DASNY Preps $122M for Cancer Center

The Dormitory Authority of the State of New York on Wednesday is scheduled to refund $122 million of Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center fixed-rate, tax-exempt revenue bonds, 2003 Series 1.

DASNY’s board approved the sale on Dec. 7.

As part of Memorial Sloan-Kettering’s multi-phase financing plan, the issuance will refinance a portion of the 2003 bonds. A new-money transaction, expected shortly, will finance about $100 million of the center’s capital needs.

Retail investors will receive priority on certain maturities, according to a spokeswoman for the Albany-based authority. The current structure, she said, calls for serial bonds in 2020 through 2024. The 2023 and 2024 serials are callable in July 2022.

The authority could save about $10 million in net present value, based on recent market conditions, the spokeswoman said. No swaps or insurance are involved.

Goldman, Sachs & Co. is lead manager. Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP is bond counsel.

Winston & Strawn LLP is representing the underwriters.

Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP is representing Memorial Sloan-Kettering.

Established in 1884, Memorial Sloan-Kettering, together with its related corporations, is the world’s oldest and largest privately operated nonprofit cancer center. Its headquarters is in New York, where it has a 514-licensed bed hospital in Manhattan.

Its major building program for 2012 to 2019 totals $2.1 billion.

Standard & Poor’s in November lowered its long-term and underlying ratings on various series of DASNY-issued Memorial Sloan-Kettering bonds to AA-minus from AA, citing debt concerns.

Fitch Ratings and Moody’s Investors Service assign equivalent AA and Aa2 ratings, respectively.

“While cash flow as measured by Standard & Poor’s has been weaker of late, over the longer term, the ratings agency expects improvement, especially given the anticipated benefit of the incremental revenue and cash flow once the projects are complete and operations ramp up,” credit analyst Stephen Infranco said in a report.

Memorial Sloan-Kettering has about $1.2 billion of DASNY-issued debt outstanding.

For reprint and licensing requests for this article, click here.
Healthcare industry New York
MORE FROM BOND BUYER