rationalization of existing facilities and operating efficiencies of the facilities; (iv) risks associated with our commodity trading risk management activities; (v) access to foreign markets together with foreign economic conditions, including currency fluctuations, import/export restrictions and foreign politics; (vi) outbreak of a livestock disease (such as avian influenza (AI) or bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE)), which could have an effect on livestock we own, the availability of livestock we purchase, consumer perception of certain protein products or our ability to access certain domestic and foreign markets; (vii) changes in availability and relative costs of labor and contract growers and our ability to maintain good relationships with employees, labor unions, contract growers and independent producers providing us livestock; (viii) issues related to food safety, including costs resulting from product recalls, regulatory compliance and any related claims or litigation; (ix) changes in consumer preference and diets and our ability to identify and react to consumer trends; (x) significant marketing plan changes by large customers or loss of one or more large customers; (xi) adverse results from litigation; (xii) risks associated with leverage, including cost increases due to rising interest rates or changes in debt ratings or outlook; (xiii) compliance with and changes to regulations and laws (both domestic and foreign), including changes in accounting standards, tax laws, environmental laws and occupational, health and safety laws; (xiv) our ability to make effective acquisitions or joint ventures and successfully integrate newly acquired businesses into existing operations; (xv) effectiveness of advertising and marketing programs; (xvi) the effect of, or changes in, general economic conditions; and (xvii) those factors listed under Item 1A. "Risk Factors" included in the company's September 27, 2008, Annual Report filed on Form 10-K.