... Six Flags Inc., the second-biggest U.S. theme-park operator, is an example of how companies can be squeezed by lenders when they don't meet conditions set by banks.

`More Selective'

Seven years of losses totaling $883.8 million and a decline of as many as 1.13 million theme-park visitors through June forced the New York-based company to tell bankers it couldn't meet requirements to generate four-times the amount of cash flow relative to the interest expense. It is seeking to cut the limit to 2.5 times.

Lenders of $1.03 billion in loans demanded Six Flags pay at least an additional half percentage point and a fee of a quarter percentage point to revise the terms, according to a July 21 SEC filing. The new terms, which haven't been completed, will raise the rate to at least 2.75 percentage points above Libor from 2.25 percentage points. ...

From: http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=206...qKuE&refer=home

ok...we had the pool going to guess when the CF/Paramount sale would close...

Anyone want to start a new one to guess when SF will file for bankruptcy?

But...are those terms that much more than what Cedar Fair is paying on its new debt? I bet the covenants in the long term financing for it will be interesting, too.

No, the terms aren't much different than CF's loan deal (they estimate their interest rate to be in the neighborhood of 8%)...and I worry about their debt load, too.

Of course, CF has the advantage of actually being profitable, and having a market cap that's close to 3x as much as SF's (with a lighter balance sheet), and management that has said that (aside from increases in the annual distribution) reducing the debt load over the next 4-5 years is their major strategic initative. If worst came to worst, CF could do another offering and probably generate another quarter to half a billion$ without breathing hard... (Of course, there would be some unit holder relations issues to deal with then...)

I would think Sharpiro (and Dan Snyder) must be extremely frustrated...they seem to have a good understanding of the problems facing the company, and a strategic plan to address them, but the hole is just so deep...