Unless otherwise indicated or as the context otherwise requires, a reference in this prospectus to:
| • | “ACI” refers to Albertsons Companies, Inc., a Delaware corporation; |
| • | “ACI Institutional Investors” refers to Klaff Realty, L.P., Schottenstein Stores Corp., Lubert-Adler Real Estate Management Company, L.P. (“Lubert-Adler Management”) and Kimco Realty Corporation, and each of their respective controlled affiliates and investment funds; |
| • | “Albertsons” refers to Albertson’s LLC, a Delaware limited liability company and a wholly-owned subsidiary of ACI; |
| • | “Cerberus” refers to Cerberus Capital Management, L.P., a Delaware limited partnership, and investment funds and accounts managed by it and its affiliates; |
| • | “Code” refers to the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended; |
| • | “Exchange Act” refers to the U.S. Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended; |
| • | “GAAP” refers to accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America; |
| • | “NALP” refers to New Albertsons L.P., a Delaware limited partnership and a wholly-owned subsidiary of ACI; |
| • | “Safeway” refers to Safeway Inc., a Delaware corporation and a wholly-owned subsidiary of ACI; |
| • | “SEC” refers to the Securities and Exchange Commission; |
| • | “Securities Act” refers to the U.S. Securities Act of 1933, as amended; |
| • | “Sponsors” refers to Cerberus, the ACI Institutional Investors and their respective controlled affiliates and investment funds; and |
| • | “we,” “our” and “us” refers to ACI and its direct or indirect subsidiaries. |
ACI is a Delaware corporation. AB Acquisition LLC (“AB Acquisition”) is a Delaware limited liability company. ACI was formed for the purpose of reorganizing the organizational structure of AB Acquisition and its direct and indirect consolidated subsidiaries. Prior to December 3, 2017, ACI had no material assets or operations. On December 3, 2017, Albertsons Companies, LLC, a Delaware limited liability company, and its parent, AB Acquisition, completed a reorganization of their legal entity structure whereby the existing equityholders of AB Acquisition each contributed their equity interests in AB Acquisition to Albertsons Investor Holdings LLC (“Albertsons Investor”) or KIM ACI, LLC (“KIM ACI”). In exchange, equityholders received a proportionate share of units in Albertsons Investor and KIM ACI, respectively. Albertsons Investor and KIM ACI then contributed all of the equity interests they received to ACI in exchange for common stock issued by ACI. As a result, Albertsons Investor and KIM ACI became the parents of ACI, owning all of the outstanding common stock of ACI, with AB Acquisition and its subsidiary, Albertsons Companies, LLC, becoming wholly-owned subsidiaries of ACI. On February 25, 2018, Albertsons Companies, LLC, merged with and into ACI, with ACI as the surviving corporation (the “ACI Reorganization Transactions”). Prior to February 25, 2018, substantially all of the assets and operations of ACI were those of its subsidiary, Albertsons Companies, LLC. On June 9, 2020, we used cash in an amount equal to the proceeds from the sale and issuance of our 6.75% Series A-1 convertible preferred stock, $0.01 par value (“Series A-1 preferred stock”), and 6.75% Series A convertible preferred stock, $0.01 par value (“Series A preferred stock” and together with the Series A-1 preferred stock, the “Convertible Preferred Stock”), and the Investor Exchange Right (as defined herein) to repurchase 101,611,736 shares of outstanding common stock from certain Pre-IPO Stockholders (as defined herein) (the “Repurchase”). In connection with, and prior to the closing of,
this offering, Albertsons Investor and KIM ACI will distribute all common stock of ACI held by them to their respective equityholders (the “Distribution”)
.
As a result, following the Repurchase and the Distribution, Albertsons Investor and KIM ACI will no longer be the stockholders of ACI.
Except as otherwise noted herein, the consolidated financial statements and consolidated financial data included in this prospectus are those of ACI and its consolidated subsidiaries.
We use a 52 or 53 week fiscal year ending on the last Saturday in February each year. Our first quarter consists of 16 weeks, and our second, third and fourth quarters generally consist of 12 weeks. For ease of reference, unless the context otherwise indicates, we identify our fiscal years in this prospectus by reference to the calendar year of the first day of such fiscal year. The fiscal years ended February 23, 2019 (“fiscal 2018”), February 24, 2018 (“fiscal 2017”), February 25, 2017 (“fiscal 2016”) and February 27, 2016 (“fiscal 2015”) included and the fiscal years ending February 27, 2021 (“fiscal 2020”), February 26, 2022 (“fiscal 2021”), February 25, 2023 (“fiscal 2022”) and February 24, 2024 (“fiscal 2023”) will include 52 weeks. The fiscal years ended February 29, 2020 (“fiscal 2019”) and February 28, 2015 (“fiscal 2014”) consisted of 53 weeks.
As used in this prospectus, the term “identical sales” includes stores operating during the same period in both the current fiscal year and the prior fiscal year, comparing sales on a daily basis. Direct to consumer internet sales are included in identical sales and fuel sales are excluded from identical sales. Fiscal 2019 is compared with fiscal 2018, fiscal 2018 is compared with fiscal 2017, fiscal 2017 is compared with fiscal 2016, fiscal 2016 is compared with fiscal 2015 and fiscal 2015 is compared with fiscal 2014. On an actual basis, acquired stores become identical on the
one-year
anniversary date of their acquisition. Stores that are open during remodeling are included in identical sales.
TRADEMARKS AND TRADE NAMES
This prospectus includes certain of ACI’s trademarks and trade names, which are protected under applicable intellectual property laws and are the property of ACI and its subsidiaries. This prospectus also contains trademarks, service marks, trade names and copyrights of other companies, which are the property of their respective owners. Solely for convenience, trademarks and trade names referred to in this prospectus may appear without the
®
or TM symbols. We do not intend our use or display of other parties’ trademarks, trade names or service marks to imply, and such use or display should not be construed to imply, a relationship with, or endorsement or sponsorship of ACI by, these other parties.
MARKET, INDUSTRY AND OTHER DATA AND APPRAISALS
This prospectus includes market and industry data and outlook, which are based on publicly available information, reports from government agencies, reports by market research firms and/or our own estimates based on our management’s knowledge of and experience in the markets and businesses in which we operate. We believe this information to be reasonable based on the information available to us as of the date of this prospectus. However, we have not independently verified market and industry data from third-party sources. Historical information regarding supermarket and grocery industry revenues, including online grocery revenues, was obtained from Euromonitor and IBISWorld. Forecasts regarding
Food-at-Home
inflation were obtained from the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Information with respect to our market share was obtained from Nielsen
ACView All Outlets Combined (Food, Mass and Dollar but excluding Drug). U.S. Gross Domestic Product (GDP) was obtained from the Bureau of Economic Analysis. This information may prove to be inaccurate because of the method by which we obtained some of the data for our estimates or because this information cannot always be verified with complete certainty due to limits on the availability and reliability of raw data, the voluntary nature of the data gathering process and other limitations and uncertainties inherent in a survey of market size. In addition, market conditions, customer preferences and the competitive landscape can and do change significantly. As a result, you should be aware that the market and industry data included in this prospectus and our estimates and beliefs based on such data may not be reliable. We have not verified the accuracy of such industry and market data.
In addition, the market value reported in the appraisals of the properties described herein are an estimate of value, as of the date stated in each appraisal. The appraisals were subject to the following assumption: the estimate of market value as is, is based on the assumption that the existing occupant/user remains in occupancy in the foreseeable future, commensurate with the typical tenure of a user of this type, and is paying market rent as of the effective date of appraisal. Changes since the appraisal date in external and market factors or in the property itself can significantly affect the conclusions. As an opinion, the reported values are not necessarily a measure of current market value and may not reflect the amount which would be received if the property were sold today. While we and the underwriters are not aware of any misstatements regarding any appraisals, market, industry or similar data presented herein, such data involves risks and uncertainties and is subject to change based on various factors, including those discussed under the sections entitled “Special Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements” and “Risk Factors” in this prospectus.
NON-GAAP
FINANCIAL MEASURES
As used in this prospectus, (i) EBITDA is defined as GAAP earnings (net income (loss)) before interest, income taxes, depreciation and amortization, (ii) Adjusted EBITDA is defined as GAAP earnings (net income (loss)) before interest, income taxes, depreciation, and amortization, further adjusted to eliminate the effects of items management does not consider in assessing ongoing performance, (iii) Adjusted Net Income is defined as GAAP net income (loss) adjusted to eliminate the effects of items management does not consider in assessing ongoing performance, (iv) Adjusted Free Cash Flow is defined as Adjusted EBITDA less capital expenditures, (v) Net Debt is defined as total debt (which includes finance lease obligations and is net of deferred financing costs and original issue discount) minus unrestricted cash and cash equivalents and (vi) Net Debt Ratio is defined as the ratio of Net Debt to Adjusted EBITDA for the rolling 52 or 53 week period.
EBITDA, Adjusted EBITDA, Adjusted Net Income, Adjusted Free Cash Flow, Net Debt and Net Debt Ratio (collectively, the
“Non-GAAP
Measures”) are performance measures that provide supplemental information management believes is useful to analysts and investors to evaluate ongoing results of operations, when considered alongside other GAAP measures such as net income, operating income and gross profit. These
Non-GAAP
Measures exclude the financial impact of items management does not consider in assessing our ongoing operating performance, and thereby facilitate review of our operating performance on a
period-to-period
basis. Other companies may have different capital structures or different lease terms, and comparability to our results of operations may be impacted by the effects of acquisition accounting on our depreciation and amortization. As a result of the effects of these factors and factors specific to other companies, we believe the
Non-GAAP
Measures, as applicable, provide helpful information to analysts and investors to facilitate a comparison of our operating performance to that of other companies. We also use Adjusted EBITDA, as further adjusted for additional items defined in our debt instruments, for board of director and bank compliance reporting. For a reconciliation of these
non-GAAP
financial measures to the most directly comparable GAAP financial measures, see “Prospectus Summary—Summary Consolidated Historical Financial and Other Data.”
You should carefully consider the risks described below and the other information contained in this prospectus, including our consolidated financial statements and the related notes, before making an investment decision. Our business, financial condition and results of operations could be materially and adversely affected by any of these risks or uncertainties. In that case, the trading price of our common stock could decline, and you may lose all or part of your investment.
Risks Related to Our Business and Industry
Various operating factors and general economic conditions affecting the food retail industry may affect our business and may adversely affect our business and operating results.
Our operations and financial performance are affected by economic conditions such as macroeconomic conditions, credit market conditions and the level of consumer confidence. For the majority of fiscal 2019 and prior years, the combination of an improving economy, lower unemployment, higher wages and lower gasoline prices had contributed to increased consumer confidence. However, at present, as a result of the recent coronavirus
(COVID-19)
pandemic, there is substantial uncertainty about the strength of the economy, which may currently be in a recession and has experienced rapid increases in unemployment rates, as well as uncertainty about the pace of recovery despite the fiscal stimulus that Congress has enacted. The full extent to which the coronavirus
(COVID-19)
pandemic impacts our business, results of operations and financial condition will depend on future developments, which are currently highly uncertain and cannot be predicted, including, but not limited to the duration, spread, severity and impact of the coronavirus
(COVID-19)
pandemic, the effects of the pandemic on our customers and suppliers, the duration of the federal and local state declarations of emergency and the associated remedial actions and stimulus measures adopted by federal and local governments, including measures to assure social distancing and to what extent normal economic and operating conditions can resume. We are also unable to predict the extent, implementation and effectiveness of any government-funded benefit programs and stimulus packages on employment levels and on demand for our products.
We may experience materially adverse impacts to our business as a result of any economic recession or depression that has occurred or may occur as a result of efforts to curb the spread of coronavirus
(COVID-19).
For example, during March 2020 through April 2020, the United States experienced a rapid and significant increase in unemployment claims and other indications of a significant economic slowdown believed to be related to the coronavirus
(COVID-19)
pandemic. Consumers’ perception or uncertainty related to the economy, as well as a decrease in their personal financial condition, could hurt overall consumer confidence and reduce demand for many of our product offerings. Consumers may reduce spending on
non-essential
items, purchase value-oriented products or increasingly rely on food discounters in an effort to secure the food and drug products that they need, all of which could impact our sales and profit.
An increase in fuel prices could also have an effect on consumer spending and on our costs of producing and procuring products that we sell. As well, both inflation and deflation affect our business. Food deflation could reduce sales growth and earnings, while food inflation could reduce gross profit margins. Several food items and categories, including poultry and fresh fruit, experienced price deflation in fiscal 2019; however, prices for most other major food categories increased. We are unable to predict the direction of the economy or fuel prices or if deflationary trends will occur. If the economy weakens, fuel prices increase or deflationary trends occur, our business and operating results could be adversely affected.
Competition in our industry is intense, and our failure to compete successfully may adversely affect our profitability and operating results.
The food and drug retail industry is large and dynamic, characterized by intense competition among a collection of local, regional and national participants. We face strong competition from other brick and mortar
As a result of consumers’ growing desire to shop online, we also face increasing competition from both our existing competitors that have incorporated the internet as a
direct-to-consumer
channel and online providers that sell grocery products. In addition, we face increasing competition from online distributors of pharmaceutical products. Although we have accelerated the expansion of our eCommerce business, including to respond to increased customer demand as a result of the pandemic, and offer our customers the ability to shop online for both home delivery and Drive Up & Go curbside pickup, there is no assurance that these online initiatives will be successful. In addition, these initiatives may have an adverse impact on our profitability as a result of lower gross profits or greater operating costs to compete.
Our ability to attract customers is dependent, in large part, upon a combination of channel preference, location, store conditions, quality, price, service, convenience and selection. In each of these areas, traditional and
non-traditional
competitors compete with us and may successfully attract our customers by matching or exceeding what we offer or by providing greater shopping convenience. In recent years, many of our competitors have aggressively added locations and adopted a multi-channel approach to marketing and advertising. Our responses to competitive pressures, such as additional promotions, increased advertising, additional capital investment and the development of our eCommerce offerings, could adversely affect our profitability and cash flow. We cannot guarantee that our competitive response will succeed in increasing or maintaining our share of retail food sales.
An increasingly competitive industry and, from time to time, deflation in the prices of certain foods have made it difficult for food retailers to achieve positive identical sales growth on a consistent basis. We and our competitors have attempted to maintain or grow our and their respective share of retail food sales through capital and price investment, increased promotional activity and new and remodeled stores, creating a more difficult environment to consistently increase year-over-year sales. Some of our primary competitors are larger than we are or have greater financial resources available to them and, therefore, may be able to devote greater resources to invest in price, promotional activity and new or remodeled stores in order to grow their share of retail food sales. Price investment by our competitors has also, from time to time, adversely affected our operating margins. In recent years, we have invested in price in order to remain competitive and generate sales growth; however, there can be no assurance this strategy will be successful.
Because we face intense competition, we need to anticipate and respond to changing consumer preferences and demands more effectively than our competitors. We devote significant resources to differentiating our banners in the local markets where we operate and invest in loyalty programs to drive traffic. Our local merchandising teams spend considerable time working with store directors to make sure we are satisfying consumer preferences. In addition, we strive to achieve and maintain favorable recognition of our
offerings by marketing these offerings to consumers and enhancing a perception of value for consumers. While we seek to continuously respond to changing consumer preferences, there are no assurances that our responses will be successful.
Our continued success is dependent upon our ability to control operating expenses, including managing health care and pension costs stipulated by our collective bargaining agreements, to effectively compete in the food retail industry. Several of our primary competitors are larger than we are, or are not subject to collective bargaining agreements, allowing them to more effectively leverage their fixed costs or more easily reduce operating expenses. Finally, we need to source, market and merchandise efficiently. Changes in our product mix also may negatively affect our profitability. Failure to accomplish our objectives could impair our ability to compete successfully and adversely affect our profitability.
Profit margins in the food retail industry are low. In order to increase or maintain our profit margins, we develop operating strategies to increase revenues, increase gross margins and reduce costs, such as new marketing programs, new advertising campaigns, productivity improvements, shrink-reduction initiatives, distribution center efficiencies, manufacturing efficiencies, energy efficiency programs and other similar strategies. Our failure to achieve forecasted revenue growth, gross margin improvement or cost reductions could have a material adverse effect on our profitability and operating results.
We may not timely identify or effectively respond to consumer trends, which could negatively affect our relationship with our customers, the demand for our products and services and our market share.
It is difficult to predict consistently and successfully the products and services our customers will demand over time. Our success depends, in part, on our ability to identify and respond to evolving trends in demographics and preferences. Failure to timely identify or effectively respond to changing consumer tastes, preferences (including those relating to sustainability of product sources) and spending patterns could lead us to offer our customers a mix of products or a level of pricing that they do not find attractive. This could negatively affect our relationship with our customers, leading them to reduce their visits to our stores and the amount they spend. Further, while we have significantly expanded our digital capabilities and grown our loyalty programs over the last several years, as technology advances, and as the way our customers interact with technology changes, we will need to continue to develop and offer eCommerce and loyalty solutions that are both cost effective and compelling. Our failure to anticipate or respond to customer expectations for products, services, eCommerce and loyalty programs would adversely affect the demand for our products and services and our market share and could have an adverse effect on our performance, margins and operating income.
Increased commodity prices may adversely impact our profitability.
We make
in-store
pricing decisions on a regional basis depending on the competitive landscape. We also set our pricing based on the cost of doing business on a regional basis, as a result of occupancy and labor costs that vary by region. At the same time, we frequently discuss ways to lower our costs with our consumer packaged goods partners based upon our scale and sales momentum. Many of our own and sourced products include ingredients such as wheat, corn, oils, milk, sugar, proteins, cocoa and other commodities. Commodity prices worldwide have been volatile. Any increase in commodity prices may cause an increase in our input costs or the prices our vendors seek from us. Although we typically are able to pass on modest commodity price increases or mitigate vendor efforts to increase our costs, we may be unable to continue to do so, either in whole or in part, if commodity prices increase materially. Suppliers, like us, are incurring additional costs to respond to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, and may seek to pass those costs through to us. If we are forced to increase prices, our customers may reduce their purchases at our stores or trade down to less profitable products. Both may adversely impact our profitability as a result of reduced revenue or reduced margins.
Fuel prices and availability may adversely affect our results of operations.
We currently operate 402 fuel centers that are adjacent to many of our store locations. As a result, we sell a significant amount of gasoline. Increased regulation or significant increases in wholesale fuel costs could result in lower gross profit on fuel sales, and demand could be affected by retail price increases as well as by concerns about the effect of emissions on the environment. We are unable to predict future regulations, environmental effects, political unrest, acts of terrorism, the actions of major oil producing countries to regulate oil production and other matters that may affect the cost and availability of fuel, and how our customers will react, which could adversely affect our results of operations.
Product supply disruptions, especially those to perishable products, may have an adverse effect on our profitability and operating results.
Reflecting consumer preferences, we have a significant focus on perishable products. Perishable sales accounted for over 41% of our revenue in fiscal 2019. We rely on various suppliers and vendors to provide and
deliver our perishable and other product inventory on a continuous basis. We could suffer significant perishable and other product inventory losses and significant lost revenue in the event of the loss or a shutdown of a major supplier or vendor, disruption of our distribution network, extended power outages, natural disasters or other catastrophic occurrences. Due to the coronavirus
(COVID-19)
pandemic and the resulting dislocation of workplaces and the economy, the ability of vendors to supply required products may be impaired because of the illness or absenteeism in their workforces, government mandated shutdown orders or impaired financial conditions. Currently, the supply of meat products has been impacted by the shutdown of certain key production facilities due to workforce illness. We have good working relationships with major meat suppliers, smaller domestic suppliers and international suppliers, and we stay in regular contact to assess production capacity and product availability. Nonetheless, we have experienced allocations on a range of meat products, and we have had to expand our supplier portfolio or make adjustments to our merchandising plans to support in-stock conditions for our customers. Based on current discussions with industry leaders, we anticipate that the meat supply chain will remain challenging for the near future. The supply of each product will return to pre-coronavirus (COVID-19) levels at different times, and that there can be no assurance that our efforts to ensure in-stock positions for all of the products that our customers require will be successful.
Severe weather and natural disasters may adversely affect our business.
Severe weather conditions such as hurricanes, earthquakes, floods, extended winter storms, heat waves or tornadoes, as well as other natural disasters in areas in which we have stores or distribution centers or from which we source or obtain products have caused and may cause physical damage to our properties, closure of one or more of our stores, manufacturing facilities or distribution centers, lack of an adequate work force in a market, temporary disruption in the manufacture of products, temporary disruption in the supply of products, disruption in the transport of goods, delays in the delivery of goods to our distribution centers or stores, a reduction in customer traffic and a reduction in the availability of products in our stores. In addition, adverse climate conditions and adverse weather patterns, such as drought or flood, that impact growing conditions and the quantity and quality of crops yielded by food producers may adversely affect the availability or cost of certain products within the grocery supply chain. Any of these factors may disrupt our business and adversely affect our business.
Threats or potential threats to security of food and drug safety, the occurrence of a widespread health epidemic and/or pandemic or regulatory concerns in our supply chain may adversely affect our business.
Acts or threats, whether perceived or real, of war or terror or other criminal activity directed at the food and drug industry or the transportation industry, whether or not directly involving our stores, could increase our operating costs and operations, or impact general consumer behavior and consumer spending. Other events that give rise to actual or potential food contamination, drug contamination or food-borne illnesses, or a widespread regional, national or global health epidemic and/or pandemic, such as of influenza, or, specifically, the recent coronavirus
(COVID-19)
pandemic, could have an adverse effect on our operating results or disrupt production and delivery of the products we sell, our ability to appropriately and safely staff our stores and cause customers to avoid public gathering places or otherwise change their shopping behaviors.
We source our products from vendors and suppliers and related networks across the globe who may be subject to regulatory actions or face criticism due to actual or perceived social injustices, including human trafficking, child labor or environmental, health and safety violations. A disruption in our supply chain due to any regulatory action or social injustice could have an adverse impact on our supply chain and ultimately our business, including potential harm to our reputation.
The costs associated with implementing and maintaining the safety measures designed to protect our associates and customers in the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic have to date been more than offset by increased sales, but in the event our sales decline as stay-at-home guidance subsides and the economy begins to
re-open, we may be required to continue to implement and maintain these protective measures despite lower sales, thereby reducing our profitability.
Specifically, our business has been impacted by the coronavirus
(COVID-19)
pandemic.
Coronavirus
(COVID-19)
poses a risk to our employees, our customers, our vendors and the communities in which we operate, which could negatively impact our business. As the pandemic has grown, consumer fear about becoming ill with the virus and recommendations and/or mandates from federal, state and local authorities to social distance or self-quarantine have increased. Many states, including California, Washington State and other states in which we operate and have a significant number of stores, have declared a state of emergency, closed schools and
non-essential
businesses and enacted limitations on the number of people allowed to gather at one time in the same space. These rules, as well as the general fear that causes people to avoid gathering in public places, may adversely affect our customer traffic, our ability to adequately staff our stores and operations, and our ability to transport product on a timely basis.
We currently operate our stores as an “essential” business under relevant federal, state and local mandates. If the classification of what is an “essential” business changes or other government regulations are adopted, we may be required to severely curtail operations, which would significantly and adversely impact our sales and revenue. Even though our stores are considered essential businesses, state and local mandates may impose limitations on the operations of our stores, including customer traffic. While we have taken many protective measures in our stores, including, among others, spacing requirements, single direction aisles, senior and compromised customer-only hours, plexiglass shields at checkout and providing masks and gloves to our front line employees, there can be no assurance that these measures will be sufficient to protect our store employees and customers. We have, and may in the future be required to temporarily close a store, office or distribution center for cleaning and/or quarantine employees in the event that an employee develops
COVID-19
. We have proactively paused self-service operations, such as soup bars, wing bars, salad bars and olive bars. These factors could impact the ability of our stores to operate normal hours of operation or have sufficient inventory which may disrupt our business and negatively impact our financial results. If we do not respond appropriately to the pandemic, or if customers do not perceive our response to be adequate, we could suffer damage to our reputation and our brand, which could adversely affect our business in the future.
Further, coronavirus
(COVID-19)
may also impact our ability to access and ship product to and from impacted locations. Items such as consumer staples, paper goods, key cleaning supplies and protective equipment for our employees, and more recently, meat products have been, and may continue to be, in short supply. While we have put temporary limits on certain products to help our customers to get the items they need, supply for certain products may be negatively impacted as overall demand has increased.
Any planned construction and opening of new stores may be negatively impacted due to state or county requirements that workers leave their homes only for essential business and the suspension of governmental permitting processes in some areas during the pandemic in some locations.
We have transitioned a significant subset of our employee population to a remote work environment in an effort to mitigate the spread of coronavirus
(COVID-19),
which may exacerbate certain risks to our business.
The extent to which the coronavirus
(COVID-19)
may impact our business will depend on future developments, which are highly uncertain and cannot be predicted at this time. We may experience an impact to the timing and availability of key products from suppliers, broader quarantines or other restrictions that limit consumer visits to our stores, increased, employee impacts from illness, school closures and other community response measures, all of which could negatively impact our business. We continually monitor the situation and regularly adjust our policies and practices as more information and guidance becomes available.
We could be affected if consumers lose confidence in the food supply chain or the quality and safety of our products.
We could be adversely affected if consumers lose confidence in the safety and quality of certain food products. Adverse publicity about these types of concerns, such as the concerns during fiscal 2019 relating to the coronavirus
(COVID-19)
pandemic and fiscal 2018 relating to romaine lettuce, whether valid or not, may discourage consumers from buying our products or cause production and delivery disruptions. To the extent that a pathogen is food-borne, or perceived to be food-borne, future outbreaks may adversely affect the price and availability of certain food products and cause our customers to eat less of such product. The real or perceived sale of contaminated food products by us could result in product liability claims, a loss of consumer confidence and product recalls, which could have a material adverse effect on our business.
Consolidation in the healthcare industry could adversely affect our business and financial condition.
Many organizations in the healthcare industry have consolidated to create larger healthcare enterprises with greater market power, which has resulted in increased pricing pressures. If this consolidation trend continues, it could give the resulting enterprises even greater bargaining power, which may lead to further pressure on the prices for our pharmacy products and services. If these pressures result in reductions in our prices, we will become less profitable unless we are able to achieve corresponding reductions in costs or develop profitable new revenue streams. We expect that market demand, government regulation, third-party reimbursement policies, government contracting requirements and societal pressures will continue to cause the healthcare industry to evolve, potentially resulting in further business consolidations and alliances among the industry participants we engage with, which may adversely impact our business, financial condition and results of operations.
Certain risks are inherent in providing pharmacy services, and our insurance may not be adequate to cover any claims against us.
We currently operate 1,726 pharmacies and, as a result, we are exposed to risks inherent in the packaging, dispensing, distribution and disposal of pharmaceuticals and other healthcare products, such as risks of liability for products which cause harm to consumers, as well as increased regulatory risks and related costs. Although we maintain insurance, we cannot guarantee that the coverage limits under our insurance programs will be adequate to protect us against future claims, or that we will be able to maintain this insurance on acceptable terms in the future, or at all. Our results of operations, financial condition or cash flows may be materially adversely affected if in the future our insurance coverage proves to be inadequate or unavailable, or there is an increase in the liability for which we self-insure, or we suffer harm to our reputation as a result of an error or omission.
We are subject to numerous federal and state regulations. Each of our
in-store
pharmacies must be licensed by the state government. The licensing requirements vary from state to state. An additional registration certificate must be granted by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, and, in some states, a separate controlled substance license must be obtained to dispense controlled substances. In addition, pharmacies selling controlled substances are required to maintain extensive records and often report information to state and federal agencies. If we fail to comply with existing or future laws and regulations, we could suffer substantial civil or criminal penalties, including the loss of our licenses to operate pharmacies and our ability to participate in federal and state healthcare programs. As a consequence of the severe penalties we could face, we must devote significant operational and managerial resources to complying with these laws and regulations.
Recently, pharmaceutical manufacturers, wholesale distributors and retailers have faced intense scrutiny and, in some cases, investigations and litigation relating to the distribution of prescription opioid pain medications. On May 22, 2018, we received a subpoena from the Office of the Attorney General for the State of Alaska (the “Alaska Attorney General”) stating that the Alaska Attorney General has reason to believe that we have engaged in unfair or deceptive trade practices under Alaska’s Unfair Trade Practices and Consumer Act and seeking documents regarding our policies, procedures, controls, training, dispensing practices and other matters
Federal regulations under the Clean Air Act require phase out of the production of ozone depleting refrigerants that include hydrochlorofluorocarbons, the most common of which is
R-22.
As of January 1, 2020, industry production of new
R-22
refrigerant gas has been completely phased out; however, recovered and recycled/reclaimed
R-22
will be available for servicing systems after 2020. We are reducing our
R-22
footprint while continuing to repair leaks, thus extending the useful lifespan of existing equipment. In fiscal 2019, we incurred approximately $16 million for system retrofits, and we have budgeted approximately $11 million per year for subsequent years. Leak repairs are part of the ongoing refrigeration maintenance budget. We may be required to spend additional capital above and beyond what is currently budgeted for system retrofits and leak repairs which could have a significant impact on our business, results of operations and financial condition.
Third-party claims in connection with releases of or exposure to hazardous materials relating to our current or former properties or third-party waste disposal sites can also arise. In addition, the presence of contamination at any of our properties could impair our ability to sell or lease the contaminated properties or to borrow money using any of these properties as collateral. The costs and liabilities associated with any such contamination could be substantial and could have a material adverse effect on our business. Under current environmental laws, we may be held responsible for the remediation of environmental conditions regardless of whether we lease, sublease or own the stores or other facilities and regardless of whether such environmental conditions were created by us or a prior owner or tenant. In addition, the increased focus on climate change, waste management and other environmental issues may result in new environmental laws or regulations that negatively affect us directly or indirectly through increased costs on our suppliers. There can be no assurance that environmental contamination relating to prior, existing or future sites or other environmental changes will not adversely affect us through, for example, business interruption, cost of remediation or adverse publicity.
We are subject to, and may in the future be subject to, legal or other proceedings that could have a material adverse effect on us.
From time to time, we are a party to legal proceedings, including matters involving personnel and employment issues, personal injury, antitrust claims, intellectual property claims and other proceedings arising in or outside of the ordinary course of business. In addition, there are an increasing number of cases being filed against companies generally, including class-action allegations under federal and state wage and hour laws. We are also exposed to legal proceedings arising out of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, including wrongful death actions brought on behalf of employees that contracted coronavirus (COVID-19) and allegations of improper pricing of necessities during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. We estimate our exposure to these legal proceedings and establish reserves for the estimated liabilities. Assessing and predicting the outcome of these matters involves substantial uncertainties. Although not currently anticipated by management, unexpected outcomes in these legal proceedings or changes in management’s forecast assumptions or predictions could have a material adverse impact on our results of operations.
We may be adversely affected by risks related to our dependence on IT systems. Any future changes to or intrusion into these IT systems, even if we are compliant with industry security standards, could materially adversely affect our reputation, financial condition and operating results.
We have complex IT systems that are important to the success of our business operations and marketing initiatives. If we were to experience failures, breakdowns, substandard performance or other adverse events affecting these systems, or difficulties accessing the proprietary business data stored in these systems, or in maintaining, expanding or upgrading existing systems or implementing new systems, we could incur significant losses due to disruptions in our systems and business. These risks may be further exacerbated by the deployment and continued refinement of cloud-based enterprise solutions. In a cloud computing environment, we could be subject to outages by third-party service providers and security breaches to their systems. Unauthorized parties have obtained in the past, and may in the future obtain, access to cloud-based platforms used by companies.
Improper activities by third parties, exploitation of encryption technology, new data-hacking tools and discoveries and other events or developments may result in future intrusions into or compromise of our networks, payment card terminals or other payment systems.
The techniques used by criminals to obtain unauthorized access to sensitive data change frequently and often cannot be recognized until launched against a target; accordingly, we may not be able to anticipate these frequently changing techniques or implement adequate preventive measures for all of them. Any unauthorized access into our customers’ sensitive information, or data belonging to us or our suppliers, even if we are compliant with industry security standards, could put us at a competitive disadvantage, result in deterioration of our customers’ confidence in us and subject us to potential litigation, liability, fines and penalties and consent decrees, resulting in a possible material adverse impact on our financial condition and results of operations.
As a merchant that accepts debit and credit cards for payment, we are subject to the Payment Card Industry (“PCI”) Data Security Standard (“PCI DSS”), issued by the PCI Council. PCI DSS contains compliance guidelines and standards with regard to our security surrounding the physical administrative and technical storage, processing and transmission of individual cardholder data. By accepting debit cards for payment, we are also subject to compliance with American National Standards Institute (“ANSI”) data encryption standards and payment network security operating guidelines. Failure to be PCI compliant or to meet other payment card standards may result in the imposition of financial penalties or the allocation by the card brands of the costs of fraudulent charges to us. As well, the Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act (“FACTA”) requires systems that print payment card receipts to employ personal account number truncation so that the consumer’s full account number is not viewable on the slip. Despite our efforts to comply with these or other payment card standards and other information security measures, we cannot be certain that all of our IT systems will be able to prevent, contain or detect all cyber-attacks or intrusions from known malware or malware that may be developed in the future. To the extent that any disruption results in the loss, damage or misappropriation of information, we may be adversely affected by claims from customers, financial institutions, regulatory authorities, payment card associations and others. In addition, privacy and information security laws and standards continue to evolve and could expose us to further regulatory burdens. The cost of complying with stricter laws and standards, including PCI DSS, ANSI and FACTA data encryption standards and the California Consumer Privacy Act which took effect in January 2020, could be significant.
The loss of confidence from a data security breach involving our customers or employees could hurt our reputation and cause customer retention and employee recruiting challenges.
We receive and store personal information in connection with our marketing and human resources organizations. The protection of our customer and employee data is critically important to us. Despite our considerable efforts to secure our computer networks, security could be compromised, confidential information could be misappropriated or system disruptions could occur, as has occurred with a number of other retailers. If we experience a data security breach, we could be exposed to government enforcement actions, possible assessments from the card brands if credit card data was involved and potential litigation. In addition, our customers could lose confidence in our ability to protect their personal information, which could cause them to stop shopping at our stores altogether.
Unauthorized computer intrusions could adversely affect our brands and could discourage customers from shopping with us.
In 2014, we were the subject of an unauthorized intrusion affecting 800 of our stores in an attempt to obtain credit card data. While the claims arising out of this intrusion have been substantially resolved, there can be no assurance that we will not suffer a similar criminal attack in the future or that unauthorized parties will not gain access to personal information of our customers. While we have implemented additional security software and hardware designed to provide additional protections against unauthorized intrusions, there can be no assurance that unauthorized individuals will not discover a means to circumvent our security. Hackers and data thieves are
increasingly sophisticated and operate large-scale and complex attacks. Experienced computer programmers and hackers may be able to penetrate our security controls and misappropriate or compromise sensitive personal, proprietary or confidential information, create system disruptions or cause shutdowns. They also may be able to develop and deploy malicious software programs that attack our systems or otherwise exploit any security vulnerabilities. Computer intrusions could adversely affect our brands, have caused us to incur legal and other fees, may cause us to incur additional expenses for additional security measures and could discourage customers from shopping in our stores.
We use a combination of insurance and self-insurance to address potential liabilities for workers’ compensation, automobile and general liability, property risk (including earthquake and flood coverage), director and officers’ liability, employment practices liability, pharmacy liability and employee health care benefits.
We use a combination of insurance and self-insurance to address potential liabilities for workers’ compensation, automobile and general liability, property risk (including earthquake and flood coverage), director and officers’ liability, employment practices liability, pharmacy liability and employee health care benefits and cyber and terrorism risks. We estimate the liabilities associated with the risks retained by us, in part, by considering historical claims experience, demographic and severity factors and other actuarial assumptions which, by their nature, are subject to a high degree of variability. Among the causes of this variability are unpredictable external factors affecting future inflation rates, discount rates, litigation trends, legal interpretations, benefit level changes and claim settlement patterns.
The majority of our workers’ compensation liability is from claims occurring in California, where workers’ compensation has received intense scrutiny from the state’s politicians, insurers, employers and providers, as well as the public in general.
Our long-lived assets, primarily goodwill and store-level assets, are subject to periodic testing for impairment, and we may incur significant impairment charges as a result.
Our long-lived assets, primarily goodwill and store-level assets, are subject to periodic testing for impairment. We have incurred significant impairment charges to earnings in the past. Long-lived asset impairment charges were $77.4 million, $36.3 million and $100.9 million in fiscal 2019, fiscal 2018 and fiscal 2017, respectively. Failure to achieve sufficient levels of cash flow at reporting units and at store-level could result in impairment charges on long-lived assets. We also review goodwill for impairment annually on the first day of the fiscal fourth quarter or if events or changes in circumstances indicate the occurrence of a triggering event. During fiscal 2017, we recorded a goodwill impairment loss of $142.3 million. The annual evaluation of goodwill performed for our reporting units during the fourth quarters of fiscal 2019 and fiscal 2018 did not result in impairment.
Our operations are dependent upon the availability of a significant amount of energy and fuel to manufacture, store, transport and sell products.
Our operations are dependent upon the availability of a significant amount of energy and fuel to manufacture, store, transport and sell products. Energy and fuel costs are influenced by international, political and economic circumstances and have experienced volatility over time. To reduce the impact of volatile energy costs, we have entered into contracts to purchase electricity and natural gas at fixed prices to satisfy a portion of our energy needs. We also manage our exposure to changes in energy prices utilized in the shipping process through the use of short-term diesel fuel derivative contracts. Volatility in fuel and energy costs that exceeds offsetting contractual arrangements could adversely affect our results of operations.
We may have liability under certain operating leases that were assigned to third parties.
We may have liability under certain operating leases that were assigned to third parties. If any of these third parties fail to perform their obligations under the leases, including as a result of the economic dislocation caused
by the response to the coronavirus
(COVID-19),
we could be responsible for the lease obligation. Due to the wide dispersion among third parties and the variety of remedies available, we believe that if an assignee became insolvent it would not have a material effect on our financial condition, results of operations or cash flows.
We may be unable to attract and retain key personnel, which could adversely impact our ability to successfully execute our business strategy.
The continued successful implementation of our business strategy depends in large part upon the ability and experience of members of our senior management. In addition, our performance is dependent on our ability to identify, hire, train, motivate and retain qualified management, technical, sales and marketing and retail personnel. If we lose the services of members of our senior management or are unable to continue to attract and retain the necessary personnel, we may not be able to successfully execute our business strategy, which could have an adverse effect on our business.
