Sep. 1 at 2:14 AM
S&P Global Ratings affirmed Victory Capital Holdings’ BB credit rating but revised its outlook to Stable from Positive following the company’s planned
$7 billion acquisition of First Eagle Investments.
Victory agreed to acquire 100% of First Eagle, which manages about
$222 billion in assets, from Genstar Capital and First Eagle employees. The deal will be financed with cash, a
$3.5 billion Term Loan B,
$950 million of senior secured notes and
$2 billion in new equity, while Victory will also assume
$575 million of First Eagle debt.
S&P expects leverage of 3.0x–4.0x after closing. The transaction would increase Victory’s pro forma AUM to about
$571 billion and combined revenue to more than
$3 billion in 2027. S&P views the acquisition as complementary, citing stronger scale, global operations, distribution diversification and access to First Eagle’s
$40 billion alternative-credit and CLO platform.
$VCTR