Fitch Assigns Civitas an Investment Grade Rating

RNS Number : 0341R

Civitas Social Housing PLC

03 March 2021

 

3 March 2021

CIVITAS SOCIAL HOUSING PLC

Fitch Ratings Limited assigns Civitas Social Housing PLC an Investment Grade High Credit Quality Rating of "A" (senior secured)

The Board of Civitas Social Housing PLC ("Civitas" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that Fitch Ratings Limited ("Fitch") have published their first-time rating on the Company.

Fitch confirms that Civitas has secured an Investment Grade High Credit Quality rating of "A" (senior secured) and a Long-Term IDR (Issuer Default Rating) of "A-" with a Stable Outlook.

The Rating Action Commentary ( click here ) sets out the key rating drivers and sensitivities that were considered by Fitch and which in turn reflects the review of the Company undertaken by Fitch supported by the Company's Investment Advisor, Civitas Investment Management ("CIM").

The report highlights a number of favourable attributes of the Company and the eco-system of specialist care in which the Company operates and that support the investment grade. These include:

· A low debt-to-equity ratio with a below 7.5x net debt/EDITDA and interest cover around 4.5x.

· Assisting local authorities to meet their obligations to provide accommodation for vulnerable adults.

· Facilitating provision that is at a lower cost to the State than other appropriate alternatives such as hospital settings.

· Long-term contractual terms between counterparties that enable individuals to obtain secure homes.

The Company has indicated previously an ambition to continue to evolve its debt funding strategy around the sourcing and delivery of debt facilities with a view to accessing the broader bond markets and other lenders. This is in addition to continuing to work with the Company's existing lenders with whom Civitas has built strong relationships.

Commenting on the securing of the rating Michael Wrobel, Chairman of Civitas said :

"We are very pleased to have secured a premium investment grade rating from Fitch who are a well-established rating agency with a strong familiarity to the alternative healthcare real estate space. This positive endorsement will enable the Company to pursue a broader strategy in relation to debt funding in due course."

ENDS

For further information, please contact:

Civitas Investment Management Limited

Paul Bridge                                      Tel: [phone]

Andrew Dawber                                   Tel: [phone]

Panmure Gordon

Sapna Shah                                           Tel: [phone]

Tom Scrivens Tel: [phone]

Liberum Capital Limited

Gillian Martin / Chris Clarke Tel: [phone]

Buchanan

Helen Tarbet / Henry Wilson   Tel: [phone]

Hannah Ratcliff / George Beale    [e-mail]

Notes:

Civitas Social Housing PLC (CSH) was created in 2016 by Civitas Investment Management Limited as the first dedicated London listed REIT, to raise long-term, sustainable, institutional capital to invest in care-based social homes across the UK. So far, CSH has completed more than 120 individual transactions to build the largest portfolio of its kind that has been independently valued on an IFRS basis at £901.1million. CSH provides homes for 4,295 working age adults with long-term care needs, in 619 bespoke properties that are supported by 118 specialist care providers, 16 approved providers over 164 individual local authority areas.

 

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