Risks Related to our Indebtedness
Our substantial level of indebtedness could adversely affect our financial condition and prevent us from fulfilling our obligations under our indebtedness.
We have a significant amount of indebtedness. As of February 29, 2020, we had approximately $8.2 billion of debt outstanding (other than finance lease obligations), and, subject to our borrowing base, we would have been able to borrow an additional $3.4 billion under our ABL Facility. As of February 29, 2020, we and our subsidiaries had approximately $667 million of finance lease obligations.
Our substantial indebtedness could have important consequences. For example, it could:
| • | increase our vulnerability to general adverse economic and industry conditions; |
| • | require us to dedicate a substantial portion of our cash flow from operations to payments on our indebtedness, thereby reducing the availability of our cash flow to fund working capital, capital expenditures and other general corporate purposes, including acquisitions; |
| • | limit our flexibility in planning for, or reacting to, changes in our business and the industry in which we operate; |
| • | place us at a competitive disadvantage compared to our competitors that have less debt; and |
| • | limit our ability to borrow additional funds. |
In addition, there can be no assurance that we will be able to refinance any of our debt or that we will be able to refinance our debt on commercially reasonable terms. If we were unable to make payments or refinance our debt or obtain new financing under these circumstances, we would have to consider other options, such as:
| • | negotiations with our lenders to restructure the applicable debt. |
Our debt instruments may restrict, or market or business conditions may limit, our ability to obtain additional indebtedness, refinance our indebtedness or use some of our options.
Despite our significant indebtedness levels, we may still be able to incur substantially more debt, which could further exacerbate the risks associated with our substantial leverage.
We and our subsidiaries may be able to incur substantial additional indebtedness in the future. The terms of the credit agreement that governs the ABL Facility and the indentures that govern the NALP Notes (as defined
herein), the Safeway Notes (as defined herein) and the ACI Notes, permit us to incur significant additional indebtedness, subject to certain limitations. If new indebtedness is added to our and our subsidiaries’ current debt levels, the related risks that we and they now face would intensify. See “Description of Indebtedness.”
To service our indebtedness, we require a significant amount of cash, and our ability to generate cash depends on many factors beyond our control.
Our ability to make cash payments on and to refinance the indebtedness and to fund planned capital expenditures will depend on our ability to generate significant operating cash flow in the future, as described in the section entitled “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” included elsewhere in this prospectus. This ability is, to a significant extent, subject to general economic, financial, competitive, legislative, regulatory and other factors that are beyond our control.
Our business may not generate sufficient cash flow from operations to enable us to pay our indebtedness or to fund our other liquidity needs. In any such circumstance, we may need to refinance all or a portion of our indebtedness, on or before maturity. We may not be able to refinance any indebtedness on commercially reasonable terms, or at all. If we cannot service our indebtedness, we may have to take actions such as selling assets, seeking additional equity or reducing or delaying capital expenditures, strategic acquisitions and investments. Any such action, if necessary, may not be effected on commercially reasonable terms or at all. The instruments governing our indebtedness may restrict our ability to sell assets and our use of the proceeds from such sales.
If we are unable to generate sufficient cash flow or are otherwise unable to obtain funds necessary to meet required payments of principal, premium, if any, and interest on our indebtedness, or if we otherwise fail to comply with the various covenants in the instruments governing our indebtedness, we could be in default under the terms of the agreements governing such indebtedness. In the event of such default, the holders of such indebtedness could elect to declare all the funds borrowed thereunder to be due and payable, together with accrued and unpaid interest, the lenders under our credit agreement, or any replacement revolving credit facility in respect thereof, could elect to terminate their revolving commitments thereunder, cease making further loans and institute foreclosure proceedings against our assets, and we could be forced into bankruptcy or liquidation.
In addition, in July 2017, the U.K. Financial Conduct Authority, which regulates the London Interbank Offered Rate (“LIBOR”), announced that it intends to stop compelling banks to submit rates for the calculation of LIBOR after 2021. It is unclear if LIBOR will cease to exist or if new methods of calculating LIBOR will evolve and what, if any, effect these changes, other reforms or the establishment of alternative reference rates may have on instruments that calculate interest rates based on LIBOR including our ABL Facility. Additionally, changes in the method pursuant to which the LIBOR rates are determined may result in a sudden or prolonged increase or decrease in the reported LIBOR rates. While we do not expect that the transition from LIBOR and risks related thereto will have a material adverse effect on our financing costs, it is still uncertain at this time. For more information, see “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations—Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures About Market Risk.”
Our debt instruments limit our flexibility in operating our business.
Our debt instruments contain various covenants that limit our and our restricted subsidiaries’ ability to engage in specified types of transactions. A breach of any of these covenants could result in a default under our debt instruments. Any debt agreements we enter into in the future may further limit our ability to enter into certain types of transactions. In addition, certain of the covenants governing the ABL Facility and the ACI Notes restrict, among other things, our and our restricted subsidiaries’ ability to:
| • | incur additional indebtedness or provide guarantees in respect of obligations of other persons; |
| • | pay dividends on, repurchase or make distributions to our owners or make other restricted payments or make certain investments; |
| • | make loans, investments and capital expenditures; |
| • | sell or otherwise dispose of certain assets; |
| • | engage in sale leaseback transactions; |
| • | restrict dividends, loans or asset transfers from our subsidiaries; |
| • | consolidate, merge, sell or otherwise dispose of all or substantially all of our assets; |
| • | enter into a new or different line of business; and |
| • | enter into certain transactions with our affiliates. |
In addition, the restrictive covenants in our ABL Facility require us, in certain circumstances, to maintain a specific fixed charge coverage ratio. Our ability to meet that financial ratio can be affected by events beyond our control, and there can be no assurance that we will meet it. A breach of this covenant could result in a default under such facilities. Moreover, the occurrence of a default under our ABL Facility could result in an event of default under our other indebtedness. Upon the occurrence of an event of default under our ABL Facility, the lenders could elect to declare all amounts outstanding under the ABL Facility to be immediately due and payable and terminate all commitments to extend further credit. Even if we are able to obtain new financing, it may not be on commercially reasonable terms, or terms that are acceptable to us.
We may not have the ability to raise the funds necessary to finance the change of control offer required by the indentures governing the 2020 Safeway Notes (as defined herein), the 2021 Safeway Notes (as defined herein) and the ACI Notes (the 2020 Safeway Notes, the 2021 Safeway Notes and the ACI Notes, collectively the “CoC Notes”).
Upon the occurrence of certain kinds of change of control events, we will be required to offer to repurchase outstanding CoC Notes at 101% of the principal amount thereof plus accrued and unpaid interest to the date of repurchase. However, it is possible that we will not have sufficient funds at the time of the change of control to make the required repurchase of the CoC Notes or that restrictions in our debt instruments will not allow such repurchases. Our failure to purchase the tendered notes would constitute an event of default under the indentures governing the CoC Notes which, in turn, would constitute a default under our ABL Facility. In addition, the occurrence of a change of control would also constitute a default under our ABL Facility. A default under our ABL Facility would result in a default under our indentures if the lenders accelerate the debt under our ABL Facility.
Moreover, our debt instruments restrict, and any future indebtedness we incur may restrict, our ability to repurchase the notes, including following a change of control event. As a result, following a change of control event, we may not be able to repurchase the CoC Notes unless we first repay all indebtedness outstanding that contains similar provisions, or obtain a waiver from the holders of such indebtedness to permit us to repurchase the CoC Notes. We may be unable to repay all of that indebtedness or obtain a waiver of that type. Any requirement to offer to repurchase the outstanding CoC Notes may therefore require us to refinance our other outstanding debt, which we may not be able to do on commercially reasonable terms, if at all. These repurchase requirements may also delay or make it more difficult for others to obtain control of us.
Currently, substantially all of our assets (other than real property) are pledged as collateral under our ABL Facility.
As of February 29, 2020, there were no outstanding borrowings under our ABL Facility (excluding $454.5 million of outstanding letters of credit). On March 12, 2020, we provided notice to the lenders of the ABL
Borrowing, so that a total of $2.0 billion (excluding $454.5 million in letters of credit) was outstanding immediately following the borrowing. We increased our borrowings under the ABL Facility as a precautionary measure in order to increase our cash position and preserve financial flexibility in light of current uncertainty in the global markets resulting from the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. We have not needed to use the proceeds of the ABL Borrowing and have provided notice and will repay the ABL Borrowing in full on June 19, 2020.
Increases in interest rates and/or a downgrade of our credit ratings could negatively affect our financing costs and our ability to access capital.
We have exposure to future interest rates based on the variable rate debt under our credit facilities and to the extent we raise additional debt in the capital markets to meet maturing debt obligations, to fund our capital expenditures and working capital needs and to finance future acquisitions. Daily working capital requirements are typically financed with operational cash flow and through the use of our ABL Facility. The interest rate on these borrowing arrangements is generally determined from the inter-bank offering rate at the borrowing date plus a
pre-set
margin. Although we employ risk management techniques to hedge against interest rate volatility, significant and sustained increases in market interest rates could materially increase our financing costs and negatively impact our reported results.
We rely on access to bank and capital markets as sources of liquidity for cash requirements not satisfied by cash flows from operations. A downgrade in our credit ratings from the internationally recognized credit rating agencies could negatively affect our ability to access the bank and capital markets, especially in a time of uncertainty in either of those markets. A rating downgrade could also impact our ability to grow our business by substantially increasing the cost of, or limiting access to, capital.
Risks Related to This Offering and Owning Our Common Stock
There is no existing market for our common stock, and we do not know if one will develop to provide you with adequate liquidity. If the stock price fluctuates after this offering, you could lose a significant part of your investment.
Prior to this offering, there has not been a public market for our common stock. We cannot predict the extent to which investor interest in our company will lead to the development of an active trading market on the NYSE or otherwise or how liquid that market might become. If an active trading market does not develop, you may have difficulty selling shares of our common stock that you buy. The initial public offering price for the shares will be determined by negotiations between us, the selling stockholders and the underwriters and may not be indicative of prices that will prevail in the open market following this offering. The market price of our common stock may be influenced by many factors, some of which are beyond our control, including:
| • | the failure of securities analysts to cover our common stock after this offering, or changes in financial estimates by analysts; |
| • | changes in, or investors’ perception of, the food and drug retail industry; |
| • | the activities of competitors; |
| • | future issuances and sales of our common stock, including in connection with acquisitions; |
| • | our quarterly or annual earnings or those of other companies in our industry; |
| • | the public’s reaction to our press releases, our other public announcements and our filings with the SEC; |
| • | regulatory or legal developments in the United States; |
| • | litigation involving us, our industry, or both; |
| • | general economic conditions; and |
| • | other factors described elsewhere in these “Risk Factors.” |
As a result of these factors, you may not be able to resell your shares of our common stock at or above the initial offering price. In addition, the stock market often experiences extreme price and volume fluctuations that have often been unrelated or disproportionate to the operating performance of a particular company. These broad market fluctuations and industry factors may materially reduce the market price of our common stock, regardless of our operating performance.
If a substantial number of shares becomes available for sale and are sold in a short period of time, the market price of our common stock could decline.
If our
Pre-IPO
Stockholders sell substantial amounts of our common stock in the public market following this offering, the market price of our common stock could decrease. The perception in the public market that our
Pre-IPO
Stockholders might sell shares of common stock could also create a perceived overhang and depress our market price. Upon completion of this offering, we will have 479,026,753 shares of common stock outstanding of which 413,226,753 shares will be held by our
Pre-IPO
Stockholders (assuming that the underwriters do not exercise their option to purchase additional shares from certain of the selling stockholders). Prior to this offering, we, our executive officers and directors, each other
Pre-IPO
Stockholder (other than certain Pre-IPO Stockholders that own less than an aggregate of 531,444 shares of common stock) and the Preferred Investors have agreed with the underwriters to a
“lock-up”
period, meaning that such parties may not, subject to certain exceptions, sell any of their existing shares of our common stock without the prior written consent of representatives of the underwriters for at least 180 days after the date of this prospectus. Thereafter, such
Pre-IPO
Stockholders will be permitted to sell shares of common stock subject to certain restrictions, including the restrictions described in “Certain Relationships and Related Party
Transactions—Lock-Up
Agreements.” Pursuant to these agreements, among other exceptions, we may enter into an agreement providing for the issuance of our common stock in connection with the acquisition, merger or joint venture with another publicly traded entity during the
180-day
restricted period after the date of this prospectus. In addition, all of our
Pre-IPO
Stockholders and independent directors will be subject to the holding period requirement of Rule 144 (“Rule 144”) under the Securities Act, as described in “Shares Eligible for Future Sale.” When the
lock-up
agreements expire, these shares will become eligible for sale, in some cases subject to the requirements of Rule 144. The market price for shares of our common stock may drop when the restrictions on resale by our
Pre-IPO
Stockholders and independent directors lapse.
The Preferred Investors are also subject to certain additional transfer restrictions with respect to the Convertible Preferred Stock and the Conversion Shares. The Preferred Investors will not be able to transfer the shares of common stock issuable pursuant to the Convertible Preferred Stock (the “Conversion Shares”), other than to affiliated entities or in connection with a Fundamental Change, prior to the 18 month anniversary of the Preferred Closing Date. Prior to the seven month anniversary of the Preferred Closing Date, the Preferred Investors have the right to transfer shares of Convertible Preferred Stock only to their affiliated entities, another Preferred Investor or its affiliated entities (with any transferee thereof bound by same transferability/lock-up provisions hereof). Following the seven month anniversary of the Preferred Closing Date until the 18 month anniversary of the Preferred Closing Date, the Preferred Investors, and their respective affiliated entities, are required to collectively continue to hold greater than 50% of the shares of Convertible Preferred Stock (or Conversion Shares). See “Private Placement of Convertible Preferred Stock—Investment Agreement—Transfer Restrictions.”
In addition, our Sponsors and the Preferred Investors will have substantial demand and incidental registration rights, as described in “Certain Relationships and Related Party Transactions—Registration Rights Agreement.” Among them, we must use our reasonable best efforts to file and maintain effective a shelf registration statement for all registrable securities held by the Preferred Investors by no later than the later of (i) seven and one-half months after the consummation of this offering and (ii) 18 months after the Preferred
Closing Date. We also intend to file one or more registration statements on Form
S-8
under the Securities Act to register shares of our common stock or securities convertible into or exchangeable for shares of our common stock issued pursuant to our equity incentive plans. Any such Form
S-8
registration statements will automatically become effective upon filing. Accordingly, shares registered under such registration statements will be available for sale in the open market. A decline in the market price of our common stock might impede our ability to raise capital through the issuance of additional shares of our common stock or other equity securities.
We are controlled by our Sponsors and they may have conflicts of interest with other stockholders in the future.
After the Repurchase and the Distribution and the completion of this offering, our Sponsors will control in the aggregate approximately 75.0% of our common stock (or 73.0% if the underwriters exercise in full their option to purchase additional shares). As a result, our Sponsors will continue to be able to control the election of our directors, determine our corporate and management policies and determine, without the consent of our other stockholders, the outcome of any corporate transaction or other matter submitted to our stockholders for approval, including potential mergers or acquisitions, asset sales and other significant corporate transactions. Four of our 12 directors are either employees of, or advisors to, members of our Sponsors, as described under “Management.” Our Sponsors will also have sufficient voting power to amend our organizational documents. The interests of our Sponsors may not coincide with the interests of other holders of our common stock. Additionally, our Sponsors are in the business of making investments in companies and may, from time to time, acquire and hold interests in businesses that compete directly or indirectly with us. Our Sponsors may also pursue, for their own account, acquisition opportunities that may be complementary to our business, and as a result, those acquisition opportunities may not be available to us. So long as our Sponsors continue to own a significant amount of the outstanding shares of our common stock, our Sponsors will continue to be able to strongly influence or effectively control our decisions, including potential mergers or acquisitions, asset sales and other significant corporate transactions.
We are a “controlled company” within the meaning of the NYSE rules and, as a result, will qualify for, and intend to rely on, exemptions from certain corporate governance requirements. You will not have the same protections afforded to stockholders of companies that are subject to such requirements.
Upon completion of this offering, our Sponsors, as a group, will control a majority of our outstanding common stock. As a result, we are a “controlled company” within the meaning of the NYSE rules. Under the NYSE rules, a company of which more than 50% of the voting power is held by an individual, group or another company is a “controlled company” and may elect not to comply with certain corporate governance requirements, including:
| • | the requirement that a majority of the board of directors consist of independent directors; |
| • | the requirement that we have a nominating and corporate governance committee that is composed entirely of independent directors with a written charter addressing the committee’s purpose and responsibilities; |
| • | the requirement that we have a compensation committee that is composed entirely of independent directors with a written charter addressing the committee’s purpose and responsibilities; and |
| • | the requirement for an annual performance evaluation of the nominating and corporate governance and compensation committees. |
Following this offering, we intend to utilize these exemptions. As a result, we will not have a majority of independent directors nor will our nominating and corporate governance and compensation committees consist entirely of independent directors. Accordingly, you will not have the same protections afforded to stockholders of companies that are subject to all of the NYSE corporate governance requirements.
Certain rights of the holders of the Convertible Preferred Stock could delay or prevent an otherwise beneficial takeover or takeover attempt of the Company.
Certain rights of the holders of the Convertible Preferred Stock could make it more difficult or more expensive for a third-party to acquire us. For example, if a Fundamental Change were to occur, holders of the Convertible Preferred Stock, if issued, may have the right to convert their Convertible Preferred Stock, in whole or in part, at an increased conversion rate and will also be entitled to receive a make-whole amount equal to the present value of all remaining dividend payments on their Convertible Preferred Stock as described in the Certificate of Designations governing the Convertible Preferred Stock. The Preferred Investors also hold the Investor Exchange Right which may be exercised if any of the following were to occur: (i) the seventh anniversary of the Preferred Closing Date, so long as any shares of Convertible Preferred Stock are outstanding, (ii) the fourth anniversary of an initial public offering, if a Fundamental Change occurs and the related Fundamental Change Stock Price is less than the conversion price, (iii) a downgrade by one or more gradations (including gradations within ratings categories as well as between ratings categories) or withdrawal of our credit rating by both Rating Agencies, as a result of which our credit rating is B- (or Moody’s equivalent) or lower, (iv) the failure by us to pay a dividend on the Convertible Preferred Stock, which failure continues for 30 days after such dividend’s due date, or (v) a Bankruptcy Filing. These features of the Convertible Preferred Stock could increase the cost of acquiring us or otherwise discourage a third-party from acquiring us or removing incumbent management.
Our certificate of incorporation designates the Court of Chancery of the State of Delaware as the sole and exclusive forum for certain types of actions and proceedings that may be initiated by our stockholders, which could limit our stockholders’ ability to obtain a favorable judicial forum for disputes with us or our directors, officers or other employees.
Our certificate of incorporation provides that, unless we consent in writing to the selection of an alternative forum, the Court of Chancery of the State of Delaware will, to the fullest extent permitted by law, be the exclusive forum for: (a) any derivative action or proceeding brought on our behalf; (b) any action asserting a claim for breach of a fiduciary duty owed by any of our directors, officers, employees or agents to us or our stockholders; (c) any action asserting a claim arising pursuant to any provision of the Delaware General Corporation Law (the “DGCL”), our certificate of incorporation or our bylaws; or (d) any action asserting a claim governed by the internal affairs doctrine. Any person or entity purchasing or otherwise acquiring any interest in shares of our capital stock is deemed to have received notice of and consented to the foregoing provisions. This choice of forum provision may limit a stockholder’s ability to bring a claim in a judicial forum that it finds more favorable for disputes with us or our directors, officers or other employees, which may discourage such lawsuits against us and our directors, officers and employees. Alternatively, if a court were to find this choice of forum provision inapplicable to, or unenforceable in respect of, one or more of the specified types of actions or proceedings, we may incur additional costs associated with resolving such matters in other jurisdictions, which could adversely affect our business, financial condition or results of operations. Because the applicability of the exclusive forum provision is limited to the extent permitted by law, we do not intend that the exclusive forum provision would apply to suits brought to enforce any duty or liability created by the Exchange Act or any other claim for which the federal courts have exclusive jurisdiction. Additionally, unless we consent
We have reserved a maximum of 43,563,800 shares of our common stock that will be available as of the consummation of this offering for issuance under existing awards of Restricted Stock Units (as defined herein) (following the conversion of our outstanding Phantom Units (as defined herein) granted under our Phantom Unit Plan (as defined herein)) and for future awards that may be issued under the Incentive Plan (as defined herein). See “Executive Compensation—Incentive Plans” and “Shares Eligible for Future Sale—S-8 Registration Statement.” Any common stock that we issue, including under the Incentive Plan or other equity incentive plans that we may adopt in the future, would dilute the percentage ownership held by the investors who purchase common stock in this offering.
In the future, we may also issue our securities, including shares of our common stock, in connection with investments or acquisitions. We regularly evaluate potential acquisition opportunities, including ones that would be significant to us. The amount of shares of our common stock issued in connection with an investment or acquisition could constitute a material portion of our then-outstanding shares of common stock. Any issuance of additional securities in connection with investments or acquisitions may result in additional dilution to you.
The Convertible Preferred Stock may adversely affect the market price of our common stock.
The market price of our common stock is likely to be influenced by the Convertible Preferred Stock. For example, the market price of our common stock could become more volatile and could be depressed by investors’ anticipation of the potential resale in the market of a substantial number of additional shares of our common stock received upon conversion of the Convertible Preferred Stock and hedging or arbitrage trading activity that may develop involving the Convertible Preferred Stock and our common stock.
Our common stock will rank junior to the Convertible Preferred Stock with respect to the payment of dividends and amounts payable in the event of our liquidation, dissolution or
winding-up
of our affairs.
Our common stock will rank junior to the Convertible Preferred Stock with respect to the payment of dividends and amounts payable in the event of our liquidation, dissolution or
winding-up
of our affairs. This means that, unless accumulated and unpaid dividends have been declared and paid, or set aside for payment, on all outstanding shares of the Convertible Preferred Stock, for all preceding dividend periods, no dividends may be declared or paid on our common stock and we will not be permitted to purchase, redeem or otherwise acquire any of our common stock, subject to limited exceptions. Likewise, in the event of our voluntary or involuntary liquidation, dissolution or
winding-up
of our affairs, no distribution of our assets may be made to holders of our common stock until we have paid to holders of the Convertible Preferred Stock a liquidation preference equal to $1,000 per share plus accumulated and unpaid dividends.
Holders of the Convertible Preferred Stock, subject to certain conditions, will have the right to elect two directors.
From and after such time as (i) it is lawful under Section 8 of the Clayton Antitrust Act of 1914 for the Preferred Investors affiliated with Apollo (the “Apollo Preferred Investors”) or the Preferred Investors affiliated with HPS Investment Partners, LLC (the “HPS Preferred Investors”), as applicable, to designate a director to our board of directors and (ii) any waiting period under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act of 1976 applicable to the acquisition of our voting securities expires or is terminated with respect to the Apollo Preferred Investors or the HPS Preferred Investors, and, so long as the Apollo Preferred Investors and their affiliates or the HPS Preferred Investors and their affiliates hold at least 25% of the Convertible Preferred Stock issued on the Preferred Closing Date (or 25% of the Conversion Shares), the Apollo Preferred Investors or the HPS Preferred Investors, as applicable, will each have the right to designate one director to our board of directors. This right to elect directors will dilute the representation of the holders of our common stock on our board of directors and may adversely affect the market price of our common stock. See “Private Placement of Convertible Preferred Stock—Investment Agreement—Director Designation Rights.”
Our subsidiary RE LLC, which owns a significant portion of our real estate, is subject to certain restrictions under the Real Estate Agreement, which could affect our ability to execute our operational and strategic objectives.
Prior to the Preferred Closing, we underwent a real estate reorganization. As a result of such reorganization, certain SPEs that are subsidiaries of RE LLC own Real Estate Assets, consisting of approximately 240 fee owned store properties which were to have an appraised value of approximately $2.9 billion. RE LLC also deposited into escrow at the Preferred Closing such amount of cash as was necessary to make up any shortfall, which cash amount was approximately $36.5 million (the “Cash Escrow Amount”). Immediately prior to the Preferred Closing, the RE LLC Entities (as defined herein) entered into amended and restated operating agreements. Our wholly-owned subsidiary Safeway is the only member of RE Holdings I (as defined herein) with the ability to vote on any matters. Each of the RE LLC Entities has a board of five members, which includes two independent directors. However, the RE Investor was admitted to each of the RE LLC Entities as a “Special Non-Economic Member.” As a Special Non-Economic Member, the RE Investor has certain approval rights relating to the Real Estate Portfolio (as defined herein), Master Lease Agreement (as defined herein), affiliate transactions and the issuance of securities or other instruments that rank pari passu or senior. These approval rights could limit our ability to implement future strategic objectives.
The RE Investor could exercise the Investor Exchange Right, which provides it with certain unilateral rights, upon the occurrence of specified trigger events, that could cause us to lose ownership of all or part of our indirect interest in the SPEs or their Real Estate Assets unless we redeem all of the outstanding Convertible Preferred Stock.
The Real Estate Agreement provides the RE Investor with the unilateral right, upon the occurrence of specified trigger events, to exercise the Investor Exchange Right to exchange all of the outstanding Convertible Preferred Stock for certain Real Estate Assets or the equity of the SPEs holding such Real Estate Assets. The Investor Exchange Right may be exercised if any of the following were to occur: (i) the seventh anniversary of the Preferred Closing Date, so long as any shares of Convertible Preferred Stock are outstanding, (ii) the fourth anniversary of an initial public offering, if a Fundamental Change occurs and the related Fundamental Change Stock Price is less than the conversion price, (iii) a downgrade by one or more gradations (including gradations within ratings categories as well as between ratings categories) or withdrawal of our credit rating by both Rating Agencies, as a result of which our credit rating is B- (or Moody’s equivalent) or lower, (iv) the failure by us to pay a dividend on the Convertible Preferred Stock, which failure continues for 30 days after such dividend’s due date, or (v) a Bankruptcy Filing. The Investor Exchange Right may be exercised unless we redeem all of the outstanding Convertible Preferred Stock at a redemption price, if such redemption occurs after we receive a notice of intent to exercise the Investor Exchange Right, equal to the product of (x) the aggregate Fixed Liquidation Preference (as defined in the applicable Certificate of Designations) of the Convertible Preferred Stock of such holder then outstanding and (y) 110%, plus accrued and unpaid dividends to, but not including, the date of redemption. However, after receiving a notice of intent to exercise the Investor Exchange Right we may not be able to effectuate the redemption at that time.
If we do not redeem the Convertible Preferred Stock, the RE Investor can exercise the Investor Exchange Right by delivering to RE LLC and the Escrow Agent (as defined herein) a notice directing the Escrow Agent to release from escrow: (1) at our election, any cash that may be held by the Escrow Agent and (2) at the RE Investor’s option, (A) Transfer Instruments (as defined herein) with respect to the SPEs, selected in the RE Investor’s sole discretion, which collectively own Real Estate Assets having an aggregate appraised value (as set forth in the Initial Exchange Appraisals (as defined herein)) equal to not more than (x) 130% of the Real Estate Proceeds Target Amount (as defined herein) less (y) the Cash Distribution Amount (as defined herein), if any, multiplied by 118.18% or (B) Transfer Instruments with respect to the such Real Estate Assets.
Upon consummation of the Real Estate Settlement (as defined herein), the SPEs selected by the RE Investor or, in the case of Real Estate Assets selected by the RE Investor, a special purpose entity newly formed by the RE Investor will automatically enter into a master lease with the applicable Tenant (as defined herein) substantially
the same as the Master Lease Agreement solely with respect to the Real Estate Assets that have been transferred, directly or indirectly to the RE Investor and the Master Lease Agreement will be amended to remove such transferred Real Estate Assets. Following the delivery of the release notice by the RE Investor to RE LLC and Escrow Agent, the RE Investor will have 180 days (the “Initial Realization Period”) to sell the SPEs or Real Estate Assets that are released to the RE Investor by the Escrow Agent (the “Owned Sale Properties”).
If during the Initial Realization Period, bona fide bids indicate aggregate Real Estate Proceeds (as defined in the Real Estate Agreement) that are less than the Real Estate Proceeds Target Amount, we may elect to pay cash to the RE Investor in an amount equal to the shortfall. If we do not elect to pay the shortfall, the RE Investor will have an additional 90 days (the “Subsequent Realization Period” and together with the Initial Realization Period, if any, the “Realization Period”) to market Owned Sale Properties together with SPEs and/or Real Estate Assets then owned by RE LLC (collectively, the “Sale Properties”). Upon the sale of each Sale Property, the buyer will be required to enter into an amended and restated Master Lease Agreement solely with respect to the Sale Properties applicable to such buyer.
If, at the conclusion of the Realization Period, the RE Investor has not received bona fide offers for the Sale Properties that would result in the RE Investor receiving Real Estate Proceeds that are at least equal to the Real Estate Proceeds Target Amount (such event a “Failed Auction”), the RE Investor can elect to have released from the escrow account all of the remaining Transfer Instruments with respect to SPEs and/or Real Estate Assets and retain any or all of the Sale Properties (such retained Sale Properties, the “Retained Properties”). If a Failed Auction occurs, during the period beginning on the expiration of the Realization Period and ending on the three year anniversary of the expiration of the Realization Period (the “ROFO Period”), if the RE Investor intends to sell Retained Properties with an aggregate appraised value (as set forth in the Initial Exchange Appraisals) of $250,000,000 or more in a single sale process, RE LLC will have a right of first offer on the Retained Properties proposed to be sold (the “ROFO Properties”). RE LLC shall have 10 days following the receipt of notice by the RE Investor of the RE Investor’s intent to sell the ROFO Properties to provide a written offer to the RE Investor to purchase such ROFO Properties for cash, along with a purchase and sale agreement executed by RE LLC and 60 days following the execution by the RE Investor of such agreement to consummate such transaction. If the RE Investor rejects RE LLC’s offer, then the RE Investor shall only be permitted to sell the ROFO Properties to a third-party at a purchase price that is greater than or equal to the purchase price offered by RE LLC. If RE LLC does not submit an offer or does not consummate the transaction within 60 days after the RE Investor executes the purchase and sale agreement, then the RE Investor shall be permitted to sell the ROFO Properties to a third-party at a price determined by the RE Investor in its sole discretion.
This prospectus contains forward-looking statements. All statements other than statements of historical facts contained in this prospectus, including statements regarding our future operating results and financial position, business strategy, and plans and objectives of management for future operations, are forward-looking statements. Words such as “believes,” “plans,” “anticipates,” “estimates,” “expects,” “intends,” “aims,” “potential,” “will,” “would,” “could,” “considered,” “likely,” “estimate” and the negatives or variations of these words and similar future or conditional expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements but are not the exclusive means of identifying such statements.
Statements regarding cost synergies and revenue opportunities (and in each case, the components, amounts and/or percentages thereof) are forward-looking statements. While we believe these expectations, assumptions, estimates and projections are reasonable, such forward-looking statements are only predictions and involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond our control. By their nature, forward-looking statements involve risk and uncertainty because they relate to events and depend upon future circumstances that may or may not occur. These risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied in the forward-looking statements include those related to the coronavirus
(COVID-19)
pandemic, about which there are still many unknowns, including the duration of the pandemic and the extent of its impact. These factors include, but are not limited to, risks and uncertainties discussed in the section of this prospectus entitled “Risk Factors” and the following factors:
| • | Coronavirus ( COVID-19 ) related factors, risks and challenges, including among others, the length of time that the pandemic continues, the temporary inability of customers to shop due to illness, quarantine, or other travel restrictions or financial hardship, shifts in demand away from discretionary or higher priced products to lower priced products, or stockpiling or similar pantry-filling activities, reduced workforces which may be caused by, but not limited to, the temporary inability of the workforce to work due to illness, quarantine, or government mandates, potential shortages in supply, or temporary store closures due to reduced workforces or government mandates; |
| • | the competitive nature of the industry in which we conduct our business; |
| • | general business and economic conditions, including the rate of inflation or deflation, consumer spending levels, population, employment and job growth and/or losses in our market; |
| • | our ability to increase identical sales, expand ours, maintain or improve operating margins, revenue and revenue growth rate, control or reduce costs, improve buying practices and control shrink; |
| • | our ability to expand or grow our home delivery network and Drive Up & Go curbside pickup services; |
| • | pricing pressures and competitive factors, which could include pricing strategies, store openings, remodels or acquisitions by our competitors; |
| • | labor costs, including benefit plan costs and severance payments, or labor disputes that may arise from time to time and work stoppages that could occur in areas where certain collective bargaining agreements have expired or are on indefinite extensions or are scheduled to expire in the near future; |
| • | disruptions in our manufacturing facilities’ or distribution centers’ operations, disruption of significant supplier relationships, or disruptions to our produce or product supply chains; |
| • | results of any ongoing litigation in which we are involved or any litigation in which we may become involved; |
| • | data privacy and security, the failure of our IT systems, or maintaining, expanding or upgrading existing systems or implementing new systems; |
| • | the effects of government regulation and legislation, including healthcare reform; |
| • | our ability to raise additional capital to finance the growth of our business, including to fund acquisitions; |
| • | our ability to service our debt obligations, and restrictions in our debt agreements; |
| • | the impact of private and public third-party payers’ continued reduction in prescription drug reimbursements and the ongoing efforts to limit participation in payor networks, including through mail order; |
| • | plans for future growth and other business development activities; |
| • | our ability to realize anticipated savings from our implementation of new productivity initiatives, the failure of which could adversely affect our financial performance and competitive position; |
| • | changes in tax laws or interpretations that could increase our consolidated tax liabilities; and |
| • | competitive pressures in all markets in which we operate. |
We caution you that the foregoing list may not contain all of the forward-looking statements made in this prospectus.
Consequently, all of the forward-looking statements we make in this prospectus are qualified by the information contained in this prospectus, including, but not limited to, the information contained in this section and the information discussed in the section entitled “Risk Factors.” See the section “Where You Can Find More Information” in this prospectus.
Persons reading this prospectus are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date hereof and only to events as of the date on which the statements are made. We are not under any obligation, and we expressly disclaim any obligation, to update, alter, or otherwise revise any forward-looking statements, whether written or oral, that may be made from time to time, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise, except as required by law. We may not actually achieve the plans, intentions or expectations disclosed in our forward-looking statements and you should not place undue reliance on our forward-looking statements. Our forward-looking statements do not reflect the potential impact of any future acquisitions, mergers, dispositions, joint ventures or investments we may make.
You should not rely upon forward-looking statements as predictions of future events. We have based the forward-looking statements contained in this prospectus primarily on our current expectations and projections about future events and trends that we believe may affect our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects. The outcome of the events described in these forward-looking statements is subject to risks, uncertainties and other factors described in the section entitled “Risk Factors” and elsewhere in this prospectus. Moreover, we operate in a very competitive and rapidly changing environment. New risks and uncertainties emerge from time to time and it is not possible for us to predict all risks and uncertainties that could have an impact on the forward-looking statements contained in this prospectus. We cannot assure you that the results, events and circumstances reflected in the forward-looking statements will be achieved or occur, and actual results, events or circumstances could differ materially from those described in the forward-looking statements.
The forward-looking statements made in this prospectus relate only to events as of the date on which the statements are made. We undertake no obligation to update any forward-looking statements made in this prospectus to reflect events or circumstances after the date of this prospectus or to reflect new information or the occurrence of unanticipated events, except as required by law. We may not actually achieve the plans, intentions or expectations disclosed in our forward-looking statements and you should not place undue reliance on our forward-looking statements. Our forward-looking statements do not reflect the potential impact of any future acquisitions, mergers, dispositions, joint ventures or investments we may make.
MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF
FINANCIAL CONDITION AND RESULTS OF OPERATIONS
The following discussion and analysis of our financial condition and results of operations should be read in conjunction with our Consolidated Financial Statements and related notes included elsewhere in this prospectus. This discussion contains forward-looking statements based upon current expectations that involve numerous risks and uncertainties. Our actual results may differ materially from those contained in any forward-looking statements.
In this Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations of Albertsons Companies, Inc., the words “Albertsons,” the “Company,” “we,” “us,” “our” and “ours” refer to Albertsons Companies, Inc., together with its subsidiaries.
We are one of the largest food retailers in the United States, with 2,252 stores across 34 states and the District of Columbia. We operate 20 iconic banners with on average 85 years of operating history, including
Albertsons, Safeway, Vons, Pavilions, Randalls, Tom Thumb, Carrs, Jewel-Osco, Acme, Shaw’s, Star Market, United Supermarkets, Market Street
and
, with approximately 270,000 talented and dedicated employees, as of February 29, 2020, who serve on average more than 33 million customers each week. Additionally, as of February 29, 2020, we operated 1,290
in-store
branded coffee shops, 402 adjacent fuel centers, 23 dedicated distribution centers, 20 manufacturing facilities and various online platforms. Our stores operate in
First-and-Main
retail locations and have leading market share within attractive and growing geographies. We hold a #1 or #2 position by market share in 68% of the 121 MSAs in which we operate. Our portfolio of well-located, full-service stores provides the foundation of our omni-channel platform, including our rapidly growing Drive Up & Go curbside pickup, home delivery and rush delivery offerings. We seek to tailor our offerings to local demographics and preferences of the markets that we operate in. Our
Locally Great, Nationally Strong
operating structure empowers decision making at the local level, which we believe better serves our customers and communities, while also providing the systems, analytics and buying power afforded by an organization with national scale and $62.5 billion in annual sales. Throughout the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, our highest priorities have been the safety of our associates and customers and maintaining the supply of product. During the first eight weeks of fiscal 2020, we have delivered strong sales growth and increases in market share.
Our Company has grown through a series of transformational acquisitions over the last six years, including our merger with Safeway in 2015 which gave us the benefits of national scale. While our banners have rich histories, we are in many ways a young company. We have integrated systems and converted stores and distribution centers to create a common platform. We believe our common platform gives us greater transparency and compatibility across our network, allowing us to better serve our customers and employees while enhancing our supply chain.
We continue to sharpen our
in-store
execution, increase our
penetration and expand our omni-channel and digital capabilities. We have invested substantially in our business, deploying approximately $6.8 billion of capital expenditures beginning with fiscal 2015, and we used that capital to remodel existing stores, opportunistically build new stores and enhance our digital capabilities.
We are focused on creating deep and lasting relationships with our customers by offering them an experience that is
,
and
– wherever, whenever and however they choose to shop. We make life
for our customers through a convenient and consistent shopping experience across our omni-channel network. Merchandising is at our core and we offer an
and differentiated product assortment. We believe we are an industry leader in fresh, emphasizing organic, locally sourced and seasonal items as well as value-added services like daily
fresh-cut
fruit and vegetables, customized meat cuts and seafood varieties, made-
Our
,
and
shopping experience, coupled with our nationwide
, grocery and fuel rewards programs and pharmacy services, offers a differentiated value proposition to our customers. The
program has 20.7 million registered loyalty households which, we believe, provides us with a comprehensive understanding of our core shoppers. These loyalty programs and our omni-channel offerings combine to form an extended loyalty ecosystem that drives increased customer lifetime value through greater purchase frequency, larger basket size and higher customer retention.
We operate in the $1.1 trillion U.S. food retail industry, a highly fragmented sector with a large number of companies competing locally and a growing array of companies with a national footprint, including traditional supermarkets, pharmacies and drug stores, convenience stores, warehouse clubs and supercenters. The industry has also seen the widespread introduction of “limited assortment” retail stores, as well as local chains and stand-alone stores that cater to the individual cultural preferences of specific neighborhoods. Despite this, large, national grocers have increased market share over time as scale remains an important advantage in offering customers a modern and attractive shopping experience. Between 2013 and 2018, the share of the top 10 food retail companies increased from 44% to 55% on the basis of industry retail sales. While brick and mortar stores account for approximately 95% of industry sales, eCommerce offerings have been expanding as a result of new pure-play internet-based companies as well as established players expanding omni-channel options. Several system enhancements were made to our eCommerce platform in fiscal 2019 that significantly improves the overall customer experience. We created a single
sign-on
and simplified the registration experience. We
re-platformed
the ‘Cart’, ‘Checkout’ and ‘Order Edit’ functionality to improve performance. We also integrated a single shoppable homepage allowing customers to easily add to their cart, created more user-friendly search functionality and made product recommendations available. Other trends in the industry include changing consumer tastes, preferences (including those relating to sustainability of product sources) and spending patterns. See “Risk Factors—Risks Related to Our Business and Industry—We may not timely identify or effectively respond to consumer trends, which could negatively affect our relationship with our customers, the demand for our products and services and our market share.”
From 2014 through 2019, food retail industry revenues increased by $29 billion, driven in part by economic growth, favorable consumer dynamics and a consumer shift to premium and organic brands. Both inflation and deflation affect our business. After a period of food deflation in 2016 and 2017, the
Food-at-Home
Consumer Price Index increased by 0.4% in 2018 and 0.9% in 2019 and is expected to increase between 2.0% and 3.0% in 2020, and U.S. GDP is expected to increase by 2.1% in 2020.
A considerable number of our employees are paid at rates related to the federal minimum wage. Additionally, many of our stores are located in states, including California, where the minimum wage is greater than the federal minimum wage and where a considerable number of employees receive compensation equal to the state’s minimum wage. For example, as of February 29, 2020, we employed approximately 67,000 associates in California, where the current minimum wage was increased to $13.00 per hour effective January 1, 2020, and will gradually increase each year thereafter to $15.00 per hour by January 1, 2022. In Massachusetts, where we employed approximately 10,800 associates as of February 29, 2020, the minimum wage increased to $12.75 per hour, effective January 1, 2020, and will reach $15.00 per hour by 2023. In New Jersey, where we employed approximately 6,600 associates as of February 29, 2020, the minimum wage increased to $11.00 per hour, effective January 1, 2020, and will reach $15.00 per hour by 2024. In Maryland, where we employed approximately 7,100 associates as of February 29, 2020, the minimum wage increased to $11.00 per hour, effective January 1, 2020, and will reach $15.00 per hour by 2025. Moreover, municipalities may set minimum wages above the applicable state standards. For example, the minimum wage in Seattle, Washington, where we employed approximately 1,800 associates as of February 29, 2020, increased to $16.39 per hour effective
January 1, 2020 for employers with more than 500 employees nationwide. In Chicago, Illinois, where we employed approximately 6,100 associates as of February 29, 2020, the minimum wage increased to $13.00 per hour effective July 1, 2019. Any further increases in the federal minimum wage or the enactment of additional state or local minimum wage increases could increase our labor costs, which may adversely affect our results of operations and financial condition.
In addition, we participate in various multiemployer pension plans for substantially all employees represented by unions pursuant to collective bargaining agreements that require us to contribute to these plans. Pension expenses for multiemployer pension plans are recognized by us as contributions are made. Generally, benefits are based on a fixed amount for each year of service. Our contributions to these pension plans could change as a result of collective bargaining efforts, which could have a negative effect to our results of operations and financial condition. Our contributions to multiemployer plans were $469.3 million, $451.1 million and $431.2 million during fiscal 2019, fiscal 2018 and fiscal 2017, respectively. See “Risk Factors—Risks Related to Our Business and Industry—Increased pension expenses, contributions and surcharges may have an adverse impact on our financial results.”
We have identified and are in the early stages of implementing a broad range of new, specific productivity initiatives that target $1 billion in annual
run-rate
productivity benefits by the end of fiscal 2022 to help offset cost inflation, fund growth and drive earnings. The initiatives include operational efficiencies such as shrink management and labor efficiencies, purchasing and procurement, improved promotional effectiveness and leveraging corporate overhead, including continued modernization of our IT infrastructure. While certain projects are well underway and contributing as expected, in other cases, we have temporarily paused some of our initiatives to ensure we are first taking care of our customers and our communities, while focusing on the safety of our associates during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. The savings from these planned productivity initiatives represent management’s estimates and remain subject to risks and uncertainties. See “Risk Factors—Risks Related to Our Business and Industry—Failure to realize anticipated benefits from our productivity initiatives could adversely affect our financial performance and competitive position.”
Coronavirus
(COVID-19)
has spread to every state in the United States. This pandemic has severely impacted economic activity, and many states in the United States have reacted to the pandemic by instituting quarantines, mandating business and school closures and restricting travel. We currently operate our stores as an “essential” business under relevant federal, state and local mandates. Since the beginning of fiscal 2020, we have experienced significant increases in customer traffic, product demand and basket size in stores as people adjust to these new circumstances. Consumer staples, paper goods, meat, alcoholic beverages and cleaning supplies are among the products being purchased in significant quantities. There has also been a substantial increase in customer demand and engagement with our eCommerce offerings as a result of the pandemic, including both home delivery and our Drive Up & Go curbside pickup. We have responded to this increased demand for our eCommerce offerings by hiring additional pickers and drivers, retaining additional third-party service providers and expanding our Drive Up & Go offerings. We have also simplified our offerings on our eCommerce websites to focus on the products that are most in demand.
Responding to the pandemic has also significantly increased our expenses. We have stepped up how often we clean and disinfect all departments, restrooms, and other high-touch points of our stores, including check stands and service counters, and hourly disinfecting of high-touch areas. This is in addition to our rigorous food safety and sanitations programs already in place. Cart wipes and hand sanitizer stations have been installed in key locations within stores. To meet our requirements for increased labor in order to meet customer demand in store and across eCommerce channels, we have partnered with major companies to provide temporary jobs to their employees who have been furloughed or had their hours cut. We have increased hiring since the beginning of fiscal 2020, partnering with more than 35 companies to help keep Americans working, and now have approximately 310,000 associates. To the extent that our need for increased labor continues, we will need to hire
and train additional employees to fill the roles performed by these temporary employees. Beginning March 15, 2020 through June 13, 2020, in recognition of their significant efforts, we instituted a temporary increase in pay for all front-line associates of $2 per hour for every hour that they work. In addition, we are making a final weekly reward payment to front-line associates during the week ended June 20, 2020 of $4 per hour based upon the average weekly hours associates worked during the period from March 15, 2020 through June 13, 2020. We also, through our Albertsons Companies Foundation, have pledged $50 million to hunger relief and previously launched a major fundraiser to help feed families in need during the coronavirus
(COVID-19)
pandemic and ensure that they get the food they need.
Beyond our doors, we rely on various suppliers and vendors to provide and deliver our product inventory on a continuous basis. We could suffer significant product inventory losses and significant lost revenue in the event of the loss or a shutdown of a major supplier or vendor, disruption of our distribution network, extended power outages, natural disasters or other catastrophic occurrences. Due to the coronavirus
(COVID-19)
pandemic and the resulting dislocation of workplaces and the economy, the ability of vendors to supply required products may be impaired because of the illness or absenteeism in their workforces, government mandated shutdown orders or impaired financial conditions.
Most of the states in which we operate have anti-price gouging statutes, which place limits on our ability to increase prices after an officially declared emergency. Certain state governors declared an emergency near the outset of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, thus triggering the application of anti-price gouging statutes. As the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic began, we implemented procedures to assure compliance with anti-price gouging laws, including instruction and guidance to our retail operators on the price restrictions to which we needed to adhere. Despite these efforts, we have been named as a defendant (along with other retailers and suppliers) in three complaints alleging price gouging and one other pre-complaint claim letter. We believe these actions are without merit, at least as they relate to our Company.
We expect the ultimate significance of the impact of the pandemic on our financial condition, results of operations, or cash flows will be dictated by the length of time that such circumstances continue, which will depend on the currently unknowable extent and duration of the coronavirus
(COVID-19)
pandemic and the nature and effectiveness of governmental and public actions taken in response. Coronavirus
(COVID-19)
also makes it more challenging for management to estimate future performance of our businesses, particularly over the near term.
The following table shows stores operating, acquired, opened and closed during the period presented:
| | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | | | |
Stores, beginning of period | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | ) | | | | ) | | | | ) |
| | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | | | | | | |
The following table summarizes our stores by size:
(1) | In millions, reflects total square footage of retail stores operating at the end of the period. |
The following table and related discussion sets forth certain information and comparisons regarding the components of our Consolidated Statements of Operations for fiscal 2019, fiscal 2018 and fiscal 2017, respectively (in millions):
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | | | |
Net sales and other revenue | | $ | | | | | | % | | $ | | | | | | % | | $ | | | | | | % |
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
Selling and administrative expenses | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
(Gain) loss on property dispositions and impairment losses, net | | | | ) | | | | ) | | | | ) | | | | ) | | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ) | | | | |
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
Loss (gain) on debt extinguishment | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ) | | | | |
Other expense (income), net | | | | | | | | | | | | ) | | | | ) | | | | ) | | | | |
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
Income (loss) before income taxes | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ) | | | | ) |
Income tax expense (benefit) | | | | | | | | | | | | ) | | | | ) | | | | ) | | | | ) |
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| | $ | | | | | | % | | $ | | | | | | % | | $ | | | | | | % |
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
Identical Sales, Excluding Fuel
Identical sales include stores operating during the same period in both the current year and the prior year, comparing sales on a daily basis. Direct to consumer internet sales are included in identical sales, and fuel sales are excluded from identical sales. Acquired stores become identical on the
one-year
anniversary date of the acquisition. Identical sales results, on an actual basis, for the past three fiscal years were as follows:
| | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | | | |
Identical sales, excluding fuel | | | | % | | | | % | | | | )% |
Net Sales and Other Revenue
Net sales and other revenue increased $1,920.6 million, or 3.2%, from $60,534.5 million in fiscal 2018 to $62,455.1 million in fiscal 2019. The components of the change in Net sales and other revenue for fiscal 2019 were as follows (in millions):
| | | | |
| | | |
Net sales and other revenue for fiscal 2018 | | $ | | |
Identical sales increase of 2.1% | | | | |
| | | | |
Decrease in sales due to store closures, net of new store openings | | | | ) |
| | | | ) |
| | | | |
| | | | |
Net sales and other revenue for fiscal 2019 | | $ | | |
| | | | |
(1) | Includes changes in non-identical sales and other miscellaneous revenue. |
The primary increase in Net sales and other revenue in fiscal 2019 as compared to fiscal 2018 was driven by our 2.1% increase in identical sales and sales due to the additional 53rd week, partially offset by a reduction in sales related to the closure of 31 stores in fiscal 2019 and a decrease in fuel sales of $25.5 million. Fiscal 2019 identical sales benefited from the growth in online home delivery and Drive Up & Go curbside pickup sales and
sales.
Net sales and other revenue increased $609.9 million, or 1.0%, from $59,924.6 million in fiscal 2017 to $60,534.5 million in fiscal 2018. The components of the change in Net sales and other revenue for fiscal 2018 were as follows (in millions):
| | | | |
| | | |
Net sales and other revenue for fiscal 2017 | | $ | | |
Identical sales increase of 1.0% | | | | |
| | | | |
Decrease in sales due to store closures, net of new store openings | | | | ) |
| | | | |
| | | | |
Net sales and other revenue for fiscal 2018 | | $ | | |
| | | | |
(1) | Includes changes in non-identical sales and other miscellaneous revenue. |
The primary increase in Net sales and other revenue in fiscal 2018 as compared to fiscal 2017 was driven by our 1.0% increase in identical sales and an increase in fuel sales of $351.3 million, partially offset by a reduction in sales related to the closure of 55 stores in fiscal 2018.
Gross profit represents the portion of Net sales and other revenue remaining after deducting the Cost of sales during the period, including purchase and distribution costs. These costs include inbound freight charges, purchasing and receiving costs, warehouse inspection costs, warehousing costs and other costs associated with our distribution network. Advertising, promotional expenses and vendor allowances are also components of Cost of sales.
Gross profit margin increased 30 basis points to 28.2% in fiscal 2019 compared to 27.9% in fiscal 2018. Excluding the impact of fuel, gross profit margin increased 20 basis points. The increase in fiscal 2019 as compared to fiscal 2018 was primarily attributable to lower shrink expense primarily related to the ongoing inventory management initiatives, improved product mix, including increased penetration in
and natural and organic products, lower depreciation and amortization expense and lower advertising costs, partially offset by higher rent expense related to sale leaseback transactions and industry-wide reimbursement rate pressures in pharmacy.
| | | | |
Fiscal 2019 vs. Fiscal 2018 | | | |
| | | | |
Product mix, including increased penetration in and natural and organic products | | | | |
Depreciation and amortization | | | | |
| | | | |
| | | | ) |
Pharmacy reimbursement rate pressure | | | | ) |
| | | | |
| | | | |
| | | | |
| | | | |
amortization expense and our cost reduction initiatives, partially offset by increased employee wage and benefit costs and higher acquisition and integration costs. Increased employee wage and benefit costs were primarily attributable to incentive pay as a result of improved operating performance. Higher acquisition and integration costs were primarily driven by the 506 store conversions in fiscal 2018 related to the Safeway integration compared to 219 store conversions in fiscal 2017.
| | | | |
Fiscal 2018 vs. Fiscal 2017 | | | |
Depreciation and amortization | | | | ) |
Cost reduction initiatives | | | | ) |
Employee wage and benefit costs (primarily incentive pay) | | | | |
Other (includes an increase in acquisition and integration costs) | | | | |
| | | | |
| | | | ) |
| | | | |
(Gain) Loss on Property Dispositions and Impairment Losses, Net
For fiscal 2019, net gain on property dispositions and impairment losses was $484.8 million, primarily driven by gains from the sale of assets of $559.2 million including $463.6 million of gains related to sale leaseback transactions during the second quarter of fiscal 2019, partially offset by $77.4 million of asset impairments including impairment losses of $46.0 million related to certain assets of our meal kit operations and impairment losses related to underperforming stores and certain surplus properties. For fiscal 2018, net gain on property dispositions and impairment losses was $165.0 million, primarily driven by gains from the sale of assets of $240.1 million, partially offset by long-lived asset impairment losses of $36.3 million. For fiscal 2017, net loss on property dispositions and impairment losses was $66.7 million, primarily driven by long-lived asset impairment losses of $100.9 million primarily related to underperforming stores, partially offset by gains from the sale of assets of $63.8 million.
No goodwill impairment was recorded in fiscal 2019 and fiscal 2018, compared to $142.3 million in fiscal 2017.
Interest expense, net was $698.0 million in fiscal 2019, $830.8 million in fiscal 2018 and $874.8 million in fiscal 2017. The decrease in Interest expense, net for fiscal 2019 compared to fiscal 2018 is primarily due to lower average outstanding borrowings and lower average interest rates. The weighted average interest rate during fiscal 2019 was 6.4%, excluding amortization of debt discounts and deferred financing costs. The weighted average interest rate during fiscal 2018 and fiscal 2017 was 6.6% and 6.5%, respectively.
The following details our components of Interest expense, net for the respective fiscal years (in millions):
| | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | | | |
ABL Facility, senior secured and unsecured notes, term loans and debentures | | $ | | | | $ | | | | $ | | |
Finance lease obligations | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | | | | | | |
Other interest (income) expense | | | | ) | | | | ) | | | | |
| | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | $ | | | | $ | | | | $ | | |
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Loss (Gain) on Debt Extinguishment
During fiscal 2019, we completed a cash tender offer and early redemption of Safeway notes and NALP Notes with a par value of $437.0 million and a book value of $397.0 million for $415.3 million. We also repurchased NALP Notes on the open market with an aggregate par value of $553.9 million and a book value of $502.0 million for $547.5 million. On February 5, 2020, we repaid $2,349.8 million of aggregate principal amount outstanding under our term loan facilities, which represented the entire outstanding term loan balance. In connection with the term loan repayment, we expensed $15.2 million of previously deferred financing costs and $29.9 million of original issue discount. Including fees, we recognized an aggregate loss on debt extinguishment related to the tender offer, various repurchases of notes and term loan repayment of $111.4 million.
During fiscal 2018, we repurchased Safeway’s 7.45% Senior Debentures due 2027 and 7.25% Debentures due 2031 with a par value of $333.7 million and a book value of $322.4 million, and NALP Notes with a par value of $108.4 million and a book value of $96.4 million for an aggregate of $424.4 million (the “2018 Repurchases”). We also redeemed Safeway’s 5.00% Senior Notes due 2019 (the “2018 Redemption”) for $271.7 million, which included an associated make-whole premium of $3.1 million. In connection with the 2018 Repurchases and the 2018 Redemption, we recorded a loss on debt extinguishment of $8.7 million.
During fiscal 2017, we repurchased NALP Notes with a par value of $160.0 million and a book value of $140.2 million for $135.5 million plus accrued interest of $3.7 million (the “NALP Notes Repurchase”). In connection with the NALP Notes Repurchase, we recorded a gain on debt extinguishment of $4.7 million.
Other Expense (Income), Net
For fiscal 2019, Other expense, net was $28.5 million primarily driven by recognized losses on interest rate swaps, partially offset by
non-service
cost components of net pension and post-retirement expense. For fiscal 2018, Other income, net was $104.4 million primarily driven by adjustments related to acquisition-related contingent consideration, gains related to
non-operating
minority investments and
non-service
cost components of net pension and post-retirement expense. For fiscal 2017, Other income, net was $9.2 million primarily driven by changes in our equity method investment in Casa Ley, changes in the fair value of the contingent value rights (“CVRs”),
non-service
cost components of net pension and post-retirement expense and gains and losses on the sale of
non-operating
minority investments.
Income tax was an expense of $132.8 million in fiscal 2019 and a benefit of $78.9 million in fiscal 2018 and $963.8 million in fiscal 2017. Prior to the Reorganization Transactions, a substantial portion of our businesses and assets were held and operated by limited liability companies, which are generally not subject to entity-level federal or state income taxation. See Note 1—Description of business, basis of presentation and summary of significant accounting policies in our consolidated financial statements, included elsewhere in this prospectus, for a discussion and definition of the “Reorganization Transactions.” On December 22, 2017, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (the “Tax Act”) was signed into law, which resulted in a significant ongoing benefit to us, primarily due to the reduction in the corporate tax rate from 35% to 21% and the ability to accelerate depreciation deductions for qualified property purchases.
The components of the change in income taxes for the last three fiscal years were as follows:
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| | | | | | | | | |
Income tax expense (benefit) at federal statutory rate | | $ | | | | $ | | | | $ | | ) |
State income taxes, net of federal benefit | | | | | | | | | | | | ) |
Change in valuation allowance | | | | ) | | | | ) | | | | ) |
| | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | | | |
Unrecognized tax benefits | | $ | | | | $ | | ) | | $ | | ) |
| | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | ) | | | | ) | | | | |
| | | | ) | | | | ) | | | | ) |
| | | | | | | | ) | | | | ) |
| | | | | | | | | | | | ) |
Reorganization of limited liability companies | | | | | | | | | | | | |
Nondeductible equity-based compensation expense | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | | ) | | | | ) |
| | | | | | | | | | | | |
Income tax expense (benefit) | | $ | | | | $ | | ) | | $ | | ) |
| | | | | | | | | | | | |
As a result of the Tax Act, we recorded a net
non-cash
tax benefit of $56.9 million and $430.4 million in fiscal 2018 and fiscal 2017, respectively, primarily due to the lower corporate tax rate. The income tax benefit in fiscal 2017 includes a net $218.0 million
non-cash
benefit from the reversal of a valuation allowance, partially offset by an increase of $46.7 million in net deferred tax liabilities from our limited liability companies related to the Reorganization Transactions.
Adjusted EBITDA and Adjusted Free Cash Flow
The
Non-GAAP
Measures are performance measures that provide supplemental information we believe is useful to analysts and investors to evaluate our ongoing results of operations, when considered alongside other GAAP measures such as net income, operating income, gross profit and net cash provided by operating activities. These
Non-GAAP
Measures exclude the financial impact of items management does not consider in assessing our ongoing operating performance, and thereby facilitate review of our operating performance on a
period-to-period
basis. Other companies may have different capital structures or different lease terms, and comparability to our results of operations may be impacted by the effects of acquisition accounting on our depreciation and amortization. As a result of the effects of these factors and factors specific to other companies, we believe EBITDA, Adjusted EBITDA and Adjusted Free Cash Flow provide helpful information to analysts and investors to facilitate a comparison of our operating performance to that of other companies. We also use Adjusted EBITDA, as further adjusted for additional items defined in our debt instruments, for board of director and bank compliance reporting. The presentation of
Non-GAAP
Measures should not be construed as an inference that our future results will be unaffected by unusual or
non-recurring
items.
For fiscal 2019, Adjusted EBITDA was $2.8 billion, or 4.5% of Net sales and other revenue, compared to $2.7 billion, or 4.5% of Net sales and other revenue, for fiscal 2018. The increase in Adjusted EBITDA reflects our identical sales increase and higher gross profit margin, including fuel margins, and the additional week in fiscal 2019, partially offset by incremental rent expense and occupancy costs, largely driven by sale leaseback transactions, and investments in strategic initiatives, including digital and technology.
The following is a reconciliation of Net income to Adjusted EBITDA (in millions):
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| | | | | | | | | |
| | $ | | | | $ | | | | $ | | |
Depreciation and amortization | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | | | | | | |
Income tax expense (benefit) | | | | | | | | ) | | | | ) |
| | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | | | |
Amortization and write-off of deferred financing costs | | $ | | ) | | $ | | ) | | $ | | ) |
Acquisition and integration costs | | | | | | | | | | | | |
Pension and post-retirement (income) expense, net of contributions | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | | | | | | ) |
| | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | | | | | | |
Less: capital expenditures | | | | ) | | | | ) | | | | ) |
| | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | $ | | | | $ | | | | $ | | |
| | | | | | | | | | | | |
Liquidity and Financial Resources
The following table sets forth the major sources and uses of cash and cash equivalents and restricted cash at the end of each period (in millions):
| | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | | | |
Cash and cash equivalents and restricted cash at end of period | | $ | | | | $ | | | | $ | | |
Cash flows provided by operating activities | | | | | | | | | | | | |
Cash flows used in investing activities | | | | ) | | | | ) | | | | ) |
Cash flows used in financing activities | | | | ) | | | | ) | | | | ) |
Net Cash Provided By Operating Activities
Net cash provided by operating activities was $1,903.9 million during fiscal 2019 compared to net cash provided by operating activities of $1,687.9 million during fiscal 2018. The increase in net cash flow from operating activities during fiscal 2019 compared to fiscal 2018 was primarily due to improvements in Adjusted EBITDA, principally reflecting the results in fiscal 2019 compared to fiscal 2018, lower acquisition and integration costs, lower contributions to defined benefit pension plans and post-retirement benefit plans, a decrease in cash paid for interest and the additional week in fiscal 2019, partially offset by an increase in cash paid for income taxes primarily related to sale leaseback transactions and changes in working capital.
Net cash provided by operating activities was $1,687.9 million during fiscal 2018 compared to net cash provided by operating activities of $1,018.8 million during fiscal 2017. The increase in net cash flow from operating activities during fiscal 2018 compared to fiscal 2017 was primarily due to the increase in Adjusted EBITDA, principally reflecting the results in fiscal 2018 compared to fiscal 2017, and changes in working capital primarily related to accounts payable and accrued liabilities, which includes $42.3 million in payments related to litigation settlements in fiscal 2017, partially offset by $199.3 million in pension contributions in fiscal 2018.
Net Cash Used In Investing Activities
Net cash used in investing activities during fiscal 2019 was $378.5 million primarily due to payments for property and equipment, including lease buyouts, of $1,475.1 million, partially offset by proceeds from the sale of assets of $1,096.7 million. Payments for property and equipment included the opening of 14 new stores, completion of 243 upgrades and remodels and continued investment in digital and eCommerce technology. Proceeds from the sale of assets primarily includes the sale and leaseback of 53 store properties and one distribution center for $931.3 million, net of closing costs, during the second quarter of fiscal 2019 and certain other property dispositions during fiscal 2019.
Net cash used in investing activities during fiscal 2018 was $86.8 million primarily due to payments for property and equipment, including lease buyouts, of $1,362.6 million, which includes approximately $70 million
of Safeway integration-related capital expenditures, partially offset by proceeds from the sale of assets of $1,252.0 million. Payments for property and equipment included the opening of six new stores, completion of 128 upgrades and remodels and continued investment in digital and eCommerce technology. Asset sale proceeds primarily relate to the sale and leaseback of seven of our distribution center properties during fiscal 2018 and other property dispositions.
Net cash used in investing activities during fiscal 2017 was $469.0 million primarily due to payments for property and equipment, including lease buyouts, of $1,547.0 million, which includes approximately $200 million of Safeway integration-related capital expenditures, and payments for business acquisitions of $148.8 million, partially offset by proceeds from the sale of assets of $939.2 million and proceeds from the sale of our equity method investment in Casa Ley of $344.2 million. Asset sale proceeds primarily relate to the sale and leaseback of 94 store properties during the third and fourth quarters of fiscal 2017.
In fiscal 2020, we expect to spend approximately $1.5 billion in capital expenditures, or approximately 2.4% of our sales in fiscal 2019, as follows, which does not reflect any incremental investments in technology and other initiatives we may consider in light of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic (in millions):
| | | | |
Projected Fiscal 2020 Capital Expenditures | | | | |
| | $ | | |
| | | | |
Real estate and expansion capital | | | | |
| | | | |
| | | | |
| | | | |
| | $ | | |
| | | | |
Net Cash Used In Financing Activities
Net cash used in financing activities was $2,014.2 million in fiscal 2019 consisting of payments on long-term debt and finance leases of $5,785.9 million, partially offset by proceeds from the issuance of long-term debt of $3,874.0 million. Payments on long-term debt principally consisted of the term loan repayments, tender offer and various repurchases of notes, as further discussed below.
Net cash used in financing activities was $1,314.2 million in fiscal 2018 consisting of payments on long-term debt and finance leases of $3,179.8 million, partially offset by proceeds from the issuance of long-term debt of $1,969.8 million. Proceeds from the issuance of long-term debt and payments of long-term debt consisted of the issuance of the 2026 Notes, the issuance and subsequent redemption of the $750.0 million floating rate senior secured notes as a result of the terminated merger with Rite Aid Corporation, borrowings and repayments under our ABL Facility, the repayment of term loans in connection with the refinancing and repurchase of Safeway’s notes.
Net cash used in financing activities was $1,098.1 million in fiscal 2017 due primarily to payments on long-term debt and capital lease obligations of $977.8 million, payment of the Casa Ley CVR and a member distribution of $250.0 million, partially offset by proceeds from the issuance of long-term debt.
Total debt, including both the current and long-term portions of finance lease obligations and net of debt discounts and deferred financing costs, decreased $1.9 billion to $8.7 billion as of the end of fiscal 2019 compared to $10.6 billion as of the end of fiscal 2018.
Outstanding debt, including current maturities and net of debt discounts and deferred financing costs, principally consisted of (in millions):
| | | | |
| | | |
| | $ | | |
| | | | |
Other notes payable and mortgages | | | | |
| | | | |
Total debt, including finance leases | | $ | | |
| | | | |
On February 5, 2020, we completed the issuance of $750.0 million in aggregate principal amount of new 2023 Notes, $600.0 million in aggregate principal amount of Additional 2027 Notes and $1,000.0 million in aggregate principal amount of new 2030 Notes (together with the 2023 Notes and Additional 2027 Notes, the “New Notes”). The net proceeds received from the issuance of the New Notes, together with approximately $18 million of cash on hand, were used to prepay in full the $2,349.8 million of aggregate principal amount outstanding of our then existing term loan facility and pay fees and expenses related to the term loan repayment and the issuance of the New Notes.
On November 22, 2019, we completed the issuance of $750.0 million in aggregate principal amount of 2027 Notes. Also on November 22, 2019, we repaid approximately $743 million in aggregate principal amount outstanding under our term loan facilities which was to mature on November 17, 2025, along with accrued and unpaid interest and fees and expenses, with the proceeds from the issuance of the 2027 Notes.
On August 15, 2019, we repaid approximately $1,571 million in aggregate principal amount outstanding under our term loan facilities, along with accrued and unpaid interest and fees and expenses, using cash on hand and proceeds from the issuance of the 2028 Notes (as defined herein). Contemporaneously with the term loan repayment, we refinanced the remaining amounts outstanding with new term loan tranches. The new tranches consisted of $3.1 billion in aggregate principal, of which $1,500.0 million was to mature on November 17, 2025 and $1,600.0 million was to mature on August 17, 2026. The new loans amortized, on a quarterly basis, at a rate of 1.0% per annum of the original principal amount. The new loans bore interest, at the borrower’s option, at a rate per annum equal to either (a) the base rate plus 1.75% or (b) LIBOR plus 2.75%, subject to a 0.75% floor.
Also on August 15, 2019, we completed the issuance of $750.0 million in aggregate principal amount of 2028 Notes. Proceeds from the 2028 Notes were used to partially fund the August 15, 2019 term loan repayment discussed above.
On May 24, 2019, we completed a cash tender offer and early redemption of $34.1 million of Safeway notes and $402.9 million of NALP Notes for an aggregate of $415.3 million in cash plus accrued and unpaid interest. During fiscal 2019, we also repurchased NALP Notes on the open market with an aggregate par value of $553.9 million for $547.5 million in cash plus accrued and unpaid interest.
During the second quarter of fiscal 2019, we completed the sale and leaseback of 53 store properties and one distribution center, through three separate transactions, for an aggregate purchase price, net of closing costs, of $931.3 million. In connection with the sale leaseback transactions, we entered into lease agreements for each of the properties for initial terms ranging from 15 to 20 years. The aggregate initial annual rent payment for the properties is approximately $53 million and includes 1.50% to 1.75% annual rent increases over the initial lease
expenses as a percent of net sales was 24.5% for the first 12 weeks of fiscal 2020 compared to 25.3% for the first 12 weeks of fiscal 2019. Excluding fuel sales, our selling and administrative expenses as a percent of net sales decreased 160 basis points in the first 12 weeks of fiscal 2020 compared to the first 12 weeks of fiscal 2019. The improved gross margin rate and selling and administrative rate were primarily the result of increased leveraging of our costs, partially offset by increased expenses related to our response to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
Subject to opportunistic investments, we currently expect our Net Debt at the end of fiscal 2020 will be approximately $6.7 billion as we anticipate that incremental cash flow from our business will, subject to seasonal fluctuations, fund capital expenditures, debt service, working capital replenishment, dividends and other operating needs. It is too early to predict the permanent impact the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic will have on our industry or food-at-home consumption or what the impact on sales will be going forward.
The ABL Facility contains no financial maintenance covenants unless and until (a) excess availability is less than (i) 10% of the lesser of the aggregate commitments and the then-current borrowing base at any time or (ii) $250.0 million at any time or (b) an event of default is continuing. If any such event occurs, we must maintain a fixed charge coverage ratio of 1.0:1.0 from the date such triggering event occurs until such event of default is cured or waived and/or the 30th day that all such triggers under clause (a) no longer exist.
During fiscal 2019 and fiscal 2018, there were no financial maintenance covenants in effect under the ABL Facility because the conditions listed above had not been met.
See Note 7 - Long-term debt and finance lease obligations in our consolidated financial statements, included elsewhere in this prospectus, for additional information.
The table below presents our significant contractual obligations as of February 29, 2020 (in millions)(1):
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| | | |
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| | $ | | | | $ | | | | $ | | | | $ | | | | $ | | |
Estimated interest on long-term debt (3) | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
Other long-term liabilities (5) | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
Total contractual obligations | | $ | | | | $ | | | | $ | | | | $ | | | | $ | | |
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
(1) | The contractual obligations table excludes funding of pension and other postretirement benefit obligations, which totaled $11.0 million in fiscal 2019 and is expected to total $69.5 million in fiscal 2020. This table excludes contributions under various multiemployer pension plans, which totaled $469.3 million in fiscal 2019 and is expected to total approximately $500 million in fiscal 2020. |
(2) | Long-term debt amounts exclude any debt discounts and deferred financing costs. See Note 7 - Long-term debt and finance lease obligations in our consolidated financial statements, included elsewhere in this prospectus, for additional information. |
(3) | Amounts include contractual interest payments using the stated fixed interest rate as of February 29, 2020. See Note 7 - Long-term debt and finance lease obligations in our consolidated financial statements, included elsewhere in this prospectus, for additional information. |
(4) | Represents the minimum rents payable under operating and finance leases, excluding common area maintenance, insurance or tax payments, for which we are obligated. |
(6) | Purchase obligations include various obligations that have specified purchase commitments. As of February 29, 2020, future purchase obligations primarily relate to fixed asset, marketing and information technology commitments, including fixed price contracts. In addition, not included in the contractual obligations table are supply contracts to purchase product for resale to consumers which are typically of a short-term nature with limited or no purchase commitments. We also enter into supply contracts which typically include either volume commitments or fixed expiration dates, termination provisions and other customary contractual considerations. The supply contracts that are cancelable have not been included above. |
Off-Balance
Sheet Arrangements
We are party to a variety of contractual agreements pursuant to which we may be obligated to indemnify the other party for certain matters. These contracts primarily relate to our commercial contracts, operating leases and other real estate contracts, trademarks, intellectual property, financial agreements and various other agreements. Under these agreements, we may provide certain routine indemnifications relating to representations and warranties (for example, ownership of assets, environmental or tax indemnifications) or personal injury matters. The terms of these indemnifications range in duration and may not be explicitly defined. We believe that if we were to incur a loss in any of these matters, the loss would not have a material effect on our financial statements.
We are liable for certain operating leases that were assigned to third parties. If any of these third parties fail to perform their obligations under the leases, we could be responsible for the lease obligation, including as a result of the economic dislocation caused by the response to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. See Note 13 - Commitments and contingencies and off balance sheet arrangements in our consolidated financial statements, included elsewhere in this prospectus, for additional information. Because of the wide dispersion among third parties and the variety of remedies available, we believe that if an assignee became insolvent it would not have a material effect on our financial condition, results of operations or cash flows.
In the ordinary course of business, we enter into various supply contracts to purchase products for resale and purchase and service contracts for fixed asset and information technology commitments. These contracts typically include volume commitments or fixed expiration dates, termination provisions and other standard contractual considerations.
We had letters of credit of $454.5 million outstanding as of February 29, 2020. The letters of credit are maintained primarily to support our performance, payment, deposit or surety obligations. We typically pay bank fees of 1.25% plus a fronting fee of 0.125% on the face amount of the letters of credit.
See Note 1 - Description of business, basis of presentation and summary of significant accounting policies in our consolidated financial statements, included elsewhere in this prospectus, for new accounting pronouncements which have been adopted.
Critical Accounting Policies
The preparation of consolidated financial statements in conformity with GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities as of the date of the consolidated financial statements and the reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the reporting period. Actual results could differ from those estimates.
We have chosen accounting policies that we believe are appropriate to report accurately and fairly our operating results and financial position, and we apply those accounting policies in a fair and consistent manner. See Note 1 - Description of business, basis of presentation and summary of significant accounting policies in our consolidated financial statements, included elsewhere in this prospectus, for a discussion of our significant accounting policies.
Management believes the following critical accounting policies reflect its more subjective or complex judgments and estimates used in the preparation of our consolidated financial statements.
Self-Insurance Liabilities
We are primarily self-insured for workers’ compensation, property, automobile and general liability. The self-insurance liability is undiscounted and determined actuarially, based on claims filed and an estimate of claims incurred but not yet reported. We have established stop-loss amounts that limit our further exposure after a claim reaches the designated stop-loss threshold. In determining our self-insurance liabilities, we perform a continuing review of our overall position and reserving techniques. Since recorded amounts are based on estimates, the ultimate cost of all incurred claims and related expenses may be more or less than the recorded liabilities.
Any actuarial projection of self-insured losses is subject to a high degree of variability. Litigation trends, legal interpretations, benefit level changes, claim settlement patterns and similar factors influenced historical development trends that were used to determine the current year expense and, therefore, contributed to the variability in the annual expense. However, these factors are not direct inputs into the actuarial projection, and thus their individual impact cannot be quantified.
Long-Lived Asset Impairment
We regularly review our individual stores’ operating performance, together with current market conditions, for indications of impairment. When events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying value of an individual store’s assets may not be recoverable, its future undiscounted cash flows are compared to the carrying value. If the carrying value of store assets to be held and used is greater than the future undiscounted cash flows, an impairment loss is recognized to record the assets at fair value. For property and equipment held for sale, we recognize impairment charges for the excess of the carrying value plus estimated costs of disposal over the fair value. Fair values are based on discounted cash flows or current market rates. These estimates of fair value can be significantly impacted by factors such as changes in the current economic environment and real estate market conditions. Long-lived asset impairment losses were $77.4 million, $36.3 million and $100.9 million in fiscal 2019, fiscal 2018 and fiscal 2017, respectively.
Business Combination Measurements
In accordance with applicable accounting standards, we estimate the fair value of acquired assets and assumed liabilities as of the acquisition date of business combinations. These fair value adjustments are input into the calculation of goodwill related to the excess of the purchase price over the fair value of the tangible and identifiable intangible assets acquired and liabilities assumed in the acquisition.
The fair value of assets acquired and liabilities assumed are determined using market, income and cost approaches from the perspective of a market participant. The fair value measurements can be based on significant
inputs that are not readily observable in the market. The market approach indicates value for a subject asset based on available market pricing for comparable assets. The market approach used includes prices and other relevant information generated by market transactions involving comparable assets, as well as pricing guides and other sources. The income approach indicates value for a subject asset based on the present value of cash flows projected to be generated by the asset. Projected cash flows are discounted at a required market rate of return that reflects the relative risk of achieving the cash flows and the time value of money. The cost approach, which estimates value by determining the current cost of replacing an asset with another of equivalent economic utility, was used, as appropriate, for certain assets for which the market and income approaches could not be applied due to the nature of the asset. The cost to replace a given asset reflects the estimated reproduction or replacement cost for the asset, adjusted for obsolescence, whether physical, functional or economic.
As of February 29, 2020, our goodwill totaled $1.2 billion, of which $917.3 million related to our acquisition of Safeway. We review goodwill for impairment in the fourth quarter of each year, and also upon the occurrence of triggering events. We perform reviews of each of our reporting units that have goodwill balances. We review goodwill for impairment by initially considering qualitative factors to determine whether it is more likely than not that the fair value of a reporting unit is less than its carrying amount, including goodwill, as a basis for determining whether it is necessary to perform a quantitative analysis. If it is determined that it is more likely than not that the fair value of a reporting unit is less than its carrying amount, a quantitative analysis is performed to identify goodwill impairment. If it is determined that it is not more likely than not that the fair value of the reporting unit is less than its carrying amount, it is unnecessary to perform a quantitative analysis. We may elect to bypass the qualitative assessment and proceed directly to performing a quantitative analysis.
In the second quarter of the fiscal year ended February 24, 2018, there was a sustained decline in the market multiples of publicly traded peer companies. In addition, during the second quarter of the fiscal year ended February 24, 2018, we revised our short-term operating plan. As a result, we determined that an interim review of the recoverability of our goodwill was necessary. Consequently, we recorded a goodwill impairment loss of $142.3 million, substantially all within the Acme reporting unit relating to the November 2015 acquisition of stores from the Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea Company, Inc., due to changes in the estimate of our long-term future financial performance to reflect lower expectations for growth in revenue and earnings than previously estimated. The goodwill impairment loss was based on a quantitative analysis using a combination of a discounted cash flow model (income approach) and a guideline public company comparative analysis (market approach).
Goodwill has been allocated to all of our reporting units, and none of our reporting units have a zero or negative carrying amount of net assets. As of February 29, 2020, there are two reporting units with no goodwill due to the impairment loss recorded during the second quarter of the fiscal year ended February 24, 2018. There are ten reporting units with an aggregate goodwill balance of $1,132.0 million, of which the fair value of each reporting unit was substantially in excess of its carrying value, which indicates a remote likelihood of a future impairment loss. There is one reporting unit with a goodwill balance of $51.3 million where it is reasonably possible that future changes in judgments, assumptions and estimates we made in assessing the fair value of the reporting unit could cause us to recognize impairment charges on a portion of the goodwill balance within the reporting unit. For example, a future decline in market conditions, continued underperformance of this reporting unit or other factors could negatively impact the estimated future cash flows and valuation assumptions used to determine the fair value of this reporting unit and lead to future impairment charges.
The annual evaluation of goodwill performed for our reporting units during the fourth quarters of fiscal 2019, fiscal 2018 and fiscal 2017 did not result in impairment.
Substantially all of our employees are covered by various contributory and
non-contributory
pension, profit sharing or 401(k) plans, in addition to defined benefit plans for certain Safeway, Shaw’s and United employees. Certain employees participate in a long-term retention incentive bonus plan. We also provide certain health and welfare benefits, including short-term and long-term disability benefits to inactive disabled employees prior to retirement. Most union employees participate in multiemployer retirement plans pursuant to collective bargaining agreements, unless the collective bargaining agreement provides for participation in plans sponsored by us.
We recognize a liability for the underfunded status of the defined benefit plans as a component of pension and post-retirement benefit obligations. Actuarial gains or losses and prior service costs or credits are recorded within Other comprehensive (loss) income. The determination of our obligation and related expense for our sponsored pensions and other post-retirement benefits is dependent, in part, on management’s selection of certain actuarial assumptions in calculating these amounts. These assumptions include, among other things, the discount rate and expected long-term rate of return on plan assets.
The objective of our discount rate assumptions was intended to reflect the rates at which the pension benefits could be effectively settled. In making this determination, we take into account the timing and amount of benefits that would be available under the plans. We have elected to use a full yield curve approach in the estimation of service and interest cost components of net pension and other post-retirement benefit plan expense by applying the specific spot rates along the yield curve used in the determination of the projected benefit obligation to the relevant projected cash flows. We utilized weighted discount rates of 4.17% and 4.12% for our pension plan expenses for fiscal 2019 and fiscal 2018, respectively. To determine the expected rate of return on pension plan assets held by us for fiscal 2019, we considered current and forecasted plan asset allocations as well as historical and forecasted rates of return on various asset categories. Our weighted assumed pension plan investment rate of return was 6.36% and 6.38% for fiscal 2019 and fiscal 2018, respectively. See Note 11 - Employee benefit plans and collective bargaining agreements in our consolidated financial statements, included elsewhere in this prospectus, for more information on the asset allocations of pension plan assets.
Sensitivity to changes in the major assumptions used in the calculation of our pension and other post-retirement plan liabilities is illustrated below (dollars in millions).
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| | | | | Projected Benefit Obligation | | | | |
| | | | % | | $ | | | | $ | | |
| | | | | | | | | | | | |
Expected return on assets | | | | % | | | | | | $ | | |
In fiscal 2019 and fiscal 2018, we contributed $11.0 million and $199.3 million, respectively, to our pension and post-retirement plans. We expect to contribute $69.5 million to our pension and post-retirement plans in fiscal 2020.
Income Taxes and Uncertain Tax Positions
We review the tax positions taken or expected to be taken on tax returns to determine whether and to what extent a benefit can be recognized in our consolidated financial statements. See Note 10 - Income taxes in our consolidated financial statements, included elsewhere in this prospectus, for the amount of unrecognized tax benefits and other disclosures related to uncertain tax positions. Various taxing authorities periodically examine our income tax returns. These examinations include questions regarding our tax filing positions, including the timing and amount of deductions and the allocation of income to various tax jurisdictions. In evaluating these various tax filing positions, including state and local taxes, we assess our income tax positions and record tax benefits for all years subject to examination based upon management’s evaluation of the facts, circumstances and information available at the reporting date. For those tax positions where it is more likely than not that a tax
benefit will be sustained, we have recorded the largest amount of tax benefit with a greater than 50% likelihood of being realized upon ultimate settlement with a taxing authority that has full knowledge of all relevant information. For those income tax positions where it is not more likely than not that a tax benefit will be sustained, no tax benefit has been recognized in our financial statements. A number of years may elapse before an uncertain tax position is examined and fully resolved. As of February 29, 2020, we are no longer subject to federal income tax examinations for fiscal years prior to 2012 and in most states, we are no longer subject to state income tax examinations for fiscal years before 2007. Tax years 2007 through 2018 remain under examination. The assessment of our tax position relies on the judgment of management to estimate the exposures associated with our various filing positions.
Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures About Market Risk
We are exposed to market risk from a variety of sources, including changes in interest rates and commodity prices. We have from time to time selectively used derivative financial instruments to reduce these market risks. Our market risk exposures related to interest rates and commodity prices are discussed below.
Interest Rate Risk and Long-Term Debt
We are exposed to market risk from fluctuations in interest rates. We manage our exposure to interest rate fluctuations through the use of interest rate swaps. At the time of entering into interest rate swap contracts, our risk management objective and strategy is to utilize them to protect us against adverse fluctuations in interest rates by reducing our exposure to variability in cash flows relating to interest payments on a portion of our outstanding debt. We significantly reduced our exposure to changes in LIBOR, which is the designated benchmark we hedge, with the extinguishment of our term loan facility on February 5, 2020. See Note 7 - Long-term debt and finance lease obligations in our consolidated financial statements, included elsewhere in this prospectus, for additional information. In connection with the term loan extinguishment, we discontinued hedge accounting, and changes in the fair value of these instruments are recognized in earnings. We continue to make scheduled payments on the swaps that were previously designated as cash flow hedges of our term loan facility in accordance with the terms of the contracts.
As a result of the term loan extinguishment, our principal exposure to LIBOR now relates to our ABL Facility, and we believe a 100 basis point increase on our variable interest rates would not have a material impact our interest expense.
The table below provides information about our derivative financial instruments and other financial instruments that are sensitive to changes in interest rates, including debt instruments and interest rate swaps. For debt obligations, the table presents principal amounts due and related weighted average interest rates by expected maturity dates. For interest rate swaps, the table presents average notional amounts and weighted average interest rates by expected (contractual) maturity dates (dollars in millions):
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Fixed Rate - Principal payments | | $ | | | | $ | | | | $ | | | | $ | | | | $ | | | | $ | | | | $ | | | | $ | | |
Weighted average interest rate (1) | | | | % | | | | % | | | | % | | | | % | | | | % | | | | % | | | | % | | | | |
(1) | Excludes debt discounts and deferred financing costs. |
We are one of the largest food retailers in the United States, with 2,252 stores across 34 states and the District of Columbia. We operate 20 iconic banners with on average 85 years of operating history, including
Albertsons, Safeway, Vons, Pavilions, Randalls, Tom Thumb, Carrs, Jewel-Osco, Acme, Shaw’s, Star Market, United Supermarkets, Market Street
and
, with approximately 270,000 talented and dedicated employees, as of February 29, 2020, who serve on average more than 33 million customers each week. Additionally, as of February 29, 2020, we operated 1,290
in-store
branded coffee shops, 402 adjacent fuel centers, 23 dedicated distribution centers, 20 manufacturing facilities and various online platforms. Our stores operate in
First-and-Main
retail locations and have leading market share within attractive and growing geographies. We hold a #1 or #2 position by market share in 68% of the 121 MSAs in which we operate. Our portfolio of well-located, full-service stores provides the foundation of our omni-channel platform, including our rapidly growing Drive Up & Go curbside pickup, home delivery and rush delivery offerings. We seek to tailor our offerings to local demographics and preferences of the markets that we operate in. Our
Locally Great, Nationally Strong
operating structure empowers decision making at the local level, which we believe better serves our customers and communities, while also providing the systems, analytics and buying power afforded by an organization with national scale and $62.5 billion in annual sales. Throughout the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, our highest priorities have been the safety of our associates and customers and maintaining the supply of product. During the first 8 weeks of fiscal 2020, we have delivered strong sales growth and increases in market share.
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We are focused on creating deep and lasting relationships with our customers by offering them an experience that is
,
and
– wherever, whenever and however they choose to shop. We make life
for our customers through a convenient and consistent shopping experience across our omni-channel network. Merchandising is at our core and we offer an
and differentiated product assortment. We believe we are an industry leader in fresh, emphasizing organic, locally sourced and seasonal items as well as value-added services like daily
fresh-cut
fruit and vegetables, customized meat cuts and seafood varieties, made-from-scratch bakery items, prepared foods, deli and floral. We also continue to grow our innovative and distinctive
portfolio, which achieved over $13.1 billion in sales during fiscal 2019 and reached 25.4% sales penetration. Our
service is embedded in our culture and enables us to build deep ties with our local communities.
Our
,
and
shopping experience, coupled with our nationwide
, grocery and fuel rewards programs and pharmacy services, offers a differentiated value proposition to our customers. The
program has 20.7 million registered loyalty households which, we believe, provides us with a comprehensive understanding of our core shoppers. These loyalty programs and our omni-channel offerings combine to form an extended loyalty ecosystem that drives increased customer lifetime value through greater purchase frequency, larger basket size and higher customer retention.
Our Company has grown through a series of transformational acquisitions over the last six years, including our merger with Safeway in 2015 which gave us the benefits of national scale. While our banners have rich
histories, we are in many ways a young company. We have integrated systems and converted stores and distribution centers to create a common platform. We believe our common platform gives us greater transparency and compatibility across our network, allowing us to better serve our customers and employees while enhancing our supply chain.
We continue to sharpen our
in-store
execution, increase our
penetration and expand our omni-channel and digital capabilities. We have invested substantially in our business, deploying approximately $6.8 billion of capital expenditures beginning with fiscal 2015, including the $1.5 billion we spent in fiscal 2019. We used that capital to remodel existing stores, opportunistically build new stores and enhance our digital capabilities. We have also developed and begun to implement specific productivity initiatives across our business that target $1 billion of annual
run-rate
productivity benefits by the end of fiscal 2022 to help offset cost inflation, fund growth and drive earnings. While certain projects are well underway and contributing as expected, in other cases, we have temporarily paused some of our initiatives to ensure we are first taking care of our customers and our communities, while focusing on the safety of our associates during the coronavirus
(COVID-19)
pandemic.
We have enhanced our management team, adding executives with complementary backgrounds to position us well for the future, including our President and CEO, Vivek Sankaran, who joined the Company from PepsiCo in April 2019. In fiscal 2019, we also added Chris Rupp as Chief Customer & Digital Officer and Mike Theilmann as Chief Human Resources Officer. In addition, we have internally promoted and expanded the roles of certain key members of our leadership team, including Susan Morris, our Chief Operations Officer, and Geoff White, our Chief Merchandising Officer.
Our recent operational initiatives are driving positive financial momentum. We realized strong financial performance in fiscal 2019, generating net sales of $62.5 billion, Adjusted EBITDA of $2.8 billion and Adjusted Free Cash Flow of $1.4 billion. We have achieved nine consecutive quarters of positive identical sales growth. Adjusted EBITDA grew from $2.7 billion in fiscal 2018 to $2.8 billion in fiscal 2019 and we generated a cumulative $6.7 billion in Adjusted Free Cash Flow since the start of fiscal 2015. The momentum we are experiencing gives us confidence that our
and
identity resonates with customers. We believe our strategic framework will enable us to continue delivering profitable growth going forward.
Cumulative Adjusted Free Cash Flow (in billions)
employees were renegotiated. Collective bargaining agreements covering approximately 45,000 employees have expired or are scheduled to expire in fiscal 2020. We have sought to actively manage our participation in multiemployer pension plans through negotiations with union officials, pension plan trustees, other contributing employers and the PBGC. During fiscal 2019, we reached a collective bargaining agreement covering our Acme division that freezes new benefit accruals under the UFCW and Food Industry Employers
Tri-State
Pension Plan. The new agreement provides for future retirement benefits to be provided by a 401(k) defined contribution plan, and partially funded by reductions in health care costs. We also reached an agreement for our Seattle division with union representatives, plan trustees and another major contributing employer to freeze new benefit accruals under the Sound Retirement Trust Pension Plan. The new agreement provides for future retirement benefits to be provided under a new variable defined benefit plan that reduces our exposure to investment underperformance, and partially funded by reductions in health care contributions. We also agreed to a new collective bargaining agreement with various local unions relating to our Southern California division that is expected to enable the Southern California UFCW Union Joint Pension Plan to achieve
non-distressed,
or “Green,” status under the PPA within six years.
We are the second largest contributing employer to FELRA and to MAP. FELRA is currently projected by FELRA to become insolvent in the first quarter of 2021. We continue to fund all of our required contributions to FELRA and MAP. On March 5, 2020, we agreed with the two applicable local unions to new collective bargaining agreements pursuant to which we contribute to FELRA and MAP. See “Risk Factors—Risks Related to Our Business and Industry—A significant majority of our employees are unionized, and our relationship with unions, including labor disputes or work stoppages, could have an adverse impact on our operations and financial results” and “Risk Factors—Risks Related to Our Business and Industry—Increased pension expenses, contributions and surcharges may have an adverse impact on our financial results.”
As of February 29, 2020, we operated 2,252 stores located in 34 states and the District of Columbia as shown in the following table:
The following table summarizes our stores by size as of February 29, 2020:
We own or ground lease approximately 39% of our operating stores and 52% of our industrial properties (distribution centers, warehouses and manufacturing plants). Our total owned and ground leased properties have a value of approximately $11.2 billion, based on appraisals of our real estate conducted by Cushman and Wakefield, Inc. during fiscal 2019, after taking into account asset sales of properties since the respective dates of the appraisals.
Our corporate headquarters are located in Boise, Idaho. We own our headquarters. The premises is approximately 250,000 square feet in size. In addition to our corporate headquarters, we have corporate offices in Pleasanton, California and Phoenix, Arizona. We believe our properties are well maintained, in good operating condition and suitable for operating our business.
We are engaged in the operation of food and drug retail stores that offer grocery products, general merchandise, health and beauty care products, pharmacy, fuel and other items and services. Our retail operating divisions are geographically based, have similar economic characteristics and similar expected long-term financial performance. Our operating segments and reporting units are made up of 13 divisions, which are reported in one reportable segment. Each reporting unit constitutes a business for which discrete financial information is available and for which management regularly reviews the operating results. Across all operating segments, the Company operates primarily one store format. Each division offers, through its stores and eCommerce channels, the same general mix of products with similar pricing to similar categories of customers, have similar distribution methods, operate in similar regulatory environments and purchase merchandise from similar or the same vendors.
Our stores offer grocery products, general merchandise, health and beauty care products, pharmacy, fuel and other items and services. We are not dependent on any individual supplier; only one third-party supplier represented more than 5% of our sales for fiscal 2019. The following table represents sales revenue by similar type of product (in millions). Year over year increases in volume reflect acquisitions as well as identical sales growth.:
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| | $ | | | | | | % | | $ | | | | | | % | | $ | | | | | | % |
| | | | | | | | % | | | | | | | | % | | | | | | | | % |
| | | | | | | | % | | | | | | | | % | | | | | | | | % |
| | | | | | | | % | | | | | | | | % | | | | | | | | % |
| | | | | | | | % | | | | | | | | % | | | | | | | | % |
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| | $ | | | | | | % | | $ | | | | | | % | | $ | | | | | | % |
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(1) | eCommerce related sales are included in the categories to which the revenue pertains. |
(2) | Consists primarily of general merchandise, grocery and frozen foods. |
(3) | Consists primarily of produce, dairy, meat, deli, floral and seafood. |
(4) | Consists primarily of wholesale revenue to third parties, commissions and other miscellaneous revenue. |
(5) | Fiscal 2019 includes approximately $1.1 billion of incremental Net sales and other revenue due to the additional 53rd week. |
As of February 29, 2020, we operated 23 strategically located distribution centers, approximately 39% of which are owned or ground-leased. Our distribution centers collectively provide approximately 65% of all products to our retail operating areas.
Merchandising and Manufacturing
We offer more than 12,000 high-quality products under our
portfolio. Our
products resonate well with our shoppers as evidenced by
sales of over $13.1 billion in fiscal 2019. Year over year, we have demonstrated significant progress and increased sales penetration of
by 30 basis points to 25.4%, excluding pharmacy, fuel and
in-store
branded coffee sales.
continues to deliver on innovation with more than 900 new items launched in fiscal 2019 and plans to launch approximately 800 new
items annually over the next few years. For example, in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2019, we launched Signature Reserve Bourbon Barrel Aged Maple Syrup, O Organic Coconut Milk, Open Nature Oat Milk and in our Signature Select brand - six varieties of Asian inspired cooking sauces. We also launched a plant based platform that expanded to 38 items across seven categories with $30 million in sales in fiscal 2019. We are excited about our
and
brands, which posted a combined 12.9% growth in sales year-over-year, with over 2,000 items, and we plan to introduce approximately 275 new items for these brands in fiscal 2020. In addition to new item innovation and brand development,
continues to focus on package redesign to refresh shelf presence and comply with new regulatory nutrition guideline changes.
As measured by units for fiscal 2019, 10.2% of our
merchandise was manufactured in Company-owned facilities, and the remainder of our
merchandise was purchased from third parties. We closely monitor
make-versus-buy
decisions on internally sourced products to optimize their quality and profitability. In addition, we believe that our scale will provide opportunities to leverage our fixed manufacturing costs in order to drive innovation across our
portfolio. As of February 29, 2020, we operated 20 food production plants. These plants consisted of seven milk plants, four soft drink bottling plants, three bakery plants, two ice cream product plants, two grocery/prepared food plants, one ice plant and one soup plant.
Marketing, Advertising and Online Sales
Our marketing efforts involve collaboration between our national marketing and merchandising team and local divisions and stores. We augment the local division teams with corporate resources and are focused on providing expertise, sharing best practices and leveraging scale in partnership with leading consumer packaged goods vendors. Our corporate teams support divisions by providing strategic guidance in order to drive key areas of our business, including pharmacy, general merchandise and our
. Our local marketing teams set brand strategy and communicate brand messages through our integrated digital and physical marketing and advertising channels. We operate in 121 MSAs and are ranked #1 or #2 by market share in 68% of these markets. We maintain price competitiveness through systematic, selective and thoughtful price investment to drive customer traffic and basket size. We also use our
loyalty program, including both personalized deals and digital coupons as well as gas and grocery rewards, to target promotional activity and improve our customers’ experience. We have 20.7 million households currently enrolled in our loyalty program, through which we generate almost 400 million personalized promotions per week. We have achieved significant success with active participants in our
program, which have sales approximately 3.8x larger than
non-participants.
We have recently deployed and are continuing to refine cloud-based enterprise solutions to quickly process proprietary customer, product and transaction data and efficiently provide our local managers with targeted marketing strategies for customers in their communities. By leveraging customer and transaction information with data driven analytics, our “personalized deal engine” is able to select, out of the thousands of different promotions offered by our suppliers, the offers that we expect will be most compelling to each of our
more than 33 million weekly customers. In addition, we use data analytics to optimize shelf assortment and space in our stores by continually and systematically reviewing the performance of each product.
Various agricultural commodities constitute the principal raw materials used by us in the manufacture of our food products. We believe that raw materials for our products are not in short supply, and all are readily available from a wide variety of independent suppliers.
Our operations are subject to regulation under environmental laws, including those relating to waste management, air emissions and underground storage tanks. In addition, as an owner and operator of commercial real estate, we may be subject to liability under applicable environmental laws for
clean-up
of contamination at our facilities. Compliance with, and
clean-up
liability under, these laws has not had and is not expected to have a material adverse effect upon our business, financial condition, liquidity or operating results. See “—Legal Proceedings” and “Risk Factors—Risks Related to Our Business and Industry—Unfavorable changes in, failure to comply with or increased costs to comply with environmental laws and regulations could adversely affect us. The storage and sale of petroleum products could cause disruptions and expose us to potentially significant liabilities.”
We are subject from time to time to various claims and lawsuits arising in the ordinary course of business, including lawsuits involving trade practices, lawsuits alleging violations of state and/or federal wage and hour laws (including alleged violations of meal and rest period laws and alleged misclassification issues), real estate disputes as well as other matters. Some of these suits purport or may be determined to be class actions and/or seek substantial damages. It is the opinion of our management that although the amount of liability with respect to certain of the matters described herein cannot be ascertained at this time, any resulting liability of these and other matters, including any punitive damages, will not have a material adverse effect on our business or financial condition.
We continually evaluate our exposure to loss contingencies arising from pending or threatened litigation and believe we have made provisions where the loss contingency can be reasonably estimated and an adverse outcome is probable. Nonetheless, assessing and predicting the outcomes of these matters involves substantial uncertainties. Management currently believes that the aggregate range of reasonably possible loss for our exposure in excess of the amount accrued is expected to be immaterial to us. It remains possible that despite management’s current belief, material differences in actual outcomes or changes in management’s evaluation or predictions could arise that could have a material effect on our financial condition, results of operations or cash flows.
Office of Inspector General:
In January 2016, we received a subpoena from the Office of the Inspector General of the Department of Health and Human Services (the “OIG”) pertaining to the pricing of drugs offered under our MyRxCare discount program and the impact on reimbursements to Medicare, Medicaid and TRICARE (the “Government Health Programs”). In particular, the OIG is requesting information on the relationship between the prices charged for drugs under the MyRxCare program and the “usual and customary” prices reported by us in claims for reimbursements to the Government Health Programs or other third-party payors. We cooperated with the OIG in the investigation. We are currently unable to determine the probability of the outcome of this matter or the range of reasonably possible loss, if any.
Civil Investigative Demands:
On December 16, 2016, we received a civil investigative demand from the United States Attorney for the District of Rhode Island in connection with a False Claims Act investigation
relating to our influenza vaccination programs. The investigation concerns whether our provision of store coupons to our customers who received influenza vaccinations in our store pharmacies constituted an improper benefit to those customers under the federal Medicare and Medicaid programs. We believe that our provision of the store coupons to our customers is an allowable incentive to encourage vaccinations. We cooperated with the U.S. Attorney in the investigation. We are currently unable to determine the probability of the outcome of this matter or the range of possible loss, if any.
We have received a civil investigative demand dated February 28, 2020 from the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York in connection with a False Claims Act investigation relating to our dispensing practices regarding insulin pen products. The investigation seeks documents regarding our policies, practices and procedures, as well as dispensing data, among other things. We will cooperate with the U.S. Attorney in the investigation. We are currently unable to determine the probability of the outcome of this matter or the range of possible loss, if any.
Two lawsuits were brought against Safeway and the Safeway Benefits Plan Committee (the “Benefit Plans Committee,” and together with Safeway, the “Safeway Benefits Plans Defendants”) and other third parties alleging breaches of fiduciary duty under ERISA with respect to Safeway’s 401(k) Plan (the “Safeway 401(k) Plan”). On July 14, 2016, a complaint (“Terraza”) was filed in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California by a participant in the Safeway 401(k) Plan individually and on behalf of the Safeway 401(k) Plan. An amended complaint was filed on November 18, 2016. On August 25, 2016, a second complaint (“Lorenz”) was filed in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California by another participant in the Safeway 401(k) Plan individually and on behalf of all others similarly situated against the Safeway Benefits Plans Defendants and against the Safeway 401(k) Plan’s former record-keepers. An amended complaint was filed on September 16, 2016, and a second amended complaint was filed on November 21, 2016. In general, both lawsuits alleged that the Safeway Benefits Plans Defendants breached their fiduciary duties under ERISA regarding the selection of investments offered under the Safeway 401(k) Plan and the fees and expenses related to those investments. All parties filed summary judgment motions which were heard and taken under submission on August 16, 2018. Plaintiffs’ motions were denied, and defendants’ motions were granted in part and denied in part. Bench trials for both matters were set for May 6, 2019. A settlement in principle was reached before trial. On September 13, 2019, settlement papers were filed with the Court along with a motion for preliminary approval of the settlement. A hearing for preliminary approval was set for November 20, 2019, but the Court vacated the hearing. The Court ultimately issued an order on March 30, 2020 requesting some minor changes to the notice procedures, and the matter will be set for a second preliminary approval hearing shortly. We have recorded an estimated liability for these matters.
: We are currently subject to two qui tam actions alleging violations of the False Claims Act (“FCA”). Violations of the FCA are subject to treble damages and penalties of up to a specified dollar amount per false claim. In
United States ex rel. Schutte and Yarberry v. SuperValu, New Albertson’s, Inc., et al,
which is pending in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of Illinois, the relators allege that defendants (including various subsidiaries of ours) overcharged government healthcare programs by not providing the government, as a part of usual and customary prices, the benefit of discounts given to customers who requested that defendants match competitor prices. The complaint was originally filed under seal and amended on November 30, 2015. On August 5, 2019, the Court granted relator’s motion for partial summary judgment, holding that price matched prices are the usual and customary prices for those drugs. Additional summary judgment motions by both parties are pending. Trial will be set after the Court rules on the pending summary judgment motions. In
United States ex rel. Proctor v. Safeway
, also pending in the Central District of Illinois, the relator alleges that Safeway overcharged government healthcare programs by not providing the government, as part of its usual and customary prices, the benefit of discounts given to customers in pharmacy discount programs. On August 26, 2015, the underlying complaint was unsealed. On June 12, 2020, the court granted Safeway’s motion for summary judgment, dismissing the FCA claim with prejudice and dismissing the state law claims without prejudice. In both of the above cases, the government previously investigated the relators’ allegations and declined to intervene. Relators elected to pursue their respective cases on their own and in each case have alleged FCA damages in excess of $100 million before trebling and excluding penalties. We are vigorously defending each of these matters and believe each of these cases is without merit. We have recorded an estimated liability for these matters.
We were also subject to another FCA qui tam action entitled United States ex rel.
Zelickowski v. Albertson’s LLC
. In that case, the relators alleged that Albertsons overcharged federal healthcare programs by not providing the government, as a part of its usual and customary prices to the government, the benefit of discounts given to customers who enrolled in the Albertsons discount-club program. The complaint was originally filed under seal and amended on June 20, 2017. On December 17, 2018, the case was dismissed, without prejudice.
Alaska Attorney General’s Investigation:
On May 22, 2018, we received a subpoena from the Alaska Attorney General stating that the Alaska Attorney General has reason to believe we have engaged in unfair or deceptive trade practices under Alaska’s Unfair Trade Practices and Consumer Act and seeking documents regarding our policies, procedures, controls, training, dispensing practices and other matters in connection with the sale and marketing of opioid pain medications. We responded to the subpoena on July 30, 2018 and have not received any further communication from the Alaska Attorney General. We do not currently have a basis to believe we have violated Alaska’s Unfair Trade Practices and Consumer Act, however, at this time, we are unable to determine the probability of the outcome of this matter or estimate a range of reasonably possible loss, if any.
We are one of dozens of companies that have been named in various lawsuits alleging that defendants contributed to the national opioid epidemic. At present, we are named in over 70 suits pending in various state courts as well as in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Ohio, where over 2,000 cases have been consolidated as MDL pursuant to 28 U.S.C. §1407. In two matters—MDL No. 2804 filed by The Blackfeet Tribe of the Blackfeet Indian Reservation and
State of New Mexico v. Purdue Pharma L.P., et al.
—we filed motions to dismiss, which were denied, and we have now answered the Complaints. The MDL cases are stayed pending bellwether trials, and the only active matter is the New Mexico action where a September 2021 trial date has been set. We are vigorously defending these matters and believe that these cases are without merit. At this early stage in the proceedings, we are unable to determine the probability of the outcome of these matters or the range of reasonably possible loss, if any.
California Air Resources Board:
Upon the inspection by the California Air Resources Board (“CARB”) of several of our stores in California, it was determined that we failed certain paperwork and other administrative requirements. As a result of the inspections, we proactively undertook a broad evaluation of the record keeping and administrative practices at all of our stores in California. In connection with this evaluation, we have retained a third-party to conduct an audit and correct deficiencies identified across our California store base. We are working with CARB to resolve these compliance issues and comply with governing regulations, and that work is ongoing. Although no monetary amount has been assessed by CARB, we could be subject to certain fines and penalties. We have recorded an estimated liability for this matter.
On May 31, 2019, a putative class action complaint entitled
was filed in the California Superior Court for the County of Alameda, alleging that we failed to comply with the Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act (“FACTA”) by printing receipts that failed to adequately mask payment card numbers as required by FACTA. The plaintiff claims the violation was “willful” and exposes us to statutory damages provided for in FACTA. We have answered the Complaint and are vigorously defending the matter. On January 8, 2020, we commenced mediation discussions with plaintiff’s counsel and reached a settlement in principle on February 24, 2020. The parties will seek court approval of the settlement. We have recorded an estimated liability for this matter.
Executive Officers and Directors
The following table sets forth information regarding our executive officers and directors upon completion of this offering:
| | | | | | |
| | | | | |
| | | | | | President, Chief Executive Officer and Director |
| | | | | | |
| | | | | | |
| | | | | | Executive Vice President and Chief Operations Officer |
| | | | | | Executive Vice President and Chief Information Officer |
| | | | | | Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer |
| | | | | | Executive Vice President and Chief Human Resources Officer |
| | | | | | Executive Vice President and Chief Merchandising Officer |
| | | | | | Executive Vice President and Chief Customer and Digital Officer |
| | | | | | Executive Vice President, Corporate Development and Real Estate |
| | | | | | Executive Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary |
| | | | | | |
| | | | | | |
| | | | | | |
| | | | | | |
| | | | | | |
| | | | | | |
| | | | | | |
Lenard B. Tessler (a)(b)(c) | | | | | | |
| | | | | | |
(a) | Member, Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee |
(b) | Member, Compensation Committee |
(c) | Member, Technology Committee |
(d) | Member, Audit and Risk Committee |
(e) | Member, Compliance Committee |
,
President, Chief Executive Officer and Director.
Mr. Sankaran has served as our President, Chief Executive Officer and Director since April 2019. Mr. Sankaran previously served from January 2019 to March 2019 as Chief Executive Officer of PepsiCo Foods North America, which includes
Frito-Lay
North America
(“Frito-Lay”).
There he led PepsiCo, Inc.’s (“PepsiCo”) snack and convenient foods business. Prior to that, Mr. Sankaran served as President and Chief Operating Officer of
Frito-Lay
from April 2016 to December 2018; Chief Operating Officer of
Frito-Lay
from February 2016 to April 2016; Chief Commercial Officer, North America of PepsiCo from 2014 to February 2016, where he led PepsiCo’s cross-divisional performance across its North American customers; Chief Customer Officer of
Frito-Lay
from 2012 to 2014; Senior Vice President and General Manager of
Frito-Lay’s
South business unit from 2011 to 2012; and Senior Vice President, Corporate Strategy and Development of PepsiCo from 2009 to 2010. Before joining PepsiCo in 2009, Mr. Sankaran was a partner at McKinsey and Company, where he served various Fortune 100 companies, bringing a strong focus on strategy and operations. Mr. Sankaran
co-led
the firm’s North American purchasing and supply management practice and was on the leadership team of the North American retail practice. Mr. Sankaran has an MBA from the University of Michigan, a master’s degree in manufacturing from the
Georgia Institute of Technology and a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology in Chennai.
,
. Mr. Donald has served as our
Co-Chairman
since April 2019. Prior to that, Mr. Donald served as our President and Chief Executive Officer since September 2018 and, prior to that, served as President and Chief Operating Officer since joining ACI in March 2018. Previously, Mr. Donald served as Chief Executive Officer and Director of Extended Stay America, Inc., a large North American owner and operator of hotels, and its subsidiary, ESH Hospitality, Inc. (together with Extended Stay America, Inc., “ESH”), from February 2012 to July 2015, and as Senior Advisor of ESH from August 2015 to December 2015. Prior to joining ESH, Mr. Donald served as President, Chief Executive Officer and Director of Starbucks Corporation, President and Chief Executive Officer of regional food and drug retailer Haggen Food & Pharmacy, Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer of regional food and drug retailer Pathmark Stores, Inc., and in a variety of other senior and executive roles at
Wal-Mart
Stores, Inc., Safeway Inc. and Albertson’s, Inc. Mr. Donald began his grocery and retail career in 1971 with Publix Super Markets, Inc. Mr. Donald has served on the board of directors of Nordstrom, Inc., a leading fashion retailer, since April 2020, on the Advisory Board of Jacobs Holding AG, a Switzerland-based global investment firm, since 2015, and as a member of the board of directors at Barry Callebaut AG, a Switzerland-based manufacturer of chocolate and cocoa, from 2008 to 2018.
,
. Mr. Laufer has served as our
Co-Chairman
since April 2019 and has been a member of our board of directors since October 2018. Mr. Laufer has served as Senior Managing Director at Cerberus and Chief Executive Officer of Cerberus Technology Solutions (“CTS”) since May 2018. From March 2013 to May 2018, Mr. Laufer served as Managing Director and Head of Intelligent Solutions at JPMorgan Chase & Co. Prior to JPMorgan and from March 1997 to February 2013, Mr. Laufer
co-founded
and served as Chief Executive Officer and Managing Member of Argus Information and Advisory Services, LLC a provider of informational and analytical solutions to the payment industry that was purchased by Verisk Analytics in August 2012. Mr. Laufer’s leadership roles at Cerberus and his knowledge of technology and information solutions provides critical skills for our board of directors to oversee our strategic planning and operations.
,
Executive Vice President and Chief Operations Officer.
Ms. Morris has been our Executive Vice President and Chief Operations Officer since January 2018. Previously, Ms. Morris served as our Executive Vice President, Retail Operations, West Region from April 2017 to January 2018. Ms. Morris also served as our Executive Vice President, Retail Operations, East Region from April 2016 to April 2017, as President of our Denver Division from March 2015 to March 2016 and as President of our Intermountain Division from March 2013 to March 2015. From June 2012 to February 2013, Ms. Morris served as our Vice President of Marketing and Merchandising, Southwest Division. From February 2010 to June 2012, Ms. Morris served as a Sales Manager in our Southwest Division. Prior to joining our company, Ms. Morris served as Senior Vice President of Sales and Merchandising and Vice President of Customer Satisfaction at SuperValu. Ms. Morris also previously served as Vice President of Operations at Albertson’s, Inc.
,
Executive Vice President and Chief Information Officer.
Mr. Dhanda has been our Executive Vice President and Chief Information Officer since December 2015. Prior to joining our company, Mr. Dhanda served as Senior Vice President of Digital Commerce of the Giant Eagle supermarket chain since March 2015, and as its Chief Information Officer since September 2013. Previously, Mr. Dhanda served at PNC Financial Services as Chief Information Officer from March 2008 to August 2013, after having served in other senior information technology positions at PNC Bank from 1995 to 2013.
,
Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer.
Mr. Dimond has been our Chief Financial Officer since February 2014. Prior to joining our company, Mr. Dimond previously served as Executive Vice President, Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer at Nash Finch Co., a food distributor, from 2007 to 2013. Mr. Dimond has over 30 years of financial and senior executive management experience in the retail food and distribution industry. Mr. Dimond has served as Chief Financial Officer and Senior Vice President of
Wild Oats, Group Vice President and Chief Financial Officer for the western region of Kroger, Group Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Fred Meyer, Inc. and as Vice President, Administration and Controller for Smith’s Food and Drug Centers Inc., a regional supermarket chain. Mr. Dimond is a Certified Public Accountant.
,
Executive Vice President and Chief Human Resources Officer
. Mr. Theilmann has been our Executive Vice President and Chief Human Resources Officer since August 2019. Mr.��Theilmann previously served as Global Practice Managing Partner, Human Resources Officers Practice, from February 2018 to August 2019, and as Partner, Consumer Markets Practice, from June 2017 to January 2018, of Heidrick & Struggles International Incorporated, a worldwide executive search firm. Prior to that, Mr. Theilmann served as Managing Director of Slome Capital LLC, a family office, from April 2013 to June 2017. Mr. Theilmann also served as Group Executive Vice President, from 2010 to 2012, and as Executive Vice President, Chief Human Resources & Administrative Officer, from 2005 to 2009, of J.C. Penney Company, Inc., a national department store chain. Mr. Theilmann has been a director of Leapyear Technologies, Inc. since July 2015 and Catapult Health LLC since October 2013.
,
Executive Vice President and Chief Merchandising Officer
. Mr. White has been our Executive Vice President and Chief Merchandising Officer since September 2019. Mr. White previously served as president of our
division since April 2017. Prior to that Mr. White served as senior vice president of marketing and merchandising for the Northern California Division from 2015 to April 2017. From 2004 to 2015, Mr. White held various leadership roles, including director of Canadian produce operations, at Safeway. Mr. White started his career as a general clerk at Safeway in Burnaby, British Columbia, in 1981.
,
Executive Vice President and Chief Customer and Digital Officer
. Ms. Rupp has been our Executive Vice President and Chief Customer and Digital Officer since December 2019. Ms. Rupp previously served as General Manager, Xbox Business Engineering, from April 2018 to November 2019, and General Manager, Microsoft, Windows and Xbox Digital Store Marketing, from March 2016 to April 2018, at Microsoft Corp., a leading developer of computer software systems and applications. Prior to that, Ms. Rupp served at Amazon.com, Inc., a multinational technology company
as Vice President, Amazon Prime from August 2014 to February 2016, Vice President and GM, Fulfillment from August 2009 to August 2014 and Category Manager from December 2005 to July 2009. Ms. Rupp also previously held roles with Sears, Roebuck and Company, a national department store chain.
,
Executive Vice President, Corporate Development and Real Estate
. Mr. Ewing has been our Executive Vice President of Corporate Development and Real Estate since January 2015. Previously, Mr. Ewing had served as our Senior Vice President of Corporate Development and Real Estate since 2013, as Vice President of Real Estate and Development since 2011 and as Vice President of Corporate Development since 2006, when Mr. Ewing originally joined ACI from the operations group at Cerberus. Prior to his work with Cerberus, Mr. Ewing was with Trowbridge Group, a strategic sourcing firm. Mr. Ewing also spent over 13 years with PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP. Mr. Ewing is a Chartered Accountant with the Institute of Chartered Accountants of England and Wales.
,
Executive Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary.
Ms. Pryor has been our Executive Vice President and General Counsel since June 2020. Ms. Pryor previously served as senior vice president, general counsel and corporate secretary for Cox Enterprises, Inc., a leading communications and automotive services company, since October 2016. Prior to that, Ms. Pryor served as executive vice president, general counsel and chief compliance officer for US Foods, Inc., a leading U.S. foodservice distributor, from February 2009 to October 2016, and as senior vice president and deputy general counsel from May 2005 to February 2009. From 2002 to 2005, Ms. Pryor was in private practice with the law firm Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom LLP. Before joining Skadden, Ms. Pryor was general counsel and corporate secretary for e.spire Communications, Inc., a NASDAQ-listed telecommunications company.
,
. Ms. Allen has been a member of our board since June 2015. Ms. Allen served as U.S. Chairman of Deloitte LLP from 2003 to 2011, retiring from that position in May 2011. Ms. Allen was also a member of the Global Board of Directors, Chair of the Global Risk Committee and U.S. Representative of the Global Governance Committee of Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu Limited from 2003 to May 2011. Ms. Allen worked at Deloitte for nearly 40 years in various leadership roles, including partner and regional managing partner, and was previously responsible for audit and consulting services for a number of Fortune 500 and large private companies. Ms. Allen is currently an independent director of Bank of America Corporation. Ms. Allen has also served as a director of First Solar, Inc. since 2013. Ms. Allen is a Certified Public Accountant (Retired). Ms. Allen’s extensive leadership, accounting and audit experience broadens the scope of our board of directors’ oversight of our financial performance and reporting and provides our board of directors with valuable insight relevant to our business.
,
Mr. Davis has been a member of our board since June 2015. Mr. Davis is the former Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Bob Evans Farms, Inc., a food service and consumer products company, where he served from May 2006 to December 2014. Mr. Davis has also served as a director of PPG Industries, Inc., a manufacturer and distributor of paints, coatings and specialty materials, since April 2019, Legacy Acquisition Corporation, an acquirer of companies in the public and restaurant sectors, since November 2017, Sonic Corp., the nation’s largest chain of
drive-in
restaurants, since January 2017, Marathon Petroleum Corporation, a petroleum refiner, marketer, retailer and transporter, since 2013, Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (formerly Walgreens Co.), a
pharmacy-led
wellbeing enterprise, from 2009 to 2015, and CenturyLink, Inc. (formerly Embarq Corporation), a provider of communication services, from 2006 to 2009. Prior to joining Bob Evans Farms, Inc. in 2006, Mr. Davis served in a variety of restaurant and consumer packaged goods leadership positions, including president of Long John Silver’s LLC and A&W Restaurants, Inc. In addition, he held executive and operational positions at Yum! Brands, Inc.’s Pizza Hut division and at Kraft General Foods Inc. Mr. Davis has served as a member of the international board of directors for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation since June 2016. Mr. Davis brings to our board of directors extensive leadership experience. In particular, Mr. Davis’ leadership of retail and food service companies and pharmacies provides our board of directors with valuable insight relevant to our business.
,
. Mr. Fennebresque has been a member of our board of directors since March 2015. Mr. Fennebresque has served as a senior advisor to Cowen Group Inc., a diversified financial services firm, since 2008, where he also served as its chairman, president and chief executive officer from 1999 to 2008. Mr. Fennebresque serves on the board of directors of Ally Financial Inc., a financial services company, since May 2009, BlueLinx Holdings Inc., a distributor of building products, since May 2013, and as Chairperson of BlueLinx Holdings Inc. since May 2016. Mr. Fennebresque has served as a member of the Supervisory Board of BAWAG P.S.K., one of Austria’s largest banks, since 2017, and as Deputy Chairman since 2019. Mr. Fennebresque previously served as a director of Ribbon Communications Inc., a provider of network communications solutions, from October 2017 to February 2020, and as a director of Delta Tucker Holdings, Inc. (the parent of DynCorp International, a provider of defense and technical services and government outsourced solutions) from May 2015 to July 2017. From 2010 to 2012, Mr. Fennebresque served as chairman of Dahlman Rose & Co., LLC, an investment bank. He has also served as head of the corporate finance and mergers and acquisitions departments at UBS and was a general partner and
co-head
of investment banking at Lazard Frères & Co. He has also held various positions at First Boston Corporation, an investment bank acquired by Credit Suisse. Mr. Fennebresque’s extensive experience as a director of several public companies and history of leadership in the financial services industry brings corporate governance expertise and a diverse viewpoint to the deliberations of our board of directors.
,
. Mr. Gibson has been a member of our board of directors since October 2018. Mr. Gibson is currently the Chief Investment Officer of Centaurus Capital LP and Investment Manager for the Laura and John Arnold Foundation. Mr. Gibson has held both positions since April 2011. Centaurus Capital LP is a private investment partnership with interests in oil and gas, private equity, structured finance, and the debt capital markets. Prior to Centaurus Capital LP, Mr. Gibson was a Senior Vice President in institutional asset
management at Royal Bank of Canada from February 2008 until April 2011. Mr. Gibson has served as a member of the board of directors of ARG Realty, a commercial real estate company based in Argentina, since April 2018, Global Atlantic Financial Group, Inc., a brokerage firm, since May 2013, Cell Site Solutions, LLC, a provider of telecom equipment, products and services since May 2014, and the Tony Hawk Foundation, a youth-oriented charitable foundation, since July 2016. Mr. Gibson also serves on the advisory committee of several investment funds, including Cerberus Investment Partners V and Cerberus Investment Partners VI. Centaurus Capital LP is an investor in certain Cerberus funds. Mr. Gibson’s knowledge of capital markets enhances the ability of our board of directors to make prudent financial judgments.
,
Mr. Klaff has served as a member of our board of directors since March 2010. Mr. Klaff is the Chief Executive Officer of Klaff Realty, which he formed in 1984. Mr. Klaff began his career as a Certified Public Accountant with the public accounting firm of Altschuler, Melvoin and Glasser in Chicago. Mr. Klaff’s real estate expertise and accounting and investment experience, as well as his extensive knowledge of our company, broadens the scope of our board of directors’ oversight of our financial performance.
,
. Mr. Schottenstein has served as a member of our board of directors since 2006. Mr. Schottenstein has served as Chairman of the board of directors of American Eagle Outfitters, Inc., a global apparel and accessories retailer, since March 1992 and as Chief Executive Officer since December 2015, a position in which he previously served from March 1992 until December 2002. He has also served as Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer of Schottenstein Stores since March 1992 and as president since 2001. Mr. Schottenstein also served as Chief Executive Officer of Designer Brands, Inc. (formerly DSW, Inc.), a footwear and accessories retailer, from March 2005 to April 2009, and as Chairman of the board of directors of Designer Brands, Inc. since March 2005. Mr. Schottenstein has deep knowledge of the Company and the retail industry in general. His experience as a chief executive officer and a director of other major publicly-owned retailers, and his expertise across operations, real estate, brand building and team management, gives him and our board of directors valuable knowledge and insight to oversee our operations.
,
Alan H. Schumacher has served as a member of our board of directors since March 2015. He has also served on the board of Warrior Met Coal, Inc., a leading producer and exporter of metallurgical coal for the global steel industry, since its initial public offering in April 2017. He has currently or previously served as a director of BlueLinx Holdings Inc., a distributor of building products, Evertec Inc., a full-service transaction processing business in Latin America, School Bus Holdings Inc., an indirect parent of
school-bus
manufacturer Blue Bird Corporation, Quality Distribution Inc., a chemical bulk tank truck operator, and Noranda Aluminum Holding Corporation, a producer of aluminum. Mr. Schumacher was a member of the Federal Accounting Standards Advisory Board from 2002 through June 2012. The board of directors has determined that the simultaneous service on more than three audit committees of public companies by Mr. Schumacher does not impair his ability to serve on our audit and risk committee nor does it represent or in any way create a conflict of interest for our company. Mr. Schumacher’s experience as a board director of several public companies, and his deep understanding of accounting principles, provides our board of directors with experience to oversee our accounting and financial reporting.
,
. Mr. Tessler has served as a member of our board of directors since 2006. Mr. Tessler is currently Vice Chairman and Senior Managing Director at Cerberus, which he joined in 2001. Prior to joining Cerberus, Mr. Tessler served as Managing Partner of TGV Partners, a private equity firm that he founded, from 1990 to 2001. From 1987 to 1990, he was a founding partner of Levine, Tessler, Leichtman & Co. From 1982 to 1987, he was a founder, Director and Executive Vice President of Walker Energy Partners. Mr. Tessler is a member of the Cerberus Capital Management Investment Committee. Mr. Tessler also served as a member of the board of directors of NexTier Oilfield Solutions Inc. (formerly Keane Group, Inc.), a provider of hydraulic fracturing, wireline technologies and drilling services, from October 2012 to October 2019, and Avon Products, Inc., a global manufacturer of beauty and related products, from March 2018 to January 2020, and currently serves as a Trustee of New York Presbyterian Hospital, where he also serves as member of the Investment Committee and the Budget and Finance Committee. Mr. Tessler’s leadership roles at Cerberus, his
board service and his extensive experience in financing and private equity investments and his
in-depth
knowledge of our company and its acquisition strategy, provides critical skills for our board of directors to oversee our strategic planning and operations.
,
. Mr. Turner has served as our Vice Chairman since February 2020, after serving as Vice Chairman and Senior Advisor to the Chief Executive Officer since August 2017. Mr. Turner has served as President and Chief Executive Officer of Core Scientific, an emerging leader in blockchain and artificial intelligence infrastructure, hosting, transaction processing and application development, since July 2018. Mr. Turner was previously a member of the board of directors of Nordstrom, Inc., from 2010 to May 2020, and Chief Executive Officer of Citadel Securities and Vice Chairman of Citadel LLC, global financial institutions, from August 2016 to January 2017. He served as Chief Operating Officer of Microsoft Corporation from 2005 to 2016, and as Chief Executive Officer and President of Sam’s Club, a subsidiary of
Wal-Mart,
from 2002 to 2005. Between 1985 and 2002, Mr. Turner held a number of positions of increasing responsibility with
Wal-Mart,
including Executive Vice President and Global Chief Information Officer from 2001 to 2002. Mr. Turner’s strategic and operational leadership skills and expertise in online worldwide sales, global operations, supply chain, merchandising, branding, marketing, information technology and public relations provide our board of directors with valuable insight relevant to our business.
None of our officers or directors has any family relationship with any director or other officer. “Family relationship” for this purpose means any relationship by blood, marriage or adoption, not more remote than first cousin.
Code of Business Conduct and Ethics
We have adopted a code of business conduct and ethics that applies to all of our employees, officers and directors, including those officers responsible for financial reporting.
Corporate Governance Guidelines
We have adopted corporate governance guidelines in accordance with the corporate governance rules of the NYSE, as applicable, that serve as a flexible framework within which our board of directors and its committees operate. These guidelines cover a number of areas, including the size and composition of the board, board membership criteria and director qualifications, director responsibilities, board agenda, roles of the Chairman of our board of directors and Chief Executive Officer, executive sessions, standing board committees, board member access to management and independent advisors, director communications with third parties, director compensation, director orientation and continuing education, evaluation of senior management and management succession planning.
Our business and affairs are currently managed by our board of directors. Our board of directors currently has 12 members. As presently situated, the board of directors is comprised of three members of management, four directors affiliated with our Sponsors and five independent directors. Members of the board of directors will be elected at our annual meeting of stockholders to serve for a term of one year or until their successors have been elected and qualified, subject to prior death, resignation, retirement or removal from office.
From and after such time as (i) it is lawful under Section 8 of the Clayton Antitrust Act of 1914 for the Apollo Preferred Investors or the HPS Preferred Investors, as applicable, to designate a director to our board of
directors and (ii) any waiting period under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act of 1976 applicable to the acquisition of our voting securities expires or is terminated with respect to the Apollo Preferred Investors or the HPS Preferred Investors, and so long as the Apollo Preferred Investors and their affiliates or the HPS Preferred Investors and their affiliates hold at least 25% of the Convertible Preferred Stock issued on the Preferred Closing Date (or 25% of the Conversion Shares), the Apollo Preferred Investors or the HPS Preferred Investors, as applicable, will each have the right to designate one director to our board of directors. See “Private Placement of Convertible Preferred Stock—Investment Agreement—Director Designation Rights.”
Our board of directors has affirmatively determined that Sharon L. Allen, Steven A. Davis, Kim Fennebresque, Allen M. Gibson and Alan H. Schumacher are independent directors under the applicable rules of the NYSE and as such term is defined in Rule
10A-3(b)(1)
under the Exchange Act.
Board Leadership Structure
Our board of directors does not have a formal policy on whether the roles of Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the board of directors should be separate. Presently, Vivek Sankaran serves as our Chief Executive Officer and James L. Donald and Leonard Laufer are our
Co-Chairmen.
Our board of directors has considered its leadership structure and believes at this time that the Company and its stockholders are best served by having these positions divided. Dividing these roles allows for increased focus, as each person can devote their attention to one job, while fostering accountability and effective decision-making. By dividing these roles, each person is better able to successfully address both internal and external issues affecting the Company. While the roles of Chief Executive Officer and Chairman will remain separate, having
Co-Chairmen
allows each to draw on their extensive knowledge and expertise to set the agenda for and ensure the appropriate focus on issues of concern to the board of directors.
Our board of directors expects to periodically review its leadership structure to ensure that it continues to meet our needs.
Role of Board in Risk Oversight
While the full board of directors has the ultimate oversight responsibility for the risk management process, its committees oversee risk in certain specified areas. In particular, our audit and risk committee oversees management of enterprise risks as well as financial risks. Our compensation committee is responsible for overseeing the management of risks relating to our executive compensation plans and arrangements and the incentives created by the compensation awards it administers. Our technology committee is responsible for overseeing the management of our research and development and IT structure and risks associated with IT and cybersecurity. Our nominating and corporate governance committee oversees risks associated with corporate governance. Further, our compliance committee, which is partially comprised of board members, is responsible for overseeing the management of the compliance and regulatory risks we face and risks associated with business conduct and ethics. Pursuant to our board of directors’ instruction, management regularly reports on applicable risks to the relevant committee or the full board of directors, as appropriate, with additional review or reporting on risks conducted as needed or as requested by our board of directors and its committees.
Board of Directors Meetings
During fiscal 2019, the board of directors met 15 times, the audit and risk committee met seven times, the compensation committee met seven times and the nominating and corporate governance committee did not meet. All of our directors attended at least 75% of the aggregate number of meetings of the board and committees of the board on which the director served, except for Mr. Gibson who attended 73% of the meetings and Mr. Schottenstein who attended 67% of the meetings.
Upon completion of this offering, our Sponsors, as a group, will control a majority of our outstanding common stock. As a result, we are a “controlled company” within the meaning of the NYSE corporate governance standards. Under NYSE rules, a company of which more than 50% of the voting power is held by an individual, group or another company is a “controlled company” and may elect not to comply with certain NYSE corporate governance requirements, including:
| • | the requirement that a majority of the board of directors consist of independent directors; |
| • | the requirement that we have a nominating and corporate governance committee that is composed entirely of independent directors with a written charter addressing the committee’s purpose and responsibilities; |
| • | the requirement that we have a compensation committee that is composed entirely of independent directors with a written charter addressing the committee’s purpose and responsibilities; and |
| • | the requirement for an annual performance evaluation of the nominating and corporate governance committee and the compensation committee. |
Following this offering, we intend to utilize these exemptions. As a result, we will not have a majority of independent directors nor will our nominating and corporate governance and compensation committees consist entirely of independent directors. Accordingly, you will not have the same protections afforded to stockholders of companies that are subject to all of the NYSE corporate governance requirements.
In the event that we cease to be a controlled company within the meaning of these rules, we will be required to comply with these provisions after specified transition periods.
More specifically, if we cease to be a controlled company within the meaning of these rules, we will be required to (i) satisfy the majority independent board requirement within one year of our status change, and (ii) have (a) at least one independent member on each of our nominating and corporate governance committee and compensation committee by the date of our status change, (b) at least a majority of independent members on each committee within 90 days of the date of our status change and (c) fully independent committees within one year of the date of our status change.
Our board of directors has assigned certain of its responsibilities to permanent committees consisting of board members appointed by it. Our board of directors has an audit and risk committee, compensation committee, technology committee and nominating and corporate governance committee, each of which have the responsibilities described below. The composition of each of the committees described below is set forth as of the completion of this offering.
Our audit and risk committee consists of Steven A. Davis, Kim Fennebresque and Alan H. Schumacher, with Mr. Schumacher serving as chair of the committee. The committee assists the board of directors in its oversight responsibilities relating to the integrity of our financial statements, our compliance with legal and regulatory requirements (to the extent not otherwise handled by our compliance committee), our independent auditor’s qualifications and independence, and the establishment and performance of our internal audit function and the performance of the independent auditor. We have three independent directors serving on our audit and risk committee. Our board of directors has determined that Mr. Schumacher has the attributes necessary to qualify him as an “audit committee financial expert” as defined by applicable rules of the SEC. Our board of directors has adopted a written charter under which the audit and risk committee operates.
Our compensation committee consists of Sharon L. Allen, Kim Fennebresque and Lenard B. Tessler, with Mr. Fennebresque serving as chair of the committee. The compensation committee of the board of directors is authorized to review our compensation and benefits plans to ensure they meet our corporate objectives, approve the compensation structure of our executive officers and evaluate our executive officers’ performance and advise on salary, bonus and other incentive and equity compensation. Our board of directors has adopted a written charter under which the compensation committee operates.
Our technology committee consists of Leonard Laufer, Lenard B. Tessler and B. Kevin Turner, with Messrs. Laufer and Turner serving as
co-chair
of the committee. The purpose of the technology committee is to, among other things, meet with our science and technology leaders to review our internal research and technology development activities and provide input as it deems appropriate, review technologies that we consider for implementation, review our development of our technical goals and research and development strategies. Our board of directors has adopted a written charter under which the technology committee operates.
Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee
Our nominating and corporate governance committee consists of Sharon L. Allen, Allen M. Gibson and Lenard B. Tessler, with Ms. Allen serving as chair of the committee. The nominating and corporate governance committee is primarily concerned with identifying individuals qualified to become members of our board of directors, selecting the director nominees for the next annual meeting of the stockholders, selection of the director candidates to fill any vacancies on our board of directors and the development of our corporate governance guidelines and principles. The nominating and corporate governance committee does not maintain a policy for considering nominees but believes the members of the committee have sufficient background and experience to review nominees competently. While the board of directors is solely responsible for the selection and nomination of directors, the nominating and corporate governance committee may consider nominees recommended by stockholders as deemed appropriate. The nominating and corporate governance committee evaluates each potential nominee in the same manner regardless of the source of the potential nominee’s recommendation. Our board of directors has adopted a written charter under which the nominating and corporate governance committee operates.
Compensation Committee Interlocks and Insider Participation
None of the members of our compensation committee is or has at any time during the past year been an officer or employee of ours. None of our executive officers serves as a member of the compensation committee or board of directors of any other entity that has an executive officer serving as a member of our board of directors or compensation committee.
Our compliance committee (a
non-board
committee) consists of two directors, Hersch Klaff and Steven A. Davis, and two
non-directors,
Lisa A. Gray and Ronald Kravit, with Ms. Gray serving as chair of the committee. Ms. Gray serves as Vice Chairman of Cerberus Operations and Advisory Company, LLC (“COAC”), an affiliate of Cerberus, and Mr. Kravit served as Senior Managing Director and head of real estate investing at Cerberus until his retirement in December 2018. The purpose of the compliance committee is to assist the Company in implementing and overseeing our compliance programs, policies and procedures that are designed to respond to the various compliance and regulatory risks facing our Company, and monitor our performance with respect to such programs, policies and procedures.
Chairman Emeritus Agreement with Robert G. Miller
Robert G. Miller served as a member of our board of directors during fiscal 2019 and as Chairman Emeritus following his appointment on April 25, 2019. Mr. Miller previously served as our Executive Chairman from January 2015 to April 2019, and as Chief Executive Officer from June 2006 to January 2015 and again from April 2015 to September 2018. As Chairman Emeritus, Mr. Miller was entitled, pursuant to a chairman emeritus agreement, dated March 25, 2019, to receive a quarterly fee of $300,000 per fiscal quarter from April 25, 2019 through the end of fiscal 2019. On December 16, 2019, the chairman emeritus agreement was extended to provide that Mr. Miller is entitled to receive a quarterly fee of $300,000 per fiscal quarter from March 1, 2020 through the end of fiscal 2020. The chairman emeritus agreement also entitled Mr. Miller to the use of corporate aircraft for up to 50 hours per year for himself, his family members and guests at no cost to him, other than to pay income tax on such usage at the lowest permissible rate. While Mr. Miller was also entitled to receive director’s fees to the same extent, and on the same basis, as the director’s fees paid to directors appointed by our Sponsors, because the directors appointed by our Sponsors were not paid director’s fees during fiscal 2019, Mr. Miller similarly did not receive director’s fees during fiscal 2019.
Our independent directors received compensation for their service on our board of directors or any board committees in fiscal 2019. We reimburse all of our directors for reasonable documented
out-of-pocket
expenses incurred by them in connection with attendance at board of directors and committee meetings.
For fiscal 2019, all of our independent directors received an annual cash fee in the amount of $125,000 and additional annual fees for serving as a committee chair and/or member as follows:
| | | | | | |
| | | | | |
| | Chair of Nominating and Governance Committee | | $ | | |
Member of Nominating and Governance Committee | | $ | | |
Member of Compensation Committee | | $ | | |
| | | | | | |
| | Member of Audit and Risk Committee | | $ | | |
Member of Compliance Committee | | $ | | |
| | | | | | |
| | Chair of Compensation Committee | | $ | | |
Member of Compensation Committee | | $ | | |
Member of Audit and Risk Committee | | $ | | |
| | | | | | |
| | Chair of Audit and Risk Committee | | $ | | |
Member of Audit and Risk Committee | | $ | | |
In February 2019, our board of directors approved awards of 3,788 Phantom Units to each of Messrs. Davis, Fennebresque, Gibson and Schumacher and Ms. Allen with a grant date fair value of $125,004. These Phantom Units became 100% vested on February 29, 2020.
See “Executive Compensation—Incentive Plans—Phantom Unit Plan” for additional information regarding the Phantom Unit Plan.
Compensation Discussion and Analysis
This Compensation Discussion and Analysis is designed to provide an understanding of our compensation philosophy and objectives, compensation-setting process, and the compensation of our named executive officers during fiscal 2019 (“NEOs”). Our NEOs for fiscal 2019 were:
| • | Vivek Sankaran, our President and Chief Executive Officer; |
| • | James L. Donald, our former President and Chief Executive Officer and current Co-Chairman; |
| • | Robert B. Dimond, our Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer; |
| • | Susan Morris, our Executive Vice President and Chief Operations Officer; |
| • | Christine Rupp, our Executive Vice President and Chief Customer and Digital Officer; |
| • | Michael Theilmann, our Executive Vice President and Chief Human Resources Officer; and |
| • | Shane Sampson, our former Chief Marketing and Merchandising Officer. |
Compensation Philosophy and Objectives
Our general compensation philosophy is to provide programs that attract, retain and motivate our executive officers who are critical to our long-term success. We strive to provide a competitive compensation package to our executive officers to reward achievement of our business objectives and align their interests with the interests of our equityholders. We have sought to accomplish these goals through a combination of short- and long-term compensation components that are linked to our annual and long-term business objectives and strategies. To focus our executive officers on the fulfillment of our business objectives, a significant portion of their compensation is performance-based.
The Role of the Compensation Committee
The compensation committee is responsible for determining the compensation of our executive officers. The compensation committee’s responsibilities include determining and approving the compensation of the Chief Executive Officer and reviewing and approving the compensation of all other executive officers.
Compensation Setting Process
Our compensation program has reflected our operations as a private company. In determining the compensation for our executive officers, we relied largely upon the experience of our management and our board of directors with input from our Chief Executive Officer.
Our board of directors has delegated to the compensation committee responsibility for administering our executive compensation programs. As part of the administration of our executive compensation programs, the Chief Executive Officer provides the compensation committee with his assessment of the other NEOs’ performance and other factors used in developing his recommendation for their compensation, including salary adjustments, cash incentives and equity grants.
We have engaged a compensation consultant to provide assistance in determining the compensation of our executive officers. Such assistance may include establishing a peer group and formal benchmarking process to ensure that our executive compensation program is competitive and offers the appropriate retention and performance incentives.
Components of the NEO Compensation Program for Fiscal 2019
We use various compensation elements to provide an overall competitive total compensation and benefits package to the NEOs that is tied to creating value, commensurate with our results, and aligns with our business strategy. Set forth below are the key elements of the compensation program for the NEOs for fiscal 2019:
| • | base salary that reflects compensation for the NEO’s role and responsibilities, experience, expertise and individual performance; |
| • | quarterly bonus based on division performance; |
| • | annual bonus based on our financial performance for the fiscal year; |
| • | incentive compensation based on the value of our equity; |
| • | severance protection; and |
| • | other benefits that are provided to all employees, including healthcare benefits, life insurance, retirement savings plans and disability plans. |
We provide our NEOs with a base salary to compensate them for services rendered during the fiscal year. Base salaries for the NEOs are determined on the basis of each executive’s role and responsibilities, experience, expertise and individual performance. While our NEOs are not eligible for automatic annual salary increases, in fiscal 2019, we made adjustments to the annual base salaries of two NEOs from their base salaries in effect at the end of fiscal 2018:
1. | Mr. Sankaran joined ACI on April 25, 2019, followed by Mr. Theilmann and Ms. Rupp on August 19, 2019 and December 1, 2019, respectively. |
Performance-Based Bonus Plans
We recognize that our corporate management employees shoulder responsibility for supporting our operations and achieving positive financial results. Therefore, we believe that a substantial percentage of each executive officer’s annual compensation should be tied directly to the achievement of performance goals.
All of the NEOs participated in our Corporate Management Bonus Plan established for fiscal 2019 (the “2019 Bonus Plan”). Consistent with our bonus plan for fiscal 2018, the 2019 Bonus Plan consisted of two components:
| • | a quarterly bonus component based on the performance achieved by each of our divisions for each fiscal quarter in fiscal 2019 (each, a “Quarterly Division Bonus”), other than our United Supermarkets division and Haggen stores; and |
| • | an annual bonus component based on performance for the full fiscal 2019 year (the “Annual Corporate Bonus”). |
The goals set under the 2019 Bonus Plan were designed to be challenging and difficult to achieve, but still within a realizable range so that achievement was both uncertain and objective. We believe that this methodology created a strong link between our NEOs and our financial performance.
The Quarterly Division Bonus component and the Annual Corporate Bonus component each constituted 50% of each NEO’s target bonus opportunity for fiscal 2019. Each NEO’s target bonus opportunity for fiscal 2019 under the 2019 Bonus Plan was set at 100% (150% for Mr. Sankaran) of the NEO’s annual base salary. We believe that the target bonus opportunity for our NEOs is appropriate based on their positions and responsibilities, as well as their individual ability to impact our financial performance, and places a proportionately larger percentage of total annual pay for our NEOs at risk based on our performance.
For purposes of the Quarterly Division Bonus, the target bonus opportunity for each fiscal quarter in fiscal 2019 was calculated by dividing the NEO’s target bonus opportunity for fiscal 2019 by 52 weeks and multiplying the result by the number of weeks in the applicable fiscal quarter, then dividing by two (each, a “Quarterly Bonus Target”). Higher and lower percentages of base salary could be earned for each fiscal quarter if minimum performance levels or performance levels above target were achieved. The maximum bonus opportunity for each fiscal quarter under the 2019 Bonus Plan was 200% of the applicable Quarterly Bonus Target. No amount would be payable for an applicable fiscal quarter if results for that quarter fell below established threshold levels. We believe that having a maximum cap promotes good judgment by the NEOs, reduces the likelihood of windfalls and makes the maximum cost of the plan predictable.
At the beginning of each fiscal quarter, the management of each division participating in the 2019 Bonus Plan, with approval from our corporate management, established the division’s EBITDA goal for the applicable fiscal quarter with threshold, plan, target and maximum goals. After the end of the fiscal quarter, our corporate finance team calculated the financial results for each retail division and reported the Quarterly Division Bonus percentage earned, if any. A division earned between 0% to 100% of the bonus target amount for achievement of EBITDA for the fiscal quarter between the threshold and target levels. If the division exceeded 100% of target EBITDA for a fiscal quarter, the amount in excess of target EBITDA would be earned in proportion to the maximum goals, subject to a cap based on achievement of division sales goals for such fiscal quarter as follows:
| | | | |
Quarterly Sales Goal Percentage Achieved | | Maximum Percentage of Quarterly Division Bonus Target Earned | |
| | | | % |
| | | | % |
| | | | % |
The bonuses earned by the NEOs for each fiscal quarter were determined by adding together the percentage of the Quarterly Division Bonus target amounts earned for all of the divisions and dividing the sum by the number of our divisions participating in the 2019 Bonus Plan for such quarter. Most of our divisions participated in the 2019 Bonus Plan during fiscal 2019. The compensation committee determines the level of achievement for each fiscal quarter, which, in turn, determines the amount of the bonus that each NEO will receive each fiscal quarter.
The Annual Corporate Bonus component was based on the level of achievement by us of an annual Adjusted EBITDA target for fiscal 2019 of $2,700.0 million. Amounts under the Annual Corporate Bonus could be earned above or below target level. The threshold level above which a percentage of the Annual Corporate Bonus could be earned was achievement above 90% of the Adjusted EBITDA target and
100% of the Annual Corporate Bonus could be earned at achievement of 100% of the Adjusted EBITDA target, with interim percentages earned for achievement between levels. If achievement exceeded 100% of the Adjusted EBITDA target, 10% of the excess Adjusted EBITDA would be added to the bonus pool, but payout was capped at 200% on the Annual Corporate Bonus component of the NEO’s target bonus opportunity for fiscal 2019. Based on our achievement of Adjusted EBITDA of $2,834.4 million in fiscal 2019, 105% of the target, the compensation committee determined that 160.14% of the Annual Corporate Bonus component of each NEO’s fiscal 2019 target bonus opportunity was earned.
The NEOs earned the following amounts under the 2019 Bonus Plan:
| | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | Aggregate Quarterly Division Bonus for Fiscal 2019 Earned | | | Annual Corporate Bonus for Fiscal 2019 Earned | | | Aggregate Bonus for Fiscal 2019 Earned | |
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In addition to the annual cash incentive program, we may from time to time pay our NEOs discretionary bonuses as determined by the board of directors or the compensation committee to provide for additional retention or upon special circumstances. In connection with the commencement of their respective employments with us in fiscal 2019, Mr. Sankaran, Ms. Rupp and Mr. Theilmann each received a
sign-on
bonus. Mr. Sankaran received a
sign-on
retention award of $10.0 million consisting of three separate payments-$5.0 million was paid on the commencement of his employment and, subject to his continued employment, $2.5 million is payable on April 25, 2020 and $2.5 million is payable on April 25, 2021. Ms. Rupp received a
sign-on
bonus of $2.0 million consisting of two payments-$1.5 million was paid in December 2019 and, subject to her continued employment, the remaining $500,000 is payable on December 1, 2020. Mr. Theilmann’s
sign-on
bonus consisted of a single payment on August 19, 2019 of $950,000.
The Company maintains the Albertsons Companies, Inc. Restricted Stock Unit Plan (the “Restricted Stock Unit Plan”), which was previously named the “Albertsons Companies, Inc. Phantom Unit Plan” (the “Phantom Unit Plan”). Prior to being amended and restated, the Phantom Unit Plan provided for grants of “Phantom Units” to certain employees, directors and consultants. Each Phantom Unit provided a participant with a contractual right to receive, upon vesting, equity in each of the Company’s parents, Albertsons Investor and KIM ACI, consisting of one management incentive unit in Albertsons Investor and one management incentive unit in KIM ACI. Upon the amendment and restatement of the Phantom Unit Plan as the Restricted Stock Unit Plan, all outstanding awards of Phantom Units were converted to awards of restricted stock units (“Restricted Stock Units”) under the Restricted Stock Unit Plan, subject to substantially identical terms and conditions as applied prior to the conversion. Upon vesting, an award of Restricted Stock Units will be settled in shares of our common stock. As of the date of this prospectus, there are 11,272,313 outstanding awards of Restricted Stock Units under the Restricted Stock Unit Plan.
2016-2017 NEO Phantom Unit Grants
Mr. Sampson was granted 132,456 Phantom Units on July 19, 2017 and Ms. Morris was granted 132,456 Phantom Units on each of April 28, 2016 and January 11, 2018 (such grants of Phantom Units to these NEOs, the “2016-2017 NEO Phantom Unit Grants”).
Fifty percent of the 2016-2017 NEO Phantom Unit Grants are time-based units that are subject to the NEO’s continued service through each applicable vesting date (the “2016-2017 Time-Based Units”). The remaining 50% of the 2016-2017 NEO Phantom Unit Grants are performance units that are subject to both the NEO’s continued service through each applicable vesting date and to the achievement of annual performance targets (the
“2016-2017
Performance Units”). The portion of the 2016-2017 Performance Units subject to vesting on February 29, 2020 were subject to our achievement of an annual Adjusted EBITDA target for fiscal 2019 of $2.7 billion. The
2016-2017
NEO Phantom Unit Grants were granted with the right to receive a tax bonus that entitles the NEO to receive a bonus equal to 4% of the fair value of the management incentive units paid to the participant in respect of vested Phantom Units. Following the consummation of this offering, the 2016-2017 Performance Units will vest solely based on the NEO’s continued employment, and any 2016-2017 Performance Units with respect to a missed year will be forfeited. In addition, following the consummation of this offering, if an NEO’s employment is terminated by us without “cause” or due to the NEO’s death or disability, all
2016-2017
Time-Based Units and 2016-2017 Performance Units not previously forfeited would become 100% vested.
Donald Initial Phantom Unit Grants
Upon the commencement of his employment on March 1, 2018, Mr. Donald was granted 214,219 Phantom Units. Fifty percent of such Phantom Units vested on the last day of fiscal 2018 and the remaining 50% of such Phantom Units vested on the last day of fiscal 2019. Mr. Donald’s award entitled him to receive a tax bonus equal to 4% of the fair value of the management incentive units paid to him in respect of vested Phantom Units.
Time-Based Phantom Unit Awards
During fiscal 2018 and fiscal 2019, our NEOs were granted Phantom Units that vest based on the NEO’s continued service in one-third installments on each of three anniversaries of the grant date. During fiscal 2020, our NEOs were granted Phantom Units that vest based on the NEO’s continued service in one-third installments at the end of each of fiscal 2020, fiscal 2021 and fiscal 2022 (collectively, the “Time-Based Phantom Unit Awards”). On September 11, 2018, Mr. Donald was granted a Time-Based Phantom Unit Award of 125,000 Phantom Units, and on November 9, 2018, each of Messrs. Sampson and Dimond and Ms. Morris was granted a Time-Based Phantom Unit Award of 39,297 Phantom Units. On September 11, 2019, Mr. Donald was granted an additional Time-Based Phantom Unit Award of 121,212 Phantom Units, on October 29, 2019, Mr. Theilmann was granted a Time-Based Phantom Unit Award of 22,728 Phantom Units, and on February 7, 2020, Ms. Rupp was granted a Time-Based Phantom Unit Award of 51,282 Phantom Units. On May 14, 2020, each of Mr. Dimond and Ms. Morris was granted a Time-Based Phantom Unit Award of 34,313 Phantom Units, Ms. Rupp was granted a Time-Based Phantom Unit Award of 19,608 Phantom Units, and Mr. Theilmann was granted a Time-Based Phantom Unit Award of 17,157 Phantom Units. Following a change of control, if an NEO’s employment is terminated by us without “cause” or due to the NEO’s death or disability, all Time-Based Phantom Units not previously forfeited would become 100% vested.
Performance-Based Phantom Unit Awards
2019 Performance-Based Phantom Unit Awards
. During fiscal 2018 and fiscal 2019, our NEOs were granted a new design of performance-based awards of Phantom Units that are subject to the NEO’s continued service through the end of fiscal 2021. Each award specifies a target number of Phantom Units subject to the award, but the actual number of total Phantom Units for which the NEO can become vested is based on the separate achievement of specified performance criteria in fiscal 2019, fiscal 2020 and fiscal 2021, respectively (the “2019 Performance-Based Phantom Unit Awards”).
With respect to each of the fiscal years, the NEO may earn between 0% and 120% of one-third (or, in the case of Ms. Rupp and Mr. Theilmann, a pro-rated number based on the date the NEO commenced employment) of the total target number of Phantom Units subject to the award based on our achievement of our annual Adjusted EBITDA target for such fiscal year in accordance with the schedule below:
| | | | |
| | Percentage of Target Number of Phantom Units Earned | |
| | | | |
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If we achieve less than 95% of our annual Adjusted EBITDA target for a fiscal year, an NEO will not earn any Phantom Units in respect of that fiscal year. For performance between the 95% and 100% and 100% and 120% of our annual Adjusted EBITDA target, the number of Phantom Units earned each fiscal year is determined by interpolation on a straight-line basis. Any Phantom Units not earned at the end of a fiscal year as a result of the performance criteria not being met would be automatically forfeited.
On September 11, 2018, Mr. Donald was granted a 2019 Performance-Based Phantom Unit Award entitling him to earn a target number of 125,000 Phantom Units. On November 9, 2018, each of Messrs. Sampson and Dimond and Ms. Morris was granted a 2019 Performance-Based Phantom Unit Award entitling the NEO to earn a target number of 39,297 Phantom Units, on October 29, 2019, Mr. Theilmann was granted a 2019 Performance-Based Phantom Unit Award entitling him to earn a target number of 19,179 Phantom Units, and on February 7, 2020, Ms. Rupp was granted a 2019 Performance-Based Phantom Unit Award entitling her to earn a target number of 19,201 Phantom Units.
If an NEO’s employment terminates prior to the conclusion of fiscal 2021, the NEO’s entire 2019 Performance-Based Phantom Unit Award would be forfeited. The Adjusted EBITDA target for fiscal 2019 was $2.7 billion. If a change of control were to occur prior to the end of fiscal 2021, each NEO would (i) retain any 2019 Performance-Based Phantom Unit Awards earned in respect of any fiscal year completed prior to the change of control and (ii) be awarded a number of Phantom Units equal to the target number of 2019 Performance-Based Phantom Unit Awards for any fiscal year that had either not yet ended or not yet commenced, and such Phantom Units would then vest solely based on the NEO’s continued employment through the last day of fiscal 2021. If, following a change of control, an NEO’s employment were terminated by us without “cause” or due to the NEO’s death or disability, all 2019 Performance-Based Phantom Unit Awards awarded to the NEO would become 100% vested.
Donald 2020 Performance-Based Phantom Unit Awards.
During fiscal 2019, Mr. Donald was granted a performance-based award of Phantom Units that are subject to Mr. Donald’s continued service through the end of fiscal 2022. The award specifies a target number of Phantom Units subject to the award but the actual number of total Phantom Units for which Mr. Donald can become vested is based on the separate achievement of specified performance criteria in fiscal 2020, fiscal 2021 and fiscal 2022, respectively (the “Donald 2020 Performance-Based Phantom Unit Award”).
With respect to each of the fiscal years, Mr. Donald may earn between 0% and 120% of one-third of the target number of the award (i.e., 40,404 Phantom Units) based on our achievement of our annual Adjusted EBITDA target for each such fiscal year in accordance with the schedule below:
| | | | |
| | Percentage of Target Number of Phantom Units Earned | |
| | | | |
| | | | |
| | | | |
If we achieve less than 95% of our annual Adjusted EBITDA target for a fiscal year, Mr. Donald will not earn any Phantom Units in respect of that fiscal year. For performance between the 95% and 100% and 100% and 120% of our annual Adjusted EBITDA target, the number of Phantom Units earned each fiscal year is determined by interpolation on a straight-line basis. Any Phantom Units not earned at the end of a fiscal year as a result of the performance criteria not being met would be automatically forfeited. On September 11, 2019, Mr. Donald was granted the Donald 2020 Performance-Based Phantom Unit Award entitling him to earn a target number of 121,212 Phantom Units.
If Mr. Donald’s service terminates prior to the conclusion of fiscal 2022, the Donald 2020 Performance-Based Phantom Unit Award will be forfeited. If a change of control were to occur prior to the end of fiscal 2022, Mr. Donald would (i) retain any Donald 2020 Performance-Based Phantom Unit Awards earned in respect of any fiscal year completed prior to the change of control and (ii) be awarded a number of Phantom Units equal to the target number of Donald 2020 Performance-Based Phantom Unit Awards for any fiscal year that had either not yet ended or not yet commenced, and such Phantom Units would then vest solely based on Mr. Donald’s continued service through the last day of fiscal 2022. If, following a change of control, Mr. Donald’s service were terminated by us without “cause” or due to Mr. Donald’s death or disability, all Donald 2020 Performance-Based Phantom Unit Awards awarded would become 100% vested.
2020 Performance-Based Phantom Unit Awards
. Phantom Unit Awards granted to our NEOs in fiscal 2020 have a design substantially similar to the 2019 Performance-Based Phantom Unit Awards but contain an additional provision providing for the ability to earn up to 200% of the target number of Phantom Units for fiscal 2020 in the event of exceptional Company performance. Messrs. Dimond and Theilmann and Mses. Morris and Rupp were granted performance-based awards of Phantom Units during fiscal 2020 that are subject to the NEO’s continued service through the end of fiscal 2022. Each award specifies a target number of Phantom Units subject to the award but the actual number of total Phantom Units for which the NEO can become vested is based on the separate achievement of specified performance criteria in fiscal 2020, fiscal 2021 and fiscal 2022, respectively (the “2020 Performance-Based Phantom Unit Awards”).
With respect to fiscal 2020 only, the NEO may earn between 0% and 200% of one-third of the total target number of Phantom Units subject to the award based on our achievement of our annual Adjusted EBITDA target for such fiscal year in accordance with the schedule below:
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| | Percentage of Target Number of Phantom Units Earned | |
| | | | |
| | | | |
| | | | |
| | | | |
With respect to fiscal 2021 and 2022, the NEO’s earning potential is the same as the 2019 Performance-Based Phantom Unit Awards.
If we achieve less than 95% of our annual Adjusted EBITDA target for a fiscal year, an NEO will not earn any Phantom Units in respect of that fiscal year. For performance between the 95% and 100% and 100% and 120% of our annual Adjusted EBITDA target, the number of Phantom Units earned each fiscal year is determined by interpolation on a straight-line basis. With respect to fiscal 2020 only, performance above 120% of our annual Adjusted EBITDA target would entitle an NEO 120% of the target number of Phantom Units plus and an additional 3% of the target number of Phantom Units for each 1% percent our annual Adjusted EBITDA target exceeds 120% (with the number of Phantom Units earned for achievement between each 1% increase in EBITDA being determined by interpolation on a straight-line basis), up to a maximum of 200% of the target number of Phantom Units earned for fiscal 2020. Any Phantom Units not earned at the end of a fiscal year as a result of the performance criteria not being met would be automatically forfeited.
On May 14, 2020, each of Mr. Dimond and Ms. Morris were granted a 2020 Performance-Based Phantom Unit Award entitling each of them to earn a target number of 34,313 Phantom Units, Ms. Rupp was granted a 2020 Performance-Based Phantom Unit Award entitling her to earn a target number of 19,608 Phantom Units, and Mr. Theilmann was granted a 2020 Performance-Based Phantom Unit Award entitling him to earn a target number of 17,157 Phantom Units.
If an NEO’s employment terminates prior to the conclusion of fiscal 2022, the NEO’s entire 2020 Performance-Based Phantom Unit Award would be forfeited. If a change of control were to occur prior to the end of fiscal 2022, each NEO would (i) retain any 2020 Performance-Based Phantom Unit Awards earned in respect of any fiscal year completed prior to the change of control and (ii) be awarded a number of Phantom Units equal to the target number of 2020 Performance-Based Phantom Unit Awards for any fiscal year that had either not yet ended or not yet commenced, and such Phantom Units would then vest solely based on the NEO’s continued employment through the last day of fiscal 2022. If, following a change of control, an NEO’s employment were terminated by us without “cause” or due to the NEO’s death or disability, all 2020 Performance-Based Phantom Unit Awards awarded to the NEO would become 100% vested.
On May 5, 2020, we adopted the Albertsons Companies, Inc. 2020 Omnibus Incentive Plan (the “Incentive Plan”); however the Incentive Plan will not become effective until the commencement of this offering, although no awards will be made under it until the closing of this offering. The principal features of the Incentive Plan are summarized below, but the summary is qualified in its entirety by reference to the Incentive Plan itself, which is filed as an exhibit to the registration statement of which this prospectus is a part.
Securities Subject to the Incentive Plan
. A maximum of 43,563,800 shares of our common stock may be issued or transferred pursuant to awards under the Incentive Plan. The number of shares of our common stock available under the Incentive Plan will be reduced by one share for each share issued under an award. The shares of our common stock covered by the Incentive Plan may be treasury shares, authorized but unissued shares or shares purchased in the open market.
In the event of any termination, expiration, lapse or forfeiture of an award, any shares subject to the award will again be made available for future grants under the Incentive Plan. Any shares of restricted stock repurchased by us at the same price paid for such shares will be made available for issuance again under the Incentive Plan.
. All of our employees, consultants, and directors, and employees and consultants of our affiliates, will be eligible to receive awards under the Incentive Plan.
Awards under the Incentive Plan
. The Incentive Plan provides that the administrator may grant or issue stock options, which may be
non-qualified
stock options (“NQSOs”) or, solely to eligible employees, incentive stock options designed to comply with the applicable provisions of Section 422 of the Code, stock appreciation rights (“SARs”), restricted stock, restricted stock units, stock and cash awards, or any combination thereof. The terms and conditions of each award will be set forth in a separate agreement.
. The Incentive Plan provides for a maximum aggregate amount of shares of common stock that may be granted to a participant in any calendar year subject to adjustment under certain circumstances in order to prevent the dilution or enlargement of the potential benefits intended to be made available under the Incentive Plan, as described below. In addition, the Incentive Plan provides for an annual award limit for performance awards that are payable solely in cash.
Vesting and Exercise of Awards
. The applicable award agreement will contain the period during which the right to exercise the award in whole or in part vests, including the events or conditions upon which the vesting of an award may accelerate. No portion of an award which is not vested at the participant’s termination of employment, termination of directorship or termination of consulting relationship, as applicable, will
subsequently become vested, except as may be otherwise provided by the administrator either in the agreement relating to the award or by action following the grant of the award. Certain awards may be subject to vesting based on the achievement of certain performance criteria. Such performance criteria may include one or more of the following objectives, which objectives may relate to company-wide objectives or objectives for one of our subsidiaries, divisions, departments or functions: (i) net earnings (either before or after interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization), (ii) gross or net sales or revenue, (iii) net income (either before or after taxes), (iv) operating income, (v) cash flow (including, but not limited to, operating cash flow and Adjusted Free Cash Flow), (vi) return on assets, (vii) return on capital, (viii) return on stockholders’ equity, (ix) return on sales, (x) gross or net profit or operating margin, (xi) costs, (xii) funds from operations, (xiii) expense, (xiv) working capital, (xv) earnings per share, (xvi) price per share of our common stock, (xvii) United States Food and Drug Administration or other regulatory body approval for commercialization of a product, (xviii) market share, (xix) identical store sales, and (xx) identical store sales excluding fuel, any of which may be measured either in absolute terms or as compared to any incremental increase or decrease or as compared to results of a peer group.
Transferability of Awards
. Awards generally may not be sold, pledged, assigned or transferred in any manner other than by will or by the laws of descent and distribution or, subject to the consent of the administrator, pursuant to a domestic relations order, unless and until such award has been exercised, or the shares underlying such award have been issued, and all restrictions applicable to such shares have lapsed. Notwithstanding the foregoing, NQSOs may be transferred without consideration to certain family members and trusts with the administrator’s consent. Awards may be exercised, during the lifetime of the participant, only by the participant or such permitted transferee.
Forfeiture and Claw-Back Provisions
. In the event a participant (i) terminates service with us prior to a specified date or within a specified time following receipt or exercise of the award, (ii) we terminate the participant’s service for “cause,” or (iii) the participant engages in certain competitive activities with us, the administrator has the right to require the participant to repay any proceeds, gains or other economic benefit actually or constructively received by the participant or to terminate the award. In addition, all awards (including any proceeds, gains or other economic benefit actually or constructively received by the participant) may be subject to the provisions of any claw-back policy implemented by us, including, without limitation our claw-back policy.
. The future benefits that will be received under the Incentive Plan by our current directors, executive officers and all eligible employees are not currently determinable.
Adjustments for Stock Splits, Recapitalizations, Mergers and Equity Restructurings
. In the event of any recapitalization, reclassification, stock split, reverse stock split, reorganization, merger, consolidation,
split-up,
spin-off
or other transaction that affects our common stock, the Incentive Plan will be equitably adjusted, including the number of available shares, in order to prevent the dilution or enlargement of the benefits or potential benefits intended to be made available under the Incentive Plan or with respect to any award.
Administration of the Incentive Plan
. The compensation committee is the administrator of the Incentive Plan. Subject to certain limitations, the committee may delegate its authority to grant awards to one or more committees consisting of one or more members of the board of directors or one or more of our officers.
Amendment and Termination of the Incentive Plan
. Our board of directors and the compensation committee may amend the Incentive Plan at any time, subject to stockholder approval to the extent required by applicable law or regulation or the listing standards of the market or stock exchange on which our common stock is at the time primarily traded.
Stockholder approval will be specifically required to increase the maximum number of shares of our common stock which may be issued under the Incentive Plan, change the eligibility requirements or decrease the exercise price of any outstanding option or stock appreciation right granted under the Incentive Plan. Our board of directors and the compensation committee may amend the terms of any award theretofore granted, prospectively or retroactively, however, except as otherwise provided in the Incentive Plan, no such amendment
will, without the consent of the participant, alter or impair any rights of the participant under such award without the consent of the participant unless the award itself otherwise expressly so provides.
Our board of directors and the compensation committee may suspend or terminate the Incentive Plan at any time. However, in no event may an award be granted pursuant to the Incentive Plan on or after the tenth anniversary of the effective date of the Incentive Plan.
. Except in connection with a corporate transaction involving us (including, without limitation, any stock distribution, stock split, extraordinary cash distribution, recapitalization, reorganization, merger, consolidation,
split-up,
spin-off,
combination or exchange of shares), the administrator will not, without the approval of the stockholders, authorize the amendment of any outstanding award to reduce its price per share, including any amendment to reduce the exercise price per share of outstanding options or SARs.
Employment Agreement with Vivek Sankaran
On March 25, 2019, we entered into an employment agreement with Vivek Sankaran (the “Sankaran Employment Agreement”), effective April 25, 2019 (the “Commencement Date”). The Sankaran Employment Agreement provides for an initial term that expires on the third anniversary of the Commencement Date, and thereafter automatically renews for additional
one-year
periods unless either party provides written notice at least 120 days prior to the end of the then-current term.
Pursuant to the Sankaran Employment Agreement, Mr. Sankaran is entitled to receive an annual base salary of $1,500,000 and is eligible for an annual bonus targeted at 150% of his base salary. Mr. Sankaran also received a
sign-on
retention award of $10.0 million. Fifty percent of Mr. Sankaran’s
sign-on
retention award was paid on the Commencement Date, and the remaining 50% is payable as follows: (i) $2.5 million on April 25, 2020 and (ii) $2.5 million on April 25, 2021, subject to his continued employment with us on each such date.
On his Commencement Date, Mr. Sankaran was granted profits interests consisting of 584,289 Class
B-1
Units (as defined herein) in Albertsons Investor, 588,315 Class
B-1
Units in KIM ACI, 584,289 Class
B-2
Units (as defined herein) in Albertsons Investor and 588,315 Class
B-2
Units in KIM ACI. The Class
B-1
Units and Class
B-2
Units entitle Mr. Sankaran to participate, on a pro rata basis, in the distributions from each of Albertsons Investor and KIM ACI following aggregate distributions of $6.5 billion (on a combined basis from both Albertsons Investor and KIM ACI), based on Mr. Sankaran’s ownership percentages in Albertsons Investor and KIM ACI. The only difference between the Class
B-1
Units in Albertsons Investor and the Class
B-2
Units in Albertsons Investor are the vesting and forfeiture terms. Similarly, the only difference between the Class
B-1
Units in KIM ACI and the Class
B-2
Units in KIM ACI are the vesting and forfeiture terms. The aggregate fair value of Mr. Sankaran’s Class
B-1
Units and Class
B-2
Units in Albertsons Investor and Class
B-1
Units and Class
B-2
Units in KIM ACI was $19.5 million based on a fair value of the Class
B-1
Units and Class
B-2
Units in Albertsons Investor of $15.04 per unit and a fair value of the Class
B-1
Units and Class
B-2
Units in KIM ACI of $1.64 per unit (the different fair values are due to the unequal ownership interests in the Company held by Albertsons Investor and KIM ACI).
Mr. Sankaran’s Class
B-1
Units in Albertsons Investor have the same vesting terms and conditions as his Class
B-1
Units in KIM ACI (collectively, the “Class
B-1
Units”) and all of Mr. Sankaran’s Class
B-2
Units in Albertsons Investor have the same vesting terms and conditions as his Class
B-2
Units in KIM ACI (collectively, the “Class
B-2
Units”). Accordingly, for simplification purposes, any reference to a fraction or percentage of Mr. Sankaran’s Class
B-1
Units is intended to mean that fraction or percentage of Mr. Sankaran’s Class
B-1
Units in Albertsons Investor and Mr. Sankaran’s Class
B-1
Units in KIM ACI, respectively, and any reference to a fraction or percentage of Mr. Sankaran’s Class
B-2
Units is intended to mean that fraction or percentage of Mr. Sankaran’s Class
B-2
Units in Albertsons Investor and Mr. Sankaran’s Class
B-2
Units in KIM ACI, respectively.
Mr. Sankaran’s Class
B-1
Units will vest in installments on each of the first, second, third, fourth and fifth anniversaries of his Commencement Date. If, prior to a change in control, Mr. Sankaran’s employment terminates due to his death or disability, Mr. Sankaran will become vested in the number of Class
B-1
Units that would have vested on the next anniversary of the grant date, prorated based on the number of days of service during the period commencing on the prior anniversary of the grant date and ending on the date of Mr. Sankaran’s termination of employment. If following a change in control, Mr. Sankaran’s employment terminates due to his death or disability, Mr. Sankaran will become fully vested in all unvested Class
B-1
Units. If Mr. Sankaran’s employment is terminated by us without “cause” or Mr. Sankaran resigns for “good reason” (as such terms are defined in the Sankaran Employment Agreement), Mr. Sankaran will become vested in the Class
B-1
Units that he would have become vested on the next anniversary of the grant date following such termination of employment. If Mr. Sankaran’s employment is terminated by us without cause or Mr. Sankaran resigns for good reason following a change in control or within the
180-day
period immediately prior to a change in control, Mr. Sankaran will become fully vested in the Class
B-1
Units. If Mr. Sankaran’s employment terminates due to our
non-renewal
of the term, Mr. Sankaran will become vested in any Class
B-1
Units that would have vested during the
13-month
period following such termination of employment.
Mr. Sankaran’s Class
B-2
Units are divided into three equal tranches, each of which will vest in installments: (i) the first tranche, consisting of
one-third
of the Class
B-2
Units, vests at the end of each of fiscal 2019, fiscal 2020 and fiscal 2021 (“Tranche One”); (ii) the second tranche, consisting of
one-third
of the Class
B-2
Units, vests at the end of each of fiscal 2020, fiscal 2021 and fiscal 2022 (“Tranche Two”); and (iii) the third tranche, consisting of
one-third
of the Class
B-2
Units, vests at the end of each of fiscal 2021, fiscal 2022 and fiscal 2023 (“Tranche Three”), in each case based on our attainment of performance criteria for each applicable fiscal year, and in each case subject to Mr. Sankaran’s continued employment with the Company. With respect to each fiscal year, Mr. Sankaran will vest in between 0% and 100% of the Class
B-2
Units eligible to become vested in that fiscal year based on our achievement of our annual Adjusted EBITDA target for such fiscal year. For Mr. Sankaran to vest in any Class
B-2
Units in respect of a fiscal year, we must achieve at least 95% of our annual Adjusted EBITDA target for that fiscal year. Performance at 95% of our annual Adjusted EBITDA target will entitle Mr. Sankaran to 75% of the target number of Class
B-2
Units for such fiscal year. Any Class
B-2
Units that do not vest at the end of a fiscal year are automatically forfeited. The Adjusted EBITDA target for fiscal 2019 was $2.7 billion.
If Mr. Sankaran’s employment is terminated by Mr. Sankaran without good reason: (i) prior to the conclusion of fiscal 2021, Tranche One will be forfeited in its entirety; (ii) prior to the conclusion of fiscal 2022, Tranche Two will be forfeited in its entirety; and (iii) prior to the conclusion of fiscal 2023, Tranche Three will be forfeited in its entirety. If, prior to a change in control, Mr. Sankaran’s employment terminates due to his death or disability, Mr. Sankaran will become vested in the number of Class
B-2
Units that would have vested on the next anniversary of the grant date based on our attainment of performance targets for such fiscal year, prorated based on the number of days of service during the period commencing on the prior anniversary of the grant date and ending on the date of Mr. Sankaran’s termination of employment. If, following a change in control, Mr. Sankaran’s employment terminates due to his death or disability, Mr. Sankaran will become fully vested in all unvested Class
B-2
Units (to the extent not previously forfeited) as if the performance targets for future fiscal years had been fully achieved. If Mr. Sankaran’s employment is terminated by us without cause or by Mr. Sankaran for good reason, Mr. Sankaran will become fully vested in any Class
B-2
Units that would have become vested at the end of the fiscal year in which such termination occurs, based on the attainment of performance targets for such fiscal year. If Mr. Sankaran’s employment is terminated by us without cause or Mr. Sankaran resigns for good reason following a change in control or within the
180-day
period immediately prior to a change in control, Mr. Sankaran will become fully vested in any unvested Class
B-2
Units (to the extent not previously forfeited) as if the performance targets for future fiscal years had been fully achieved. If Mr. Sankaran’s employment terminates due to our
non-renewal
of the term, Mr. Sankaran will become vested in any Class
B-2
Units that would have vested during the
13-month
period following such termination of employment, based on our attainment of performance targets for the fiscal year of such termination.
of any bonus earned in respect of any completed performance period prior to the date of termination; (ii) a lump sum payment in an amount equal to 200% of the sum of his base salary plus target bonus; (iii) if the option (described above) has been issued, accelerated vesting of the portion or portions of the option that would have become vested in the
13-month
period following the termination date; and (iv) reimbursement of the cost of continuation coverage of group health coverage for a period of 18 months.
Employment Agreement with James L. Donald
On May 22, 2019, we entered into an amended and restated employment agreement with Mr. Donald, (the “Donald Employment Agreement”), effective April 25, 2019. The Donald Employment Agreement extended the term of Mr. Donald’s service with us to February 25, 2023 and updates his duties through such date.
Pursuant to the Donald Employment Agreement, through February 29, 2020, Mr. Donald received an annual base salary of $1,500,000 and remained eligible for a bonus targeted at 100% of his base salary. Thereafter, through the end of the term on February 25, 2023, Mr. Donald will receive an annual base salary of $1.0 million but will no longer be eligible to receive a bonus. As provided in the Donald Employment Agreement, Mr. Donald received an award of 242,424 Phantom Units under our Phantom Unit Plan, of which 50% will vest in three equal installments on each anniversary of the grant date, provided that Mr. Donald remains in his then-current position with us through the applicable vesting date, and 50% will vest on February 25, 2023, provided that (i) Mr. Donald remains in his then-current position with us through such date and (ii) the performance-based conditions specified by the board of directors (or compensation committee) for each of fiscal 2020, fiscal 2021 and fiscal 2022 of the Company have been achieved.
If Mr. Donald’s employment is terminated due to his death or due to disability, he or his legal representative, as appropriate, would be entitled to receive a lump sum payment in an amount equal to 25% of his then base salary. If Mr. Donald’s employment is terminated by us without cause or by Mr. Donald for good reason (as such terms are defined in the Donald Employment Agreement) after February 29, 2020, subject to his execution of a release, Mr. Donald would be entitled to a lump sum payment in an amount equal to his then remaining base salary that would have been payable from the date of termination through February 25, 2023.
Employment Agreements with other Executives
During fiscal 2019, each of Messrs. Dimond, Sampson and Theilmann and Mses. Morris and Rupp were subject to a respective employment agreement with the Company (collectively, the “Executive Employment Agreements”). On May 1, 2019, we entered into a new employment agreement with Messrs. Dimond and Sampson and Ms. Morris, respectively, each of which amended and restated such NEO’s respective prior employment agreement with the Company, dated August 1, 2017. In connection with the commencement of Mr. Theilmann’s employment with the Company on August 19, 2019, and Ms. Rupp’s employment with the Company on December 1, 2019, each entered into their respective Executive Employment Agreement.
Each Executive Employment Agreement has a term that ends on January 30, 2023 and provides that the respective NEO is entitled to a specified annual base salary and eligibility for an annual bonus targeted at 100% of his or her annual base salary.
If the executive’s employment terminates due to his or her death or he or she is terminated due to disability, the executive or his or her legal representative, as appropriate, would be entitled to receive a lump sum payment in an amount equal to 25% of his or her base salary. If the executive’s employment is terminated by us without cause or by the executive for good reason, subject to his or her execution of a release, the executive would be entitled to a lump sum payment in an amount equal to 200% of the sum of his or her base salary plus target bonus and reimbursement of the cost of continuation coverage of group health coverage for a period of 12 months.
For the purposes of each Executive Employment Agreement, cause generally means:
| • | acts of intentional dishonesty resulting or intending to result in personal gain or enrichment at our expense, or our subsidiaries or affiliates; |
| • | a material breach of the executive’s obligations under the applicable Executive Employment Agreement, including, but not limited to, breach of the restrictive covenants or fraudulent, unlawful or grossly negligent conduct by the executive in connection with his or her duties under the applicable Executive Employment Agreement; |
| • | personal conduct by the executive which seriously discredits or damages us, our subsidiaries or our affiliates; or |
| • | contravention of specific lawful direction from the board of directors. |
For the purposes of each Executive Employment Agreement, good reason generally means:
| • | a reduction in the base salary or target bonus; or |
| • | without prior written consent, relocation of the executive’s principal location of work to any location that is in excess of 50 miles from such location on the date of the applicable Executive Employment Agreement. |
Pursuant to Ms. Rupp’s Executive Employment Agreement, Ms. Rupp is entitled to an annual bonus for fiscal 2019 under the 2019 Bonus Plan in an amount determined by the committee and
pro-rated
based on the number of days Ms. Rupp is employed during fiscal 2019. In addition, pursuant to Ms. Rupp’s Executive Employment Agreement, Ms. Rupp is entitled to an annual equity grant valued at $2.0 million, the first of which is to be awarded on our customary grant date following December 1, 2019.
Ms. Rupp’s Executive Employment Agreement also entitled Ms. Rupp to a
one-time
incentive award consisting of cash and equity awards as an inducement to begin employment with the Company. The cash portion of the award is equal to $2.0 million, with $1.5 million having been paid on December 1, 2019 and the remaining $500,000 to be paid on December 1, 2020, subject to her continued employment on such date. Ms. Rupp also received an award of 51,282 Phantom Units that vests, subject to Ms. Rupp’s continued employment, in three installments - 50% on December 1, 2021, 25% on December 1, 2022 and 25% on December 1, 2023, and an award of 19,201 Phantom Units under the Phantom Unit Plan, which vests at the end of fiscal 2021 based on performance during fiscal 2019, fiscal 2020 and fiscal 2021, and provided Ms. Rupp remains employed through such date.
Sampson Separation Agreement
On August 19, 2019, Mr. Sampson resigned from employment with us, effective September 7, 2019. On August 21, 2019, we entered into a separation agreement (the “Sampson Separation Agreement”) with Mr. Sampson that provides for Mr. Sampson to receive (i) a lump sum payment equal to 200% of the sum of Mr. Sampson’s then-current base salary plus target bonus, (ii) a lump sum payment equal to 50% percent of the annual bonus Mr. Sampson would have received in respect of fiscal 2019 had Mr. Sampson remained employed for the entirety of such fiscal year, payable no later than May 15, 2020, and (iii) reimbursement of the cost of continuation coverage of group health coverage for a period of up to 18 months. As a condition to receiving the payments and benefits under the Sampson Separation Agreement, Mr. Sampson provided a general release of claims in favor of us and our affiliates and agreed to continue to comply with
24-month
post-employment
non-competition
and
non-solicitation
covenants.
Deferred Compensation Plan
Our subsidiaries, Albertsons and NALP, maintain the Albertson’s LLC Makeup Plan and NALP Makeup Plan, respectively (collectively, the “Makeup Plans”). The Makeup Plans are unfunded nonqualified deferred compensation arrangements. Designated employees may elect to defer the receipt of a portion of their base pay,
bonus and incentive payments under the Makeup Plans. The amounts deferred are held in a book entry account and are deemed to have been invested by the participant in investment options designated by the participant from among the investment options made available by the committee under the Makeup Plans. Participants are vested in their accounts under the Makeup Plans to the same extent they are vested in their accounts under the 401(k) plan discussed below, except that accounts under the Makeup Plans will become fully vested upon a change of control. No deferral contributions for a year will be credited, however, until the participant has been credited with the maximum amount of elective deferrals permitted by the terms of the 401(k) plans and/or the limitations imposed by the Code. In addition, participants will be credited with an amount equal to the excess of the amount we would contribute to the 401(k) plans as a Company contribution on the participant’s behalf for the plan year without regard to any limitations imposed by the Code based on the participant’s compensation over the amount of our actual Company contributions for the plan year. Generally, payment of the participant’s account under the Makeup Plans will be made in a lump sum following the participant’s separation from service. Participants may receive a distribution of up to 100% of their account during employment in the event of an emergency. Participants in the Makeup Plans are unsecured general creditors. Effective December 31, 2018, the Makeup Plans were frozen except for any deferrals from bonus payments earned during fiscal 2018 but paid in 2019. The Makeup Plans were replaced by the Albertsons Companies Deferred Compensation Plan effective January 1, 2019, which provides for deferral on substantially the same terms as the Makeup Plans.
Our subsidiary, Safeway, maintained the Safeway Executive Deferred Compensation Program II (the “Safeway Plan” and together with the Makeup Plans and Albertsons Companies Deferred Compensation Plan, the “Deferred Compensation Plans”), which was an unfunded nonqualified deferred compensation arrangement. Designated employees may elect to defer the receipt of up to 100% of their base pay, bonus and incentive payments under the Safeway Plan. Effective December 31, 2018, the Safeway Plan was frozen. The Safeway Plan was replaced by the Albertsons Companies Deferred Compensation Plan effective January 1, 2019.
For fiscal 2019, Messrs. Donald, Sankaran, Dimond, Sampson and Theilmann and Mses. Morris and Rupp were eligible to participate in the Albertsons Companies Deferred Compensation Plan. See the table entitled “Nonqualified Deferred Compensation” below for information with regard to the participation of the NEOs in the Deferred Compensation Plans.
The Albertsons Companies 401(k) Plan (the “ACI 401(k) Plan”) permits eligible employees to make voluntary,
pre-tax
employee contributions up to a specified percentage of compensation, subject to applicable tax limitations. Eligible employees are also permitted to make voluntary
after-tax
Roth contributions, up to a specified percentage of compensation, subject to applicable tax limitations. We may make a discretionary matching contribution equal to a
pre-determined
percentage of an employee’s contributions, subject to applicable tax limitations. On December 30, 2018, we implemented a hard freeze of
non-union
benefits of employees of the Safeway pension plan. All future benefit accruals for
non-union
employees ceased as of this date. Instead,
non-union
Safeway pension plan participants are eligible for the discretionary matching contribution under the ACI 401(k) Plan. Union employees continue to accrue benefits in the Safeway pension plan and are not eligible for matching contributions under the ACI 401(k) Plan. Eligible employees who elect to participate in the ACI 401(k) Plan are generally 50% vested upon completion of two years of service and 100% vested after three years of service in any discretionary matching contribution, and fully vested at all times in their employee contributions. The ACI 401(k) Plan is intended to be
tax-qualified
under Section 401(a) of the Code. Accordingly, contributions to the ACI 401(k) Plan and income earned on plan contributions are not taxable to employees until withdrawn, and our contributions, if any, will be deductible by us when made. Our board of directors determines the discretionary matching contribution rate under the ACI 401(k) Plan for each year. For the 2019 plan year, our board of directors set a matching contribution rate equal to 50% of an employee’s contribution up to 7% of base salary.
The NEOs participate in the health and dental coverage, Company-paid term life insurance, disability insurance, paid time off and paid holidays programs applicable to other employees in their locality. We also maintain a relocation policy applicable to employees who are required to relocate their residence. These benefits are designed to be competitive with overall market practices and are in place to attract and retain the necessary talent in the business.
The NEOs generally are not entitled to any perquisites that are not otherwise available to all of our employees.
Each of Messrs. Sankaran and Donald is entitled to the use of our corporate aircraft for up to 50 hours per year for himself, his family members and guests at no cost to him, other than the payment of income tax on such usage at the lowest permissible rate. Other executives, generally those with the title of executive vice president or above, may request the personal use of a Company-owned aircraft subject to availability.
For fiscal 2019, Messrs. Dimond and Theilmann and Mses. Morris and Rupp were eligible for financial and tax planning services up to a maximum annual amount of $8,000.
Our compensation committee has assessed the risk associated with our compensation practices and policies for employees, including a consideration of the balance between risk-taking incentives and risk-mitigating factors in our practices and policies. The assessment determined that any risks arising from our compensation practices and policies are not reasonably likely to have a material adverse effect on our business or financial condition.
Impact of Accounting and Tax Matters
As a general matter, the compensation committee is responsible for reviewing and considering the various tax and accounting implications of compensation vehicles that we utilize. With respect to accounting matters, the compensation committee examines the accounting cost associated with equity compensation in light of ASC 718.
Nonqualified Deferred Compensation
The following table shows the executive and Company contributions, earnings and account balances for the NEOs under the Deferred Compensation Plans during fiscal 2019. The Deferred Compensation Plans are nonqualified deferred compensation arrangements intended to comply with Section 409A of the Code. See “—Compensation Discussion and Analysis” for a description of the terms and conditions of the Deferred Compensation Plans. The aggregate balance of each participant’s account consists of amounts that have been deferred by the participant, Company contributions, plus earnings (or minus losses). We do not deposit any amounts into any trust or other account for the benefit of plan participants. In accordance with tax requirements, the assets of the Deferred Compensation Plans are subject to claims of our creditors.
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| | Executive Contributions in Last FY | | | Registrant Contributions in Last FY | | | Aggregate Earnings in Last FY | | | Aggregate Withdrawals/ Distributions | | | Aggregate Balance at Last FYE | |
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1. | All executive contributions represent amounts deferred by each NEO under a Deferred Compensation Plan and are included as compensation in the Summary Compensation Table under “Salary,” “Bonus” and “Non-Equity Incentive Plan Compensation.” |
2. | All registrant contributions are reported under “All Other Compensation” in the Summary Compensation Table. |
3. | These amounts are not reported in the Summary Compensation Table as none of the earnings are based on interest above the market rate. |
Restricted Stock Unit Plan
We maintain the Restricted Stock Unit Plan, which was previously named the Phantom Unit Plan. Upon the amendment and restatement of the Phantom Unit Plan as the Restricted Stock Unit Plan, all awards that were previously outstanding were converted to awards of Restricted Stock Units. Upon vesting, an award of Restricted Stock Units will be settled in shares of our common stock. Prior to being amended and restated, the Phantom Unit Plan provided for grants of Phantom Units to employees, directors and consultants. Each Phantom Unit provided a participant with a contractual right to receive, upon vesting, equity in the Company’s parents, Albertsons Investor and KIM ACI, consisting of one management incentive unit in Albertsons Investor and one management incentive unit in KIM ACI.
The Restricted Stock Unit Plan provides that we may provide for a participant’s Restricted Stock Unit award to include a separate right to receive a tax bonus. A tax bonus entitles a participant to receive a bonus equal to 4% of the fair market value of the common stock paid to the participant in respect of vested Restricted Stock Units. Tax bonuses may be paid in cash, common stock or a combination thereof.
The Restricted Stock Unit Plan provides that, unless otherwise provided in an award agreement, in the event of the termination of a participant’s service for any reason, any unvested Restricted Stock Units and any rights to a future tax bonus will be forfeited without the payment of consideration. In the event of the termination of a participant’s service for cause (as defined in the participant’s employment agreement), unless otherwise provided in an award agreement, the vested but unpaid portion of any award and any rights to a future tax bonus will be forfeited without the payment of consideration.
1. | Reflects a lump sum cash payment in an amount equal to 25% of Mr. Theilmann’s base salary. |
2. | Reflects a lump sum cash payment equal to 200% of Mr. Theilmann’s base salary plus target annual bonus. |
3. | Reflects the cost of reimbursement for up to 12 months continuation of health coverage. |
In addition to the foregoing, Mr. Sankaran would become vested in a portion of his Class
B-1
Units and Class
B-2
Units in Albertsons Investor and KIM ACI as set forth in the table below (based on a per unit price of $18.67, the value of one Class
B-1
Unit and Class
B-2
Unit in Albertsons Investor and based on a per unit price of $2.03, the value of one Class
B-1
Unit and Class
B-2
Unit in KIM ACI as of February 29, 2020).
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| | | | | For Cause or Without Good Reason ($) | | | Without Cause or for Good Reason ($) | | | Change in Control – Without Cause or for Good Reason ($) | | | Change in Control – Death or Disability ($) | |
Albertsons Investor Class B-1 Units | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
Albertsons Investor Class B-2 Units | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
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In addition to the foregoing, each of Messrs. Donald, Dimond and Theilmann and Mses. Morris and Rupp would have been entitled to full vesting of his or her unvested Phantom Units in the amounts set forth in the table below (based on a per unit price of $51.00, the aggregate value of one incentive unit in each of Albertsons Investor and KIM ACI as of February 29, 2020) if following a change of control the respective NEO’s employment terminated due to death or disability or by us without cause on February 29, 2020.
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CERTAIN RELATIONSHIPS AND RELATED PARTY TRANSACTIONS
The following discussion is a brief summary of certain material arrangements, agreements and transactions we have with related parties. It does not include all of the provisions of our material arrangements, agreements and transactions with related parties, does not purport to be complete and is qualified in its entirety by reference to the arrangements, agreements and transactions described. We enter into transactions with our Sponsors and other entities owned by, or affiliated with, our Sponsors in the ordinary course of business. These transactions include, amongst others, professional advisory, consulting and other corporate services.
Our board of directors has adopted a written policy (the “Related Party Policy”) and procedures for the review, approval or ratification of “Related Party Transactions” by the independent members of the audit and risk committee of our board of directors. For purposes of the Related Party Policy, a “Related Party Transaction” is any transaction, arrangement or relationship or series of similar transactions, arrangements or relationships (including the incurrence or issuance of any indebtedness or the guarantee of indebtedness) in which (1) the aggregate amount involved will or may be reasonably expected to exceed $120,000 in any fiscal year, (2) we or any of our subsidiaries is a participant and (3) any related party has or will have a direct or indirect material interest.
We paid COAC, an affiliate of Cerberus, fees totaling approximately $0.3 million, $0.5 million and $0.5 million for fiscal 2019, fiscal 2018 and fiscal 2017, respectively, for consulting services provided in connection with improving our operations.
We paid CTS, an affiliate of Cerberus, fees totaling approximately $4.4 million for fiscal 2019 for information technology advisory and implementation services in connection with modernizing our information systems. We paid no fees to CTS in fiscal 2018 and fiscal 2017.
Several of our board members are employees of our Sponsors (excluding Kimco), and funds managed by one or more affiliates of our Sponsors indirectly own a substantial portion of our equity through their respective ownership of Albertsons Investor and KIM ACI.
On August 19, 2019, Shane Sampson, who served as our Executive Vice President and Chief Marketing & Merchandising Officer, voluntarily resigned from the Company, effective September 7, 2019, and, on August 21, 2019, entered into the Sampson Separation Agreement. Pursuant to the Sampson Separation Agreement, in consideration for Mr. Sampson’s release of claims, we agreed to treat Mr. Sampson’s resignation in the same manner as if he were terminated without cause and to provide Mr. Sampson with the severance payments and benefits under his employment agreement. Pursuant to the Sampson Separation Agreement, Mr. Sampson acknowledged and agreed that he remains subject to the
24-month
post-termination
non-competition
and
non-solicitation
provisions set forth in his employment agreement.
On July 2, 2019, we closed a sale and leaseback transaction for a distribution center with a counterparty which is also an investor in certain funds managed by Cerberus, including funds that are indirect equityholders of the Company. We received gross sales proceeds of approximately $278 million and entered into a lease agreement for the distribution center for an initial term of 15 years with an initial annual rent payment for the property of approximately $12 million.
On January 3, 2019, we closed a three-store sale and leaseback transaction with entities affiliated with Kimco. We received gross sales proceeds of approximately $31 million and entered into lease agreements for each of the three stores for initial terms of 20 years with an initial annual rent payment for the properties of approximately $2 million.
On January 1, 2019, we terminated a store lease with an entity affiliated with Kimco. We received a termination fee of $5.5 million and entered into a use restriction agreement that restricts use of the premises for a supermarket or grocery store until the earlier of August 31, 2027 or the date we no longer operate a supermarket or grocery store at two benefited properties for at least two years (excluding force majeure).
In the Repurchase, we used $1.68 billion of cash to repurchase an aggregate of 101,611,736 shares of outstanding common stock from Albertsons Investor, KIM ACI and entities affiliated with Kimco, at a price equal to $16.53 per share. The proceeds received by Albertsons Investor and KIM ACI from the Repurchase were distributed to their members, which include our Sponsors and members of our management.
During fiscal 2018, we repurchased 3,671,621 shares of common stock allocable to certain current and former members of management (the “Management Holders”) for $25.8 million in cash. The shares are classified as treasury stock on the Consolidated Balance Sheet included elsewhere in this prospectus. The shares repurchased represented a portion of the shares allocable to management. Proceeds from the repurchase were used by the Management Holders to repay outstanding loans of the Management Holders with a third-party financial institution. As there is no current active market for shares of our common stock, the shares were repurchased at a negotiated price between us and the Management Holders.
Pursuant to our governing documents and that of our predecessor, AB Acquisition, we paid annual management fees of $13.75 million to our Sponsors for fiscal 2016, fiscal 2017, fiscal 2018 and fiscal 2019. In exchange for the management fees, our Sponsors have provided strategic advice to management, including with respect to acquisitions and financings. For fiscal 2020, all management fees owed by us to our Sponsors will be paid quarterly and any remaining obligations will terminate at the closing of this offering.
As of the closing of this offering, we will enter into the Stockholders’ Agreement. The Stockholders’ Agreement will provide for designation rights for the Sponsors to nominate directors to the board of directors. Pursuant to the Stockholders’ Agreement, we will be required to appoint to our board of directors individuals designated by and voted for by our Sponsors. If Cerberus (or a permitted transferee or assignee) has beneficial ownership of at least 20% of our then-outstanding common stock, it shall have the right to designate four directors to our board of directors. If Cerberus (or a permitted transferee or assignee) owns less than 20% but at least 10% of our then-outstanding common stock, it shall have the right to designate two directors to our board of directors. If Cerberus (or a permitted transferee or assignee) owns less than 10% but at least 5% of our then-outstanding common stock, it shall have the right to designate one director to our board of directors. If Klaff Realty (or a permitted transferee or assignee) owns at least 5% of our then-outstanding common stock, it shall have the right to designate one director to our board of directors. If Schottenstein Stores (or a permitted transferee or assignee) owns at least 5% of our then-outstanding common stock, it shall have the right to designate one director to our board of directors.
Registration Rights Agreement
As of the Preferred Closing Date, we entered into a registration rights agreement with certain of our stockholders as of immediately prior to the closing of this offering (the
“Pre-IPO
Stockholders”) and the Preferred Investors (together with the
Pre-IPO
Stockholders, the “Holders”). Pursuant to the registration rights agreement, we granted the Holders certain registration rights with respect to the registrable securities, which registrable securities include Conversion Shares, but not Convertible Preferred Stock. These rights include certain demand registration rights for our Sponsors and “piggyback” registration rights for all Holders. Additionally, we are required to use our reasonable best efforts to file and maintain an effective shelf registration as permitted by Rule 415 of the Securities Act for all registrable securities held by the Preferred Investors by no later than the later of (i) seven and
one-half
months after the consummation of this offering and (ii) 18 months after the Preferred Closing Date (the “Preferred Investor Shelf Registration Statement”). The registration rights only apply to registrable securities, and shares of our common stock cease to be registrable securities under
certain conditions including (i) they are sold pursuant to an effective registration statement, (ii) they are sold pursuant to Rule 144, or (iii) they are eligible to be resold without regard to the volume or public information requirements of Rule 144 and the resale of such shares is not prohibited by the
lock-up
agreements described below. The registration rights are subject to certain delay, suspension and cutback provisions. The Preferred Investors are also subject to certain additional transfer restrictions with respect to the Convertible Preferred Stock and the Conversion Shares. See “Private Placement of Convertible Preferred Stock—Investment Agreement—Transfer Restrictions.”
The registration rights agreement includes customary indemnification and contribution provisions. All fees, costs and expenses related to registrations generally will be borne by us, other than underwriting discounts and commissions attributable to the sale of registrable securities.
The Holders may be required to deliver
lock-up
agreements to underwriters in connection with registered offerings of shares.
Demand Registration Rights for Non-Shelf Registered Offerings Granted to Sponsors
. The registration rights agreement grants our Sponsors certain demand registration rights. Until we are eligible to file a registration statement on Form
S-3,
our Sponsors will be limited to a single demand right for an underwritten offering pursuant to a registration statement on Form
S-1.
Such registration statement would be required to include at least 5% of the total number of shares of our common stock outstanding immediately prior to this offering, which we refer to as the
pre-IPO
common stock, or all of the remaining registrable securities of the demanding holder, and such request will require the consent of the holders of at least a majority of the outstanding registrable securities.
Shelf Registration Rights Granted to Sponsors
. When we become eligible to file a registration statement on Form
S-3,
the registration rights agreement grants our Sponsors certain rights to demand that we file a shelf registration statement covering any registrable securities that Sponsors are permitted to sell pursuant to the
lock-up
agreements with us described below or any other
lock-up
restrictions. The number of shares covered by the shelf registration statement may also be reduced by us based on any advice of any potential underwriters, after consultation with us, to limit such number of shares.
Demand Registration Rights for Shelf Takedowns Granted to Sponsors
. The registration rights agreement grants our Sponsors certain rights to demand takedowns from a shelf registration statement. For underwritten offerings pursuant to the registration rights agreement (which may include the offering on Form
S-1
described above), any such takedown demand would be required to include at least 5% of the
pre-IPO
common stock or all of the remaining registrable securities of the demanding holder. Sponsors lose their remaining demand registration rights when they cease to beneficially own at least 5% of our common stock. Further, we are not required to effect more than one demand registration in any
30-day
period (with such
30-day
period commencing on the closing date of any underwritten offering pursuant to a preceding demand registration).
The
Investor Shelf Registration Statement
. The registration rights agreement provides that we must use our reasonable best efforts to file and maintain effective the Preferred Investor Shelf Registration Statement for all registrable securities, which registrable securities include Conversion Shares, but not Convertible Preferred Stock, held by the Preferred Investors by no later than the later of (i) seven and
one-half
months after the consummation of this offering and (ii) 18 months after the Preferred Closing Date. The Preferred Investors shall have the right, at any time and from time to time, to demand takedowns from the Preferred Investor Shelf Registration Statement, provided that such takedown demand would be required to include at least 5% of the
pre-IPO
common stock or all of the remaining registrable securities of the demanding Preferred Investor. Such takedown may be for an underwritten marketed offering,
non-marketed
or underwritten offering or for a block trade or overnight transaction. The Preferred Investors are also subject to certain additional transfer restrictions with respect to the Convertible Preferred Stock and the Conversion Shares. See “Private Placement of Convertible Preferred Stock—Investment Agreement—Transfer Restrictions.”
“Piggyback” Registration Rights
. The registration rights agreement grants all Holders “piggyback” registration rights. If we register any of our shares of common stock, either for our own account or for the account of other stockholders, including an exercise of demand rights, all Holders will be entitled, subject to
certain exceptions, to include its shares of common stock in the registration. To the extent that the managing underwriters in an offering advise that the number of shares proposed to be included in the offering exceeds the amount that can be sold without adversely affecting the distribution, the number of shares included in the offering will be limited as follows:
| • | in the case of an offering pursuant to a demand by a Sponsor under the registration rights agreement, (1) the Pre-IPO Stockholders that are parties to the registration rights agreement will have first priority to include their registrable securities, (2) the Preferred Investors will have second priority to include their registrable securities, (3) we will have third priority to the extent that we elect to sell any shares for our own account and (4) any other holders with registration rights will have fourth priority; |
| • | in the case of an offering pursuant to a demand by a Preferred Investor to takedown shares from the Preferred Investor Shelf Registration Statement under the registration rights agreement, (1) the Preferred Investors will have first priority to include their registrable securities, (2) the Pre-IPO Stockholders that are parties to the registration rights agreement will have second priority to include their registrable securities, (3) we will have third priority to the extent that we elect to sell any shares for our own account and (4) any other holders with registration rights will have fourth priority; |
| • | in the case of any offering not pursuant to a demand by a Sponsor or Preferred Investor under the registration rights agreement, (1) we will have first priority to the extent that we elect to sell any shares for our own account, (2) the Holders will have second priority to include their registrable securities on a pro rata basis as among the Holders and (3) any other holders with registration rights will have third priority. |
. Notwithstanding the registration rights described above, if there is an offering of our common stock, we, our directors and executive officers and certain of the Holders will agree to deliver
lock-up
agreements to the underwriters of such offering to restrict transfers of their common stock. The restrictions will apply for up to 90 days in connection with or prior to the second underwritten offering demanded pursuant to the registration rights agreement and up to 45 days in connection with any offering thereafter.
. We may postpone the filing or the effectiveness of a demand registration, including an underwritten shelf takedown (whether demanded by a Sponsor or a Preferred Investor from the Preferred Investor Shelf Registration Statement), if, based on our good faith judgment, upon consultation with outside counsel, such filing, the effectiveness of a demand registration, or the consummation of an underwritten shelf takedown, as the case may be, would (i) reasonably be expected to materially impede, delay, interfere with or otherwise have a material adverse effect on any material acquisition of assets (other than in the ordinary course of business), merger, consolidation, tender offer, financing or any other material business transaction by us or any of our subsidiaries or (ii) require disclosure of material information that has not been, and is otherwise not required to be, disclosed to the public, the premature disclosure of which we, after consultation with our outside counsel, believes would be detrimental to us;
that we will not be permitted to impose any such blackout period more than two times in any 12 month period and
,
, that any such delay will not be more than an aggregate of 120 days in any 12 month period.
Prior to the closing of this offering, certain
Pre-IPO
Stockholders will deliver a
lock-up
agreement to us. Pursuant to the
lock-up
agreements, for a period of six months after the closing of this offering (the “First
Lock-Up
Period”), the
Pre-IPO
Stockholders will agree, subject to certain exceptions, that they will not offer, sell, contract to sell, pledge, grant any option to purchase, make any short sale or otherwise dispose of any shares of common stock or any options or warrants to purchase common stock, or any securities convertible into, exchangeable for or that represent the right to receive common stock, owned by them (whether directly or by means of beneficial ownership) immediately prior to the closing of this offering.
Beginning six months after the closing of this offering and for a period of six months (the “Second
Lock-Up
Period”), the
Pre-IPO
Stockholders will be permitted to sell up to 25% of the shares of common stock held by such
Pre-IPO
Stockholders as of immediately after the closing of this offering in a registered, underwritten offering pursuant to the registration rights agreement, and may be permitted to sell additional shares to the extent that the managing underwriters of such registered, underwritten offering conclude that additional shares may be sold in such offering without adversely affecting the distribution.
For a period of six months after the end of the Second
Lock-Up
Period (the “Third
Lock-Up
Period”), the
Pre-IPO
Stockholders will be permitted to sell up to 50% of the shares of common stock held by such
Pre-IPO
Stockholders as of immediately after the closing of this offering, minus the amounts sold in the Second
Lock-Up
Period, in a registered, underwritten offering pursuant to the registration rights agreement, and may be permitted to sell additional shares to the extent that the managing underwriters of such registered, underwritten offering conclude that additional shares may be sold in such offering without adversely affecting the distribution.
For a period of six months after the end of the Third
Lock-Up
Period (the “Fourth
Lock-Up
Period”), the
Pre-IPO
Stockholders will be permitted to sell up to 75% of the shares of common stock held by such
Pre-IPO
Stockholders as of immediately after the closing of this offering, minus the amounts sold in the Second
Lock-Up
Period and Third
Lock-Up
Period, in a registered, underwritten offering pursuant to the registration rights agreement, and may be permitted to sell additional shares to the extent that the managing underwriters of such registered, underwritten offering conclude that additional shares may be sold in such offering without adversely affecting the distribution.
After the end of the Fourth
Lock-Up
Period, the restrictions of the
lock-up
agreements will expire.
In addition, to the extent that any
Pre-IPO
Stockholder elects not to participate in a registered, underwritten offering described above or does not elect to sell the maximum number of shares as described above (not including any increase in the number of shares based on the advice of the managing underwriters), such
Pre-IPO
Stockholders may sell an equivalent number of shares in a
non-underwritten
registered shelf-takedown or an unregistered offering pursuant to Rule 144 or another exemption from registration under the Securities Act.
. The restrictions described above will not apply to the transfer of shares (1) as a bona fide gift or gifts, provided that the donee or donees thereof agree to be bound in writing by the restrictions of the
lock-up
agreement, (2) to any trust for the direct or indirect benefit of the undersigned or the immediate family of the undersigned, provided that the trustee of the trust agrees to be bound in writing by the restrictions of the
lock-up
agreement, and
,
, that any such transfer will not involve a disposition for value, (3) to any affiliates of such
Pre-IPO
Stockholders or any investment fund or other entity controlled or managed by such
Pre-IPO
Stockholders or their affiliates, (but in each case under this clause (3), not including a portfolio company), provided that such person agrees to be bound in writing by the restrictions of the
lock-up
agreement, (4) to a nominee or custodian of a person or entity to whom a disposition or transfer would be permissible under clauses (2) through (3) above provided that such person agrees to be bound in writing by the restrictions of the
lock-up
agreement, (5) pursuant to an order of a court or regulatory agency, (6) the pledge, hypothecation or other granting of a security interest in such
Pre-IPO
Stockholder’s shares to one or more banks or financial institutions as bona fide collateral or security for any loan, advance or extension of credit and any transfer upon foreclosure upon such shares or thereafter or (7) with our prior written consent.
. In the event that any
Pre-IPO
Stockholder is permitted by us to sell or otherwise transfer or dispose of any shares of common stock for value (whether in one or multiple releases) then the same percentage of shares of common stock held by the other
Pre-IPO
Stockholders subject to the
lock-up
agreements will be immediately and fully released on the same terms from any remaining
lock-up
restrictions set forth in the
lock-up
agreements, subject to a number of exceptions listed therein.
PRIVATE PLACEMENT OF CONVERTIBLE PREFERRED STOCK
On the Preferred Closing Date, we sold and issued the Convertible Preferred Stock for an aggregate purchase price of approximately $1.65 billion. The closing of the transactions contemplated by the Real Estate Agreement (the “Preferred Closing”) also occurred on the Preferred Closing Date. At the Preferred Closing, RE Investor paid a purchase price of $28.2 million to acquire the Investor Exchange Right. We used cash in an amount equal to the proceeds from the sale and issuance of the Convertible Preferred Stock and the Investor Exchange Right for the Repurchase.
Director Designation Rights
Initially the Apollo Preferred Investors and the HPS Preferred Investors each have the right to designate one
non-voting
observer to our board of directors so long as the Apollo Preferred Investors and their affiliates or the HPS Preferred Investors and their affiliates hold at least 25% of the Convertible Preferred Stock issued on the Preferred Closing Date (or 25% of the Conversion Shares). From and after such time as (i) it is lawful under Section 8 of the Clayton Antitrust Act of 1914 for the Apollo Preferred Investors or the HPS Preferred Investors, as applicable, to designate a director to our board of directors and (ii) any waiting period under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act of 1976 applicable to the acquisition of our voting securities expires or is terminated with respect to the Apollo Preferred Investors or the HPS Preferred Investors, and so long as the Apollo Preferred Investors and their affiliates or the HPS Preferred Investors and their affiliates hold at least 25% of the Convertible Preferred Stock issued on the Preferred Closing Date (or 25% of the Conversion Shares), the Apollo Preferred Investors or the HPS Preferred Investors, as applicable, each have the right to designate one director to our board of directors rather than an observer.
The Preferred Investors are not permitted to transfer the Conversion Shares, other than to affiliated entities or in connection with a change of control, prior to the 18 month anniversary of the Preferred Closing Date. Prior to the seven month anniversary of the Preferred Closing Date, the Preferred Investors have the right to transfer the Convertible Preferred Stock only to their affiliated entities, another Investor or its affiliated entities (with any transferee thereof bound by same
transferability/lock-up
provisions hereof). Following the seven month anniversary of the Preferred Closing Date until the 18 month anniversary of the Preferred Closing Date, the Preferred Investors, and their respective affiliated entities, are required to collectively continue to hold greater than 50% of the Convertible Preferred Stock (or Conversion Shares). The Convertible Preferred Stock will be freely transferable after 18 months from the Preferred Closing Date. The Preferred Investors are also subject to certain restrictions on hedging activities. From and after the Preferred Closing Date and until the 18 month anniversary of the Preferred Closing, none of the Preferred Investors or their affiliates or transferees shall enter into, directly or indirectly, any transaction, agreement or arrangement (or series of transactions, agreements or arrangements) (x) involving a security linked to the common stock or any security that would be deemed to be a “derivative security” (as defined in Rule 16a-1(c) under the Exchange Act) with respect to the common stock, (y) that hedges or transfers, directly or indirectly, some or all of the economic risk of ownership of the common stock , including any short sale or purchase, forward contract, equity swap, put or call option, put or call equivalent position, collar, non-recourse loan, sale of exchangeable security or similar transaction or (z) that relates to, is based on, or derives any significant part of its value from the common stock.
Prior to the Preferred Closing, we underwent a real estate reorganization. As a result of such reorganization, the SPEs own, as of the Preferred Closing, Real Estate Assets, consisting of approximately 240 fee owned store
properties which were to have an appraised value (based on appraisals obtained prior to the signing date) of no less than 165% of the initial Fixed Liquidation Preference of the Convertible Preferred Stock as of the Preferred Closing Date (approximately $2.9 billion). RE LLC also deposited the Cash Escrow Amount into escrow at the Preferred Closing.
As part of the reorganization, (i) certain of our subsidiaries distributed Real Estate Assets to us and (ii) Safeway and certain of its subsidiaries contributed Real Estate Assets to Safeway Realty LLC, a newly formed subsidiary of Safeway (“Safeway Realty”). We and Safeway Realty then contributed all such Real Estate Assets to ACI Real Estate Holding I Company LLC (“RE Holdings I”) in exchange for
non-voting
Class B Units of RE Holdings I. RE Holdings I then contributed the Real Estate Assets to its wholly-owned subsidiary ACI Real Estate Holding II Company LLC (“RE Holdings II”). RE Holdings II then contributed the Real Estate Assets to its wholly owned subsidiary RE LLC for further contribution to the SPEs. Each SPE owns between two and seven fee owned store properties.
Lease and Operating Agreements
Each SPE, as landlord, entered into a lease with RE LLC, as tenant (each an “SPE Lease Agreement”), with respect to the Real Estate Assets held by such SPE. RE LLC, as sublandlord, then subleased all of the Real Estate Assets (the “Real Estate Portfolio”) to certain of our subsidiaries, as subtenants (collectively, “Tenant”), pursuant to a single unitary master sublease agreement (the “Master Lease Agreement”). The terms of the SPE Lease Agreements and the Master Lease Agreement are substantially the same on a per-Real Estate Asset basis. We have guaranteed the performance by Tenant of all the covenants, terms, and conditions of the Master Lease Agreement, and any extensions, modifications or renewals thereof, to be performed and kept by Tenant.
Immediately prior to the Preferred Closing, RE Holdings I, RE Holdings II, RE LLC and each of the SPEs (collectively, the “RE LLC Entities”) entered into amended and restated operating agreements. Safeway is the only member of RE Holdings I with the ability to vote on any matters. Each of the RE LLC Entities has a board of five members, which includes two independent directors. The RE Investor was admitted to each of the RE LLC Entities as a “Special
Non-Economic
Member.” As a Special
Non-Economic
Member, the RE Investor has certain approval rights relating to the Real Estate Portfolio, Master Lease Agreement, affiliate transactions and the issuance of securities or other instruments that rank pari passu or senior to the Convertible Preferred Stock.
At the Preferred Closing, RE LLC, RE Investor and PNC Bank, National Association, as Escrow Agent, entered into an escrow agreement (the “Escrow Agreement”) pursuant to which RE LLC deposited with Escrow Agent, to be held in escrow pending an exercise by RE Investor of the Investor Exchange Right, (a) (i) membership interests certificates of the SPEs, (ii) an instrument of transfer for the transfer of the membership interests in the SPEs to the RE Investor or its designee and (iii) special warranty deeds for the transfer to the RE Investor or its designee of Real Estate Assets (collectively, the “Transfer Instruments”), and (b) cash in the amount of the Cash Escrow Amount. The Escrow Agreement contemplates the deposit of additional Transfer Instruments and cash and the release of Transfer Instruments and cash, from time to time, in connection with the substitution and release mechanics set forth in the Real Estate Agreement and Master Lease Agreement. Following the monetization of SPEs or Real Estate Assets in connection with Investor Exchange Right, any cash and/or Transfer Instruments remaining in escrow will be returned to RE LLC.
As a result of local government offices being closed due to the coronavirus
(COVID-19)
pandemic, approximately 15 of the Real Estate Assets that will become part of the Real Estate Portfolio did not have zoning reports (the “Deferred Diligence Assets”) at the Preferred Closing. Following the Preferred Closing, RE LLC is using commercially reasonable efforts to obtain the zoning reports and provide them to the RE Investor. If within three months after the Preferred Closing, RE LLC is unable to obtain a zoning report for any Deferred Diligence
Asset or if the official zoning report for a Deferred Diligence Asset shows a material decrease in the value of the Deferred Diligence Asset or its use as a grocery store, then such Deferred Diligence Assets will become “Exchanged Assets” and RE LLC will be required to add new Real Estate Assets (with official zoning reports and appraisals) and/or cash (valued at 150%) to the Real Estate Portfolio, the aggregate appraisal value of which will be greater than or equal to the
pre-signing
appraised value of all of the Exchanged Assets (assuming that the unofficial zoning reports were correct) and the Transfer Instruments with respect to the Exchange Assets shall be released from escrow and distributed to RE LLC for further distribution to RE Holdings II.
During the term of the Master Lease Agreement, Tenant shall have a right to request a substitution of Real Estate Assets in accordance with the Master Lease Agreement. The Real Estate Assets proposed by Tenant to be added to the Master Lease Agreement must have a then current appraised value equal to or greater than the Real Estate Assets that are proposed to be released from the Master Lease Agreement, provided, that if the then current appraised market value of the proposed substitute property is less than that of the Real Estate Asset proposed to be removed, Tenant shall be deemed to have satisfied this condition if Tenant pays Landlord an amount equal to the difference at or prior to such substitution. Transfer Instruments with respect to any such Real Estate Assets being added to the Master Lease Agreement (and any SPEs formed to hold such Real Estate Assets) and any such case will then be delivered to the Escrow Agent to be held in escrow pursuant to the Escrow Agreement. Concurrently with such deposit into escrow, RE LLC and RE Investor will instruct the Escrow Agent to release to RE LLC the Transfer Instruments with respect to Real Estate Assets that are being substituted out of the Master Lease Agreement, for further distribution as directed by RE LLC. The applicable SPE Lease Agreement and Master Lease Agreement will be terminated with respect to such Real Estate Assets being substituted.
Tenant also has the right to contribute Real Estate Assets to RE LLC to be added to the Master Lease Agreement. Transfer Instruments with respect to any such Real Estate Assets being added to the Master Lease Agreement (and any SPEs formed to hold such Real Estate Assets) will be delivered to the Escrow Agent to be held in escrow pursuant to the Escrow Agreement. In connection with such contributions by Tenant, RE LLC will be permitted to have an amount of cash distributed from escrow such that, after giving effect to such distribution of cash and contribution of such Real Estate Assets, the sum of (i) the appraised value of the Real Estate Portfolio and (ii) the cash remaining in escrow (valued at 150%) shall equal an amount that is greater than or equal to 165% of the Fixed Liquidation Preference of the Convertible Preferred Stock then outstanding, plus accrued and unpaid dividends.
Following each occasion on which the Fixed Liquidation Preference on the remaining outstanding Convertible Preferred Stock is reduced by at least $583.33 million (whether as a result of mandatory conversion, optional conversion or a negotiated repurchase for cash), RE LLC will obtain appraisals of the Real Estate Portfolio (the “Distribution Appraisals”) and deliver the Distribution Appraisals to the RE Investor. Following such delivery, RE LLC will have the right to have cash and/or Real Estate Assets released from escrow so long as, following such release from escrow, the sum of (x) the aggregate appraised value (as set forth in the Distribution Appraisals) of the Real Estate Assets whose Transfer Instruments remain in the escrow account and (y) the cash remaining in the escrow account (valued at 150%) would equal an amount that is not less than 165% of the Fixed Liquidation Preference of the remaining outstanding Convertible Preferred Stock, plus any accrued and unpaid dividends.
RE Investor is allowed to exercise the Investor Exchange Right on or after the date on which any of the following events occurs (each, a “Trigger Date”): (i) the seventh anniversary of the Preferred Closing Date, so long as any Convertible Preferred Stock are outstanding, (ii) the fourth anniversary of an initial public offering, if a Fundamental Change occurs and the related Fundamental Change Stock Price is less than the conversion price, (iii) a downgrade by one or more gradations (including gradations within ratings categories as well as between ratings categories) or withdrawal of our credit rating by both Rating Agencies, as a result of which our credit
rating is
B-
(or Moody’s equivalent) or lower, (iv) the failure by us to pay a dividend on the Convertible Preferred Stock, which failure continues for 30 days after such dividend’s due date or (v) a Bankruptcy Filing has occurred.
Within 45 days after a Trigger Date, the RE Investor may elect to notify RE LLC in writing that the RE Investor intends to exercise the Investor Exchange Right (the date of such notice, the “Notice Date”). No later than 30 days after the Notice Date, RE LLC will obtain an appraisal (an “Initial Exchange Appraisal”) for each Real Estate Asset in the Real Estate Portfolio (or use an appraisal that is not less than 90 days old) and deliver the Initial Exchange Appraisals to the RE Investor. Concurrently with the delivery of the Initial Exchange Appraisals to the RE Investor, RE LLC shall notify the RE Investor of the amount of escrowed cash, if any, that RE LLC desires to have distributed to the RE Investor in connection with the exercise of the Investor Exchange Right (the “Cash Distribution Amount”), which shall be valued at 118.18%.
No more than 30 days following the delivery of the Initial Exchange Appraisals, the RE Investor will have the unilateral right to exercise the Investor Exchange Right by delivering to RE LLC and the Escrow Agent a notice directing the Escrow Agent to release from escrow: (i) the Cash Distribution Amount, if any, and (ii) at the RE Investor’s option, (A) Transfer Instruments with respect to the SPEs, selected in the RE Investor’s sole discretion, which collectively own Real Estate Assets having an aggregate appraised value (as set forth in the Initial Exchange Appraisals) equal to not more than (x) 130% of the Real Estate Proceeds Target Amount less (y) the Cash Distribution Amount, if any, multiplied by 118.18% or (B) Transfer Instruments with respect to the such Real Estate Assets. For this purpose, the “Real Estate Proceeds Target Amount” shall be the product of (a) the aggregate Fixed Liquidation Preference of all outstanding Convertible Preferred Stock as of immediately prior to the exercise of the Investor Exchange Right (the “Real Estate Settlement”) and (b) 110%, plus an amount equal to any accrued and unpaid dividends on such Convertible Preferred Stock as of immediately prior to Real Estate Settlement. As a condition to exercising the Investor Exchange Right, the RE Investor must deliver to RE LLC all outstanding Convertible Preferred Stock. The notice to the Escrow Agent will not require RE LLC’s signature.
Upon consummation of the Real Estate Settlement, the SPEs selected by the RE Investor or, in the case of Real Estate Assets selected by the RE Investor, a special purpose entity newly formed by the RE Investor will automatically enter into a master lease with the applicable Tenant substantially the same as the Master Lease Agreement solely with respect to the Real Estate Assets that have been transferred, directory or indirectly to RE Investor and the Master Lease Agreement will be amended to remove such transferred Real Estate Assets. Following the delivery of the release notice by the RE Investor to RE LLC and Escrow Agent, the RE Investor will have the Initial Realization Period to sell the Owned Sale Properties.
Real Estate Proceeds realized by the RE Investor, at any given time, will equal (i) the amount of proceeds realized from the sale of the Sale Properties (as defined below) and/or, in the case of a Failed Auction (as defined below), Retained Properties (as defined below) by the RE Investor minus any taxes and any reasonable associated fees and expenses (including the Broker (as defined below) and any other third-party advisors) incurred by RE Investor in connection with the sale plus (ii) the Cash Distribution Amount plus (iii) the Additional Cash Distribution Amount (as defined below).
If during the Initial Realization Period, bona fide bids indicate aggregate Real Estate Proceeds that are less than the Real Estate Proceeds Target Amount, RE LLC may elect to pay cash to the RE Investor in an amount equal to the shortfall. If RE LLC does not elect to pay the shortfall, the RE Investor will have the Subsequent Realization Period to market the Sale Properties.
The RE Investor must engage CBRE, JLL, HFF, Cushman & Wakefield, Eastdil or another full service national commercial real estate brokerage firm reasonably acceptable to RE LLC to act as its broker (the “Broker”) in connection with the monetization of the Sale Properties. The RE Investor will be required to instruct the Broker to structure the sale of the Sale Properties (including the aggregation of the SPE Lease Agreements with master leases) in a manner that would achieve the highest aggregate price for the Sale Properties. During the
Realization Period, RE LLC will have consultation rights and provide commercially reasonable assistance to the RE Investor in connection with the RE Investor’s sale of the Sale Properties. Upon the sale of each Sale Property, the buyer will be required to enter into an amended and restated Master Lease Agreement solely with respect to the Sale Properties applicable to such buyer.
During the Realization Period, the RE Investor will have the right to direct the Escrow Agent to release additional Transfer Instruments with respect to SPEs or Real Estate Assets having an aggregate appraised value (as set forth in the Initial Exchange Appraisals) sufficient to provide the RE Investor additional Real Estate Proceeds, that together with the Real Estate Proceeds previously received and the amount of Real Estate Proceeds to be received from the sale of any remaining Sale Properties then held by the RE Investor, at least equal to, but no more than 130% of, the Real Estate Proceeds Target Amount. RE LLC may elect to pay the RE Investor in cash the excess of the Real Estate Proceeds Target Amount over the amount of the Real Estate Proceeds received by RE Investor as of such time (the amount of such cash, the “Additional Cash Distribution Amount”).
Except in the event of a Failed Auction, if RE Investor realizes Real Estate Proceeds in excess of the Real Estate Proceeds Target Amount, then RE Investor shall promptly pay such excess to RE LLC. Except in the event a Failed Auction occurs, in the event that, following the disposition of all Sale Properties, the Real Estate Proceeds are less than the Real Estate Proceeds Target Amount, RE LLC shall promptly pay such shortfall to RE Investor in cash.
If at the conclusion of the Realization Period, there has been a Failed Auction, the RE Investor can elect to have released from the escrow account all of the remaining Transfer Instruments with respect to SPEs and/or Real Estate Assets and retain any or all Retained Properties.
If a Failed Auction occurs, during the ROFO Period, if the RE Investor intends to sell Retained Properties with an aggregate appraised value (as set forth in the Initial Exchange Appraisals) of $250 million or more in a single sale process, RE LLC will have a right of first offer on the ROFO Properties. RE LLC shall have 10 days following the receipt of notice by the RE Investor of RE Investor’s intent to sell the ROFO Properties to provide a written offer to the RE Investor to purchase such ROFO Properties for cash, along with a purchase and sale agreement executed by RE LLC and 60 days following the execution by the RE Investor of such agreement to consummate such transaction. If the RE Investor rejects RE LLC’s offer, then the RE Investor shall only be permitted to sell the ROFO Properties to a third-party at a purchase price that is greater than or equal to the purchase price offered by RE LLC. If RE LLC does not submit an offer or does not consummate the transaction within 60 days after the RE Investor executes the purchase and sale agreement, then the RE Investor shall be permitted to sell the ROFO Properties to a third-party at a price determined by the RE Investor in its sole discretion.
If the RE Investor determines, after solicitation of proposals for the ROFO Properties but before acceptance of any such proposals, to exclude Retained Properties from, or add other Retained Properties to the pool of ROFO Properties, it shall notify RE LLC of the revised pool of ROFO Properties (the “Modified ROFO Properties”). RE LLC shall have 5 days following receipt of such notice to provide a written offer to the RE Investor to purchase the Modified ROFO Properties for cash, along with a purchase and sale agreement executed by RE LLC and 60 days following the execution by the RE Investor of such agreement to consummate such transaction. If the RE Investor rejects RE LLC’s offer, then the RE Investor shall only be permitted to sell the Modified ROFO Properties to a third-party at a purchase price that is greater than or equal to the purchase price offered for the Modified ROFO Properties by RE LLC. If RE LLC does not submit an offer or does not consummate the transaction within 60 days after the RE Investor executes the purchase and sale agreement, then the RE Investor shall be permitted to sell the Modified ROFO Properties to a third-party at a price determined by the RE Investor in its sole discretion.
If, during the ROFO Period, the RE Investor consummates one or more third-party sales for Retained Properties and realizes Real Estate Proceeds in excess of the product of (i) the aggregate Fixed Liquidation Preference of all outstanding Convertible Preferred Stock as of immediately prior to the Real Estate Settlement and (ii) 115%, plus an amount equal to any accrued and unpaid dividends on such Convertible Preferred Stock as of immediately prior to the Real Estate Settlement, the RE Investor shall be required to promptly pay such 50% of such excess to RE LLC. If following such payment, the RE Investor still owns any Retained Properties, then following each sale of a Retained Property to a third-party during the ROFO Period, the RE Investor shall promptly pay to RE LLC 50% of the difference between (i) the proceeds received by the RE Investor as a result of such sale and (ii) any taxes and any reasonable associated fees and expenses (including the Broker and any other third-party advisors) incurred by RE Investor as a result of the sale of such Retained Property. No amounts will be due to RE LLC with respect to any sales of Retained Properties that occur following the expiration of the ROFO Period.
On the Preferred Closing Date, RE LLC, as landlord (together with its successors and assigns, the “Landlord”), and Tenant entered into the Master Lease Agreement. For so long as RE LLC is the Landlord under the Master Lease Agreement, any consent of the Landlord will also require the approval of RE Investor if approval is required by the RE Investor (in its capacity as a Special Non-Economic Member) pursuant to the amended and restated operating agreement of RE LLC.
The Master Lease Agreement has a primary term of 20 years (the “Primary Term”) provided that if the RE Investor exercises the Investor Exchange Right, the Primary Term shall be extended to expire on the twentieth anniversary of the date which the sale of the selected SPEs or the Real Estate Assets held by such selected SPEs is consummated as contemplated by the Real Estate Agreement. The Primary Term of the Master Lease Agreement shall be followed by up to eight consecutive extension terms of five years each (each an “Option Term”), which may be exercised at Tenant’s option with respect to any or all of the Real Estate Assets subject thereto (each such individual property, a “Leased Property”). The annual rent (“Annual Rent”) payable by Tenant under the Master Lease Agreement during the first year of the Primary Term is approximately $179.4 million, payable in equal monthly installments in advance on the first day of each calendar month. Beginning in the second year of the Primary Term, and continuing each year thereafter during the Primary Term and Option Term, Annual Rent with respect to each Leased Property shall increase annually for certain lease years as specified in the Master Lease Agreement; provided, that beginning at a particular Option Term when such Leased Property is at 80% of its useful life, and for each Option Term thereafter for such Leased Property, the Annual Rent for each such Option Term shall be reset to an amount equal to the greater of (i) the Annual Rent with respect to such Leased Property in effect during the immediately preceding lease year, or (ii) one hundred percent (100%) of then fair market value rent for such Leased Property determined as provided in the Master Lease Agreement.
The Master Lease Agreement is an absolute triple net lease, with the Tenant responsible for all repair, maintenance and real property related taxes and assessments with respect to the Leased Properties. Tenant is responsible for any and all environmental liability with respect to the Leased Properties, except to the extent caused by the Landlord, the Landlord’s lender or any of their respective affiliates. Tenant is also responsible for maintaining customary property and liability insurance with respect to the Leased Properties, and will have the right to self-insure provided we satisfy the “Minimum Credit Standard” set forth in the Master Lease Agreement. Tenant bears the risk of loss in connection with a casualty or condemnation with respect to any of the Leased Properties, other than with respect to a substantial casualty occurring during the last two years of the term of the Master Lease Agreement, or with respect to a substantial condemnation, in which case Tenant has the right to terminate the lease with respect to the affected Leased Property, in which case Annual Rent will be reduced by the amount of Annual Rent payable by the Tenant with respect to such Leased Property.
Under the Master Lease Agreement, Tenant is permitted to make alterations and improvements to the Leased Properties, provided that certain structural alterations as specified in the Master Lease Agreement will be
subject to the approval of the Landlord. Tenant may use the Leased Properties for any lawful use. There is no obligation on the part of Tenant or any of their assignees or sublessees to operate a business on the Leased Properties. Tenant may assign the Master Lease Agreement without the Landlord’s consent (i) to an affiliate of the Company, (ii) in connection with a merger that includes substantially all of the assets of Tenant, reorganization, consolidation or acquisition or sale involving the entirety of Tenant, or (iii) to any entity acquiring all or substantially all of Tenant’s assets, provided that no event of default exists under the Master Lease Agreement. All other assignments of the Master Lease Agreement require the Landlord’s consent. Tenant may sublease the whole or any part of a Leased Property without the Landlord’s consent, subject to compliance with customary requirements.
The Landlord is permitted to assign the Master Lease Agreement in whole or in part, provided that the Landlord may not assign the Master Lease Agreement to any person, or any person that directly controls, is controlled by, or is under common control with any person (x) whose business consists primarily of the retail sale of food and alcohol for off-premises consumption, drug store or any combination thereof; and (y) who operates such business either nationally operating 150 stores or more or regionally operating 15 stores or more, in each case, excluding, however, financial investors in real property (e.g., pension funds, life insurance companies, equity funds, and other investors or others engaged in making, purchasing, holding or otherwise investing in real property in the ordinary course).
Tenant has the right from time to time to request that the Landlord substitute for one or more of the individual Leased Properties one or more substitute Leased Properties that satisfy certain criteria set forth in the Master Lease Agreement and subject to the approval of the Landlord, which approval may be withheld in Landlord’s sole discretion. Further, as contemplated under the Real Estate Agreement, additional real properties may be added to, and certain Leased Properties may be removed from, the Master Lease Agreement in accordance therewith.
The events of default under the Master Lease Agreement include, among others, the failure to pay any installment of Annual Rent when due and such failure continuing five days after notice; the failure to pay any other amount payable by Tenant under the Master Lease Agreement on or before the date that is 10 days from receipt of written notice from the Landlord; certain bankruptcy or similar events with respect to the Company or a Tenant; the guaranty by the Company of the Master Lease Agreement ceasing to be in full force and effect; the imposition of liens on the Leased Properties after notice and opportunity to cure; and breaches of certain other covenants under the Master Lease Agreement subject to notice and cure periods. In the event of default by the Tenant beyond expiration of notice and cure period, the landlord may, among other things, terminate the lease, provided that if there are events of default that cannot be cured by payment of money by Tenant to a governmental authority or a third-party, then Tenant may, subject to certain criteria set forth in the Master Lease Agreement and the reasonable approval of the Landlord, effect a substitution of real estate for the affected Leased Property.
DESCRIPTION OF CAPITAL STOCK
Our authorized capital stock consists of 1,150,000,000 shares of common stock, par value $0.01 per share, of which 1,000,000,000 shares have been designated Class A common stock and 150,000,000 shares have been designated Class A-1 common stock, and 100,000,000 shares of preferred stock, par value $0.01 per share, of which 1,750,000 shares have been designated as Series A preferred stock and 1,410,000 shares have been designated as Series A-1 preferred stock (which together constitute the Convertible Preferred Stock).
Upon completion of this offering, there will be an aggregate of 479,026,753 shares of our common stock outstanding and an aggregate of 1,750,000 shares of our Convertible Preferred Stock outstanding, which will be initially convertible into up to 101,612,000 shares of our common stock.
Subject to preferences that may be applicable to any then outstanding preferred stock, holders of our common stock are entitled to receive ratably those dividends, if any, as may be declared from time to time by our board of directors out of legally available funds.
Each holder of our common stock is entitled to one vote for each share owned of record on all matters voted upon by stockholders. A majority vote is required for all action to be taken by stockholders, except as otherwise provided for in our certificate of incorporation and bylaws or as required by law, including the election of directors in an election that is determined by our board of directors to be a contested election, which requires a plurality. Our certificate of incorporation provides that our board of directors and, prior to the 50% Trigger Date, the Sponsors, voting together, are expressly authorized to make, alter or repeal our bylaws and that our stockholders may only amend our bylaws after the 50% Trigger Date with the approval of at least
two-thirds
of the total voting power of the outstanding shares of our capital stock entitled to vote in any annual election of directors.
In the event of our liquidation, dissolution or
winding-up,
the holders of our common stock are entitled to share equally and ratably in our assets, if any, remaining after the payment of all of our debts and liabilities and the liquidation preference of any outstanding preferred stock.
Our common stock has no preemptive rights, no cumulative voting rights and no redemption, sinking fund or conversion provisions.
The terms of our Class A-1 common stock are substantially identical to the terms of our Class A common stock, except that the Class A-1 common stock does not have voting rights. Besides voting rights, the Class A common stock and Class A-1 common stock shall have the same rights and powers, rank equally (including as to dividends and distributions, and upon any liquidation, dissolution or winding up of the Company), and share
ratably in all respects and as to all matters. Shares of Class A common stock or Class A-1 common stock may not be subdivided, combined or reclassified unless the shares of the other class are concurrently therewith proportionately subdivided, combined or reclassified in a manner that maintains the same proportionate equity ownership between the holders of the outstanding Class A common stock and Class A-1 common stock on the record date for such subdivision, combination or reclassification.
Our board of directors is authorized, by resolution or resolutions, to issue up to 100,000,000 shares of our preferred stock, of which 1,750,000 shares have been designated as Series A preferred stock and 1,410,000 shares have been designated as Series A-1 preferred stock. Our board of directors is authorized, by resolution or resolutions, to provide, out of the unissued shares of our preferred stock, for one or more series of preferred stock and, with respect to each such series, to fix, without further stockholder approval, the designation, powers, preferences and relative, participating, option or other special rights, including voting powers and rights, and the qualifications, limitations or restrictions thereof, of each series of preferred stock pursuant to Section 151 of the DGCL. Our board of directors could authorize the issuance of preferred stock with terms and conditions that could discourage a takeover or other transaction that some holders of our common stock might believe to be in their best interests or in which holders of common stock might receive a premium for their shares over and above market price.
Convertible Preferred Stock
Our Series A preferred stock was issued pursuant to and has the voting powers, designations, preferences and rights, and the qualifications, limitations and restrictions, set forth in the certificate of designations of the 6.75% Series A convertible preferred stock (the “Series A Certificate of Designations”). The terms of our Series A preferred stock are substantially identical to the terms of our Series
A-1
preferred stock, except that our Series A preferred stock will vote together with the Class A common stock on an
as-converted
basis, but the Series A-1 preferred stock will not vote with the common stock on an as-converted basis.
Series A-1 preferred stock
Our Series
A-1
preferred stock was issued pursuant to and has the voting powers, designations, preferences and rights, and the qualifications, limitations and restrictions, set forth in the certificate of designations of the 6.75% Series
A-1
convertible preferred stock (the “Series
A-1
Certificate of Designations” and together with the Series A Certificate of Designations, the “Certificate of Designations”). Capitalized terms used without definition under this heading “Series
A-1
preferred stock” and elsewhere have the meanings given to such terms under our Series
A-1
Certificate of Designations.
Seniority and Liquidation Preference
Our Series
A-1
preferred stock, with respect to dividend rights and/or distribution rights upon the liquidation,
winding-up
or dissolution, as applicable, ranks (i) senior to each class or series of Junior Stock, (ii) on parity with each class or series of Parity Stock, (iii) junior to each class or series of Senior Stock and (iv) junior to our existing and future indebtedness and other liabilities. Our Series
A-1
preferred stock has a liquidation preference equal to the greater of (x) the Fixed Liquidation Preference per share of our Series
A-1
preferred stock, initially $1,000 per share, which may be increased in the event of a PIK dividend as described below, and (y) the amount such Holder would be entitled to receive on an
as-converted
to Class
A-1
common stock basis if such Holder elected to convert its Series
A-1
preferred stock, as described below, on the date of such liquidation,
winding-up
or dissolution, plus an amount equal to accumulated and unpaid dividends on such share, whether or not declared, to, but excluding, the date fixed for liquidation,
winding-up
or dissolution to be
paid out of our assets legally available for distribution to our stockholders, after satisfaction of debt and other liabilities owed to our creditors and holders of shares of any Senior Stock and before any payment or distribution is made to holders of any Junior Stock, including, without limitation, common stock.
Holders of our Series
A-1
preferred stock are entitled to a quarterly dividend at the rate of (a) a rate per annum of 6.75% of the Fixed Liquidation Preference per share of our Series
A-1
preferred stock or (b) if a Qualified IPO has not been consummated prior to the date that is 18 months following the Preferred Closing Date, a rate per annum of 8.75% of the Fixed Liquidation Preference per share of our Series
A-1
preferred stock for so long as a Qualified IPO has not been consummated. In the event that we do not declare and pay any dividends in cash, we may instead, only for two quarters, pay such dividends by increasing the Fixed Liquidation Preference of our Series
A-1
preferred stock at a rate equal to the applicable cash dividend rate plus 2.25% on such Dividend Payment Date. In addition, Holders of our Series
A-1
preferred stock will participate in cash dividends that we pay on our common stock to the extent that such dividends exceed $206.25 million per fiscal year.
Our Series
A-1
preferred stock is convertible at the option of the holders thereof at any time into shares of Class
A-1
common stock (which are identical to the Class A common stock, except that the Class
A-1
common stock does not include voting rights) at an initial conversion price of $17.22 per share and an initial conversion rate of 58.064 shares of Class
A-1
common stock per share of Series
A-1
preferred stock, subject to certain anti-dilution adjustments. At any time after the third anniversary of the date of the closing of a Qualified IPO, if the last reported sale price of the Class A common stock has equaled or exceeded $20.50 per share (a 19% premium to the conversion price), as may be adjusted pursuant to our Series
A-1
Certificate of Designations, for at least 20 trading days in any period of 30 consecutive trading days, we have the right to require the Holders to convert all, or any portion, of the outstanding Series
A-1
preferred stock into the relevant number of shares of Class
A-1
common stock;
that we will not be permitted to effect a mandatory conversion with respect to more than
one-third
of the aggregate outstanding shares, as of the date of the first Mandatory Conversion Notice Date, of Series
A-1
preferred stock and Series A preferred stock in any 12 month period unless the last reported sale price of the Class A common stock has equaled or exceeded $23.42 (a 36% premium to the conversion price), as may be adjusted pursuant to our Series
A-1
Certificate of Designations, for at least 20 trading days in any period of 30 consecutive trading days. When permitted under the relevant antitrust restrictions, shares of our Series
A-1
preferred stock will convert on a
one-for-one
basis to shares of voting Series A preferred stock.
Holders of our Series
A-1
preferred stock have no voting rights except that we will not, without the affirmative vote or consent of the holders of a majority of the outstanding shares of our Series
A-1
preferred stock and our Series A preferred stock at the time outstanding and entitled to vote thereon, voting together as a single class, among other things, amend our organizational documents that have an adverse effect on our Convertible Preferred Stock, authorize or issue securities that are senior to, or equal in priority with, our Convertible Preferred Stock, redeem any shares of capital stock or any securities convertible into, exercisable for or exchangeable into capital stock unless such redemption right is offered to all holders of the same class (including the holders of the Series A-1 Preferred Stock and the Series A Preferred Stock on an as converted basis) and, until we complete a Qualified IPO, incur indebtedness or permit any of its subsidiaries to incur any indebtedness if, subject to certain exceptions, on a pro forma basis, the Total Leverage Ratio (as defined in the 2030 Notes Indenture (as defined herein)) would exceed 3.5 to 1.0.
At any time following the sixth anniversary of the Preferred Closing Date, we may redeem all, but not less than all, of our Convertible Preferred Stock then outstanding at a redemption price equal to the product of (x) the
Fixed Liquidation Preference of our Convertible Preferred Stock then outstanding and (y) 105%, plus accrued and unpaid dividends to, but not including, the date of redemption. In the event that we receive a notice of an intention to exchange the shares of Convertible Preferred Stock for equity interests in certain of our subsidiaries pursuant to the Real Estate Agreement, we will have the right to redeem all, but not less than all, of our Convertible Preferred Stock then outstanding at a redemption price equal to the product of (x) the aggregate Fixed Liquidation Preference of our Convertible Preferred Stock of such Holder then outstanding and (y) 110%, plus accrued and unpaid dividends to, but not including, the date of redemption.
As set forth in the Certificate of Designations, a “Fundamental Change” shall be deemed to have occurred, at any time after the Preferred Closing Date, if any of the following occurs:
(i) the consummation of (A) any recapitalization, reclassification or change of the common stock (other than changes resulting from a subdivision or combination or change in par value) as a result of which the common stock would be converted into, or exchanged for, stock, other securities, other property or assets (including cash or a combination thereof); (B) any consolidation, merger or other combination or binding share exchange pursuant to which the common stock will be converted into, or exchanged for, stock, other securities or other property or assets (including cash or a combination thereof); or (C) any sale, lease or other transfer or disposition in one transaction or a series of transactions of all or substantially all of our or our subsidiaries’ consolidated assets taken as a whole, to any person other than one or more of wholly-owned subsidiaries;
(ii) any “person” or “group” (as such terms are used for purposes of Sections 13(d) and 14(d) of the Exchange Act, whether or not applicable), other than us, any of our wholly-owned subsidiaries, a Pre-IPO Stockholder and its affiliates or any of our or our wholly-owned subsidiaries’ employee benefit plans (or any person or entity acting solely in its capacity as trustee, agent or other fiduciary or administrator of any such plan), filing a Schedule TO or any schedule, form or report under the Exchange Act disclosing that such person or group has become the “beneficial owner” (as defined in Rule 13d-3 under the Exchange Act), directly or indirectly, of more than 50% of the total voting power in the aggregate of all classes of capital stock then outstanding entitled to vote generally in elections of our directors;
(iii) following a Qualified IPO, the common stock (or other Exchange Property) ceases to be listed or quoted for trading on any of the NYSE, the NASDAQ Global Select Market or the NASDAQ Global Market (or another U.S. national securities exchange or any of their respective successors); or
(iv) our stockholders approve any plan or proposal for the liquidation or dissolution of the Company.
However, a transaction or transactions described in clause (i) or clause (ii) above will not constitute a Fundamental Change if at least 90% of the consideration received or to be received by holders of the common stock, excluding cash payments for fractional shares or pursuant to statutory appraisal rights, in connection with such transaction or transactions consists of shares of common stock that are listed or quoted on any of the NYSE, the NASDAQ Global Select Market or the NASDAQ Global Market (or any of their respective successors) or will be so listed or quoted when issued or exchanged in connection with such transaction or transactions and as a result of such transaction or transactions such consideration (excluding cash payments for fractional shares or pursuant to statutory appraisal rights) becomes the Exchange Property.
Upon a Fundamental Change, each holder of our Convertible Preferred Stock will be entitled to elect to:
(1) convert its shares of Series
A-1
preferred stock into Class
A-1
common stock as described under “Conversion” above and also receive:
(x) shares of Class
A-1
common stock with a value equal to the dividends scheduled to accrue through the fourth anniversary of a Qualified IPO if the share price in connection with such Fundamental Change is less than 140% of the conversion price, or
(y) shares of Class
A-1
common stock with a value equal to the dividends scheduled to accrue through the third anniversary of a Qualified IPO if the share price in connection with such Fundamental Change Stock Price is greater than or equal to 140% and less than 160% of the conversion price, or
(2) if the share price in connection with such Fundamental Change is less than the conversion price and such Fundamental Change occurs before the fourth anniversary of a Qualified IPO, receive:
(x) shares of Class
A-1
common stock with a value equal to 105% of the Fixed Liquidation Preference of such shares of Series
A-1
preferred stock plus accrued and unpaid dividends, plus
(y) shares of Class
A-1
common stock with a value equal to dividends through the fourth anniversary of the Qualified IPO; or
(3) if the share price in connection with such Fundamental Change is less than the conversion price and such Fundamental Change occurs on or following the fourth anniversary of a Qualified IPO:
(x) exercise the Investor Exchange Right pursuant to the Real Estate Agreement, or
(y) convert its shares of Series
A-1
preferred stock into Class
A-1
common stock and receive shares with a value equal to 105% of the liquidation preference plus accrued and unpaid dividends.
Anti-Takeover Effects of Delaware Law and Our Certificate of Incorporation and Bylaws
Some provisions of Delaware law and of our certificate of incorporation and bylaws could have the effect of delaying, deferring or discouraging another party from acquiring control of the Company. These provisions, which are summarized below, are expected to discourage coercive takeover practices and inadequate takeover bids. These provisions are also designed to encourage persons seeking to acquire control of the Company to first negotiate with our board of directors.
Requirements for Advance Notification of Stockholder Nominations and Proposals
Our bylaws establish advance notice procedures with respect to stockholder proposals, other than proposals made by or at the direction of our board of directors or, prior to the 35% Trigger Date, by the Sponsors, voting together. Our bylaws also establish advance notice procedures with respect to the nomination of candidates for election as directors, other than nominations made by or at the direction of our board of directors or by a committee appointed by our board of directors. These provisions may have the effect of precluding the conduct of certain business at a meeting if the proper procedures are not followed, and may also discourage or deter a potential acquirer from conducting a solicitation of proxies to elect the acquirer’s own slate of directors or otherwise attempting to obtain control of the Company.
Calling Special Stockholder Meetings
Our certificate of incorporation and bylaws provide that special meetings of our stockholders may be called only by our board of directors or by stockholders owning at least 25% in amount of our entire capital stock issued and outstanding, and entitled to vote.
Stockholder Action by Written Consent
The DGCL permits stockholder action by written consent unless otherwise provided by our certificate of incorporation. Our certificate of incorporation precludes stockholder action by written consent after the 50% Trigger Date.
Undesignated Preferred Stock
Our board of directors is authorized to issue, without stockholder approval, preferred stock with such terms as our board of directors may determine. The ability to authorize undesignated preferred stock makes it possible for our board of directors to issue one or more series of preferred stock with voting or other rights or preferences that could impede the success of any attempt to change control of the Company.
Delaware Anti-Takeover Statute
We have elected not to be governed by Section 203 of the DGCL, an anti-takeover law (“Section 203”). This law prohibits a publicly-held Delaware corporation from engaging under certain circumstances in a business combination with any interested stockholder for a period of three years following the date that the stockholder became an interested stockholder, unless:
| • | prior to the date of the transaction, the board of directors of the corporation approved either the business combination or the transaction which resulted in the stockholder becoming an interested stockholder; |
| • | upon consummation of the transaction which resulted in the stockholder becoming an interested stockholder, the interested stockholder owned at least 85% of the voting stock of the corporation outstanding at the time the transaction commenced, excluding for purposes of determining the number of shares outstanding those shares owned by persons who are directors and also officers and by employee stock plans in which employee participants do not have the right to determine confidentially whether shares held subject to the plan will be tendered in a tender or exchange offer; or |
| • | on or subsequent to the date of the transaction, the business combination is approved by our board of directors and authorized at an annual or special meeting of stockholders, and not by written consent, by the affirmative vote of at least two-thirds of the outstanding voting stock which is not owned by the interested stockholder. |
Section 203 defines “business combination” to include: any merger or consolidation involving us and the interested stockholder; any sale, transfer, pledge or other disposition of 10% or more of our assets involving the interested stockholder; in general, any transaction that results in the issuance or transfer by us of any of our stock to the interested stockholder; or the receipt by the interested stockholder of the benefit of any loans, advances, guarantees, pledges or other financial benefits provided by or through us. In general, Section 203 defines an interested stockholder as any entity or person beneficially owning 15% or more of the outstanding voting stock of the corporation and any entity or person affiliated with or controlling or controlled by any such entity or person. A Delaware corporation may opt out of this provision by express provision in its original certificate of incorporation or by amendment to its certificate of incorporation or bylaws approved by its stockholders. We have opted out of this provision. Accordingly, we will not be subject to any anti-takeover effects of Section 203.
Removal of Directors; Vacancies
Our certificate of incorporation provides that, following the 50% Trigger Date, directors may be removed with or without cause upon the affirmative vote of holders of at least
two-thirds
of the total voting power of the outstanding shares of the capital stock of the Company entitled to vote in any annual election of directors or class of directors, voting together as a single class. In addition, our certificate of incorporation provides that vacancies, including those resulting from newly created directorships or removal of directors, may only be filled (i) by the
Sponsors, voting together, or by a majority of the directors then in office, prior to the 50% Trigger Date, and (ii) after the 50% Trigger Date, by a majority of the directors then in office, in each case although less than a quorum, or by a sole remaining director. This may deter a stockholder from increasing the size of our board of directors and gaining control of the board of directors by filling the remaining vacancies with its own nominees.
Limitation on Director’s Liability
Our certificate of incorporation and bylaws will indemnify our directors to the fullest extent permitted by the DGCL. The DGCL permits a corporation to limit or eliminate a director’s personal liability to the corporation or the holders of its capital stock for breach of duty. This limitation is generally unavailable for acts or omissions by a director which (i) were in bad faith, (ii) were the result of active and deliberate dishonesty and were material to the cause of action so adjudicated or (iii) involved a financial profit or other advantage to which such director was not legally entitled. The DGCL also prohibits limitations on director liability for acts or omissions which resulted in a violation of a statute prohibiting certain dividend declarations, certain payments to stockholders after dissolution and particular types of loans. The effect of these provisions is to eliminate the rights of our company and our stockholders (through stockholders’ derivative suits on behalf of our company) to recover monetary damages against a director for breach of fiduciary duty as a director (including breaches resulting from grossly negligent behavior), except in the situations described above. These provisions will not limit the liability of directors under the federal securities laws of the United States.
Under our ABL Facility, a change of control may lead the lenders to exercise remedies, such as acceleration of their loans, termination of their obligations to fund additional advances and collection against the collateral securing such loan.
Under the indentures governing certain of our notes, a change of control may require us to offer to repurchase all of the outstanding notes for cash at a price equal to 101% of the principal amount of the notes, plus accrued and unpaid interest, if any, to the date of repurchase.
Our certificate of incorporation and bylaws provide that, unless we consent in writing to the selection of an alternative forum, the Court of Chancery of the State of Delaware will, to the fullest extent permitted by law, be the exclusive forum for: (a) any derivative action or proceeding brought on our behalf; (b) any action asserting a breach of a fiduciary duty owed by any of our directors, officers, employees or agents to us or our stockholders; (c) any action asserting a claim pursuant to any provision of the DGCL, our certificate of incorporation or our bylaws; or (d) any action asserting a claim governed by the internal affairs doctrine. However, it is possible that a court could find our forum selection provision to be inapplicable or unenforceable. Because the applicability of the exclusive forum provision is limited to the extent permitted by law, we do not intend that the exclusive forum provision would apply to suits brought to enforce any duty or liability created by the Exchange Act or any other claim for which the federal courts have exclusive jurisdiction. Additionally, unless we consent in writing to the selection of an alternative forum, the federal district courts of the United States of America shall be the exclusive forum for the resolution of any action asserting a cause of action arising under the Securities Act. Investors cannot waive compliance with the federal securities laws and the rules and regulations thereunder.
As of the closing of this offering, we will enter into the Stockholders’ Agreement. The Stockholders’ Agreement will provide for designation rights for the Sponsors to nominate directors to the board of directors.
In general, under Rule 144, as currently in effect, our affiliates or persons selling shares of our common stock on behalf of our affiliates are entitled to sell upon expiration of the market standoff agreements and
lock-up
agreements described above, within any three-month period, a number of shares that does not exceed the greater of:
| • | 1% of the number of shares of our capital stock then outstanding, which will equal shares immediately after this offering; or |
| • | the average weekly trading volume of our common stock during the four calendar weeks preceding the filing of a notice on Form 144 with respect to that sale. |
Sales under Rule 144 by our affiliates or persons selling shares of our common stock on behalf of our affiliates are also subject to manner of sale provisions and notice requirements and to the availability of current public information about us.
As of the closing of this offering, we will enter into the Stockholders’ Agreement. The Stockholders’ Agreement will provide for designation rights for the Sponsors to nominate directors to the board of directors. Pursuant to the Stockholders’ Agreement, we will be required to appoint to our board of directors individuals designated by and voted for by our Sponsors. If Cerberus (or a permitted transferee or assignee) has beneficial ownership of at least 20% of our then-outstanding common stock, it shall have the right to designate four directors to our board of directors. If Cerberus (or a permitted transferee or assignee) owns less than 20% but at least 10% of our then-outstanding common stock, it shall have the right to designate two directors to our board of directors. If Cerberus (or a permitted transferee or assignee) owns less than 10% but at least 5% of our then-outstanding common stock, it shall have the right to designate one director to our board of directors. If Klaff Realty (or a permitted transferee or assignee) owns at least 5% of our then-outstanding common stock, it shall have the right to designate one director to our board of directors. If Schottenstein Stores (or a permitted transferee or assignee) owns at least 5% of our then-outstanding common stock, it shall have the right to designate one director to our board of directors. Each Sponsor will agree to vote the common stock owned by them in favor of each other Sponsor’s nominees to the board of directors.
Registration Rights Agreement
As of the Preferred Closing Date, we entered into a registration rights agreement with the Holders. Pursuant to the registration rights agreement, we granted the Holders certain registration rights with respect to the registrable securities, which registrable securities include Conversion Shares, but not Convertible Preferred Stock. These rights include certain demand registration rights for our Sponsors and “piggyback” registration rights for all Holders. Additionally, we are required to use our reasonable best efforts to file and maintain the Preferred Investor Shelf Registration Statement. The registration rights only apply to registrable securities, and shares of our common stock cease to be registrable securities under certain conditions including (i) they are sold pursuant to an effective registration statement, (ii) they are sold pursuant to Rule 144, or (iii) they are eligible to be resold without regard to the volume or public information requirements of Rule 144 and the resale of such shares is not prohibited by the lock-up agreements described below. The registration rights are subject to certain delay, suspension and cutback provisions. The Preferred Investors are also subject to certain additional transfer restrictions with respect to the Convertible Preferred Stock and the Conversion Shares. See “Private Placement of Convertible Preferred Stock—Investment Agreement—Transfer Restrictions.”
The registration rights agreement includes customary indemnification and contribution provisions. All fees, costs and expenses related to registrations generally will be borne by us, other than underwriting discounts and commissions attributable to the sale of registrable securities.
The Holders may be required to deliver lock-up agreements to underwriters in connection with registered offerings of shares.
Demand Registration Rights for Non-Shelf Registered Offerings Granted to Sponsors
. The registration rights agreement grants our Sponsors certain demand registration rights. Until we are eligible to file a registration statement on Form S-3, our Sponsors will be limited to a single demand right for an underwritten offering pursuant to a registration statement on Form S-1. Such registration statement would be required to include at least 5% of the total number of shares of our common stock outstanding immediately prior to this offering, which we refer to as the pre-IPO common stock, or all of the remaining registrable securities of the demanding holder, and such request will require the consent of the holders of at least a majority of the outstanding registrable securities.
Shelf Registration Rights Granted to Sponsors
. When we become eligible to file a registration statement on Form S-3, the registration rights agreement grants our Sponsors certain rights to demand that we file a shelf registration statement covering any registrable securities that Sponsors are permitted to sell pursuant to the lock-up agreements with us described below or any other lock-up restrictions. The number of shares covered by the shelf registration statement may also be reduced by us based on any advice of any potential underwriters, after consultation with us, to limit such number of shares.
Demand Registration Rights for Shelf Takedowns Granted to Sponsors
. The registration rights agreement grants our Sponsors certain rights to demand takedowns from a shelf registration statement. For underwritten offerings pursuant to the registration rights agreement (which may include the offering on Form S-1 described above), any such takedown demand would be required to include at least 5% of the pre-IPO common stock or all of the remaining registrable securities of the demanding holder. Sponsors lose their remaining demand registration rights when they cease to beneficially own at least 5% of our common stock. Further, we are not required to effect more than one demand registration in any 30-day period (with such 30-day period commencing on the closing date of any underwritten offering pursuant to a preceding demand registration).
The Preferred Investor Shelf Registration Statement
. The registration rights agreement provides that we must use our reasonable best efforts to file and maintain effective the Preferred Investor Shelf Registration Statement for all registrable securities, which registrable securities include Conversion Shares, but not Convertible Preferred Stock, held by the Preferred Investors by no later than the later of (i) seven and one-half months after the consummation of this offering and (ii) 18 months after the Preferred Closing Date. The Preferred Investors shall have the right, at any time and from time to time, to demand takedowns from the Preferred Investor Shelf Registration Statement, provided that such takedown demand would be required to include at least 5% of the pre-IPO common stock or all of the remaining registrable securities of the demanding Preferred Investor. Such takedown may be for an underwritten marketed offering, non-marketed or underwritten offering or for a block trade or overnight transaction. The Preferred Investors are also subject to certain additional transfer restrictions with respect to the Convertible Preferred Stock and the Conversion Shares. See “Private Placement of Convertible Preferred Stock—Investment Agreement—Transfer Restrictions.”
“Piggyback” Registration Rights
. The registration rights agreement grants all Holders “piggyback” registration rights. If we register any of our shares of common stock, either for our own account or for the account of other stockholders, including an exercise of demand rights, all Holders will be entitled, subject to certain exceptions, to include its shares of common stock in the registration. To the extent that the managing underwriters in an offering advise that the number of shares proposed to be included in the offering exceeds the amount that can be sold without adversely affecting the distribution, the number of shares included in the offering will be limited as follows:
| • | in the case of an offering pursuant to a demand by a Sponsor under the registration rights agreement, (1) the Pre-IPO Stockholders that are parties to the registration rights agreement will have first priority to include their registrable securities, (2) the Preferred Investors will have second priority to include their registrable securities, (3) we will have third priority to the extent that we elect to sell any shares for our own account and (4) any other holders with registration rights will have fourth priority; |
| • | in the case of an offering pursuant to a demand by a Preferred Investor to takedown shares from the Preferred Investor Shelf Registration Statement under the registration rights agreement, (1) the |
| Preferred Investors will have first priority to include their registrable securities, (2) the Pre-IPO Stockholders that are parties to the registration rights agreement will have second priority to include their registrable securities, (3) we will have third priority to the extent that we elect to sell any shares for our own account and (4) any other holders with registration rights will have fourth priority; |
| • | in the case of any offering not pursuant to a demand by a Sponsor or Preferred Investor under the registration rights agreement, (1) we will have first priority to the extent that we elect to sell any shares for our own account, (2) the Holders will have second priority to include their registrable securities on a pro rata basis as among the Holders and (3) any other holders with registration rights will have third priority. |
. Notwithstanding the registration rights described above, if there is an offering of our common stock, we, our directors and executive officers and certain of the Holders will agree to deliver lock-up agreements to the underwriters of such offering to restrict transfers of their common stock. The restrictions will apply for up to 90 days in connection with or prior to the second underwritten offering demanded pursuant to the registration rights agreement and up to 45 days in connection with any offering thereafter.
. We may postpone the filing or the effectiveness of a demand registration, including an underwritten shelf takedown (whether demanded by a Sponsor or a Preferred Investor from the Preferred Investor Shelf Registration Statement), if, based on our good faith judgment, upon consultation with outside counsel, such filing, the effectiveness of a demand registration, or the consummation of an underwritten shelf takedown, as the case may be, would (i) reasonably be expected to materially impede, delay, interfere with or otherwise have a material adverse effect on any material acquisition of assets (other than in the ordinary course of business), merger, consolidation, tender offer, financing or any other material business transaction by us or any of our subsidiaries or (ii) require disclosure of material information that has not been, and is otherwise not required to be, disclosed to the public, the premature disclosure of which we, after consultation with our outside counsel, believes would be detrimental to us;
that we will not be permitted to impose any such blackout period more than two times in any 12-month period and
,
, that any such delay will not be more than an aggregate of 120 days in any 12-month period.
Prior to the closing of this offering, certain
Pre-IPO
Stockholders will deliver a
lock-up
agreement to us. Pursuant to the
lock-up
agreements, for the First
Lock-Up
Period, the
Pre-IPO
Stockholders will agree, subject to certain exceptions, that they will not offer, sell, contract to sell, pledge, grant any option to purchase, make any short sale or otherwise dispose of any shares of common stock or any options or warrants to purchase common stock, or any securities convertible into, exchangeable for or that represent the right to receive common stock, owned by them (whether directly or by means of beneficial ownership) immediately prior to the closing of this offering.
For the Second
Lock-Up
Period, such
Pre-IPO
Stockholders will be permitted to sell up to 25% of the shares of common stock held by the
Pre-IPO
Stockholders as of immediately after the closing of this offering in a registered, underwritten offering pursuant to the registration rights agreement, and may be permitted to sell additional shares to the extent that the managing underwriters of such registered, underwritten offering conclude that additional shares may be sold in such offering without adversely affecting the distribution.
For the Third
Lock-Up
Period, such
Pre-IPO
Stockholders will be permitted to sell up to 50% of the shares of common stock held by the
Pre-IPO
Stockholders as of immediately after the closing of this offering, minus the amounts sold in the Second
Lock-Up
Period, in a registered, underwritten offering pursuant to the registration rights agreement, and may be permitted to sell additional shares to the extent that the managing underwriters of such registered, underwritten offering conclude that additional shares may be sold in such offering without adversely affecting the distribution.
For the Fourth
Lock-Up
Period, the
Pre-IPO
Stockholders will be permitted to sell up to 75% of the shares of common stock held by such
Pre-IPO
Stockholders as of immediately after the closing of this offering, minus the amounts sold in the Second
Lock-Up
Period and Third
Lock-Up
Period, in a registered, underwritten offering pursuant to the registration rights agreement, and may be permitted to sell additional shares to the extent that the managing underwriters of such registered, underwritten offering conclude that additional shares may be sold in such offering without adversely affecting the distribution.
After the end of the Fourth
Lock-Up
Period, the restrictions of the
lock-up
agreements will expire.
In addition, to the extent that any
Pre-IPO
Stockholder elects not to participate in a registered, underwritten offering described above or does not elect to sell the maximum number of shares as described above (not including any increase in the number of shares based on the advice of the managing underwriters), such
Pre-IPO
Stockholders may sell an equivalent number of shares in a
non-underwritten
registered shelf-takedown or an unregistered offering pursuant to Rule 144 or another exemption from registration under the Securities Act.
. The restrictions described above will not apply to the transfer of shares (1) as a bona fide gift or gifts, provided that the donee or donees thereof agree to be bound in writing by the restrictions of the
lock-up
agreement, (2) to any trust for the direct or indirect benefit of the undersigned or the immediate family of the undersigned, provided that the trustee of the trust agrees to be bound in writing by the restrictions of the
lock-up
agreement, and
,
, that any such transfer will not involve a disposition for value, (3) to any affiliates of such
Pre-IPO
Stockholders or any investment fund or other entity controlled or managed by such
Pre-IPO
Stockholder or their affiliates, (but in each case under this clause (3), not including a portfolio company), provided that such person agrees to be bound in writing by the restrictions of the
lock-up
agreement, (4) to a nominee or custodian of a person or entity to whom a disposition or transfer would be permissible under clauses (2) through (3) above provided that such person agrees to be bound in writing by the restrictions of the
lock-up
agreement, (5) pursuant to an order of a court or regulatory agency, (6) the pledge, hypothecation or other granting of a security interest in such
Pre-IPO
Stockholder’s shares to one or more banks or financial institutions as bona fide collateral or security for any loan, advance or extension of credit and any transfer upon foreclosure upon such shares or thereafter or (7) with our prior written consent.
. In the event that any
Pre-IPO
Stockholder is permitted by us to sell or otherwise transfer or dispose of any shares of common stock for value (whether in one or multiple releases) then the same percentage of shares of common stock held by the other
Pre-IPO
Stockholders subject to the
lock-up
agreements will be immediately and fully released on the same terms from any remaining
lock-up
restrictions set forth in the
lock-up
agreements, subject to a number of exceptions listed therein.
Preferred Investor Transfer Restrictions
The Preferred Investors are subject to certain transfer restrictions with respect to the Convertible Preferred Stock and the Conversion Shares. The Preferred Investors will not be able to transfer the Conversion Shares, other than to affiliated entities or in connection with a Fundamental Change, prior to the 18 month anniversary of the Preferred Closing Date. Prior to the seven month anniversary of the Preferred Closing Date, the Preferred Investors have the right to transfer shares of Convertible Preferred Stock only to their affiliated entities, another Preferred Investor or its affiliated entities (with any transferee thereof bound by same transferability/lock-up provisions hereof). Following the seven month anniversary of the Preferred Closing Date until the 18 month anniversary of the Preferred Closing Date, the Preferred Investors, and their respective affiliated entities, are required to collectively continue to hold greater than 50% of the shares of Convertible Preferred Stock (or Conversion Shares). The Convertible Preferred Stock will be freely transferable after 18 months from the Preferred Closing Date. See “Private Placement of Convertible Preferred Stock—Investment Agreement—Transfer Restrictions.”
DESCRIPTION OF INDEBTEDNESS
The following is a summary of the material provisions of the instruments and agreements evidencing the material indebtedness of ACI, Albertsons, Safeway, NALP and certain of their subsidiaries that is currently outstanding. It does not include all of the provisions of our material indebtedness, does not purport to be complete and is qualified in its entirety by reference to the instruments and agreements described.
On November 16, 2018, ACI entered into an amended and restated senior secured asset-based loan facility (as amended, the “ABL Facility”) to, among other things, provide for a $4,000 million senior secured revolving credit facility.
. The ABL Facility provides for a $4,000 million revolving credit facility (with subfacilities for letters of credit and swingline loans), subject to a borrowing base (described below). In addition, we are entitled to increase the commitments under the ABL Facility by up to $1,500 million.
. The ABL Facility matures on November 16, 2023.
. The amount of loans and letters of credit available under the ABL Facility is limited to the lesser of the aggregate commitments under the ABL Facility or an amount determined pursuant to a borrowing base. The borrowing base at any time is equal to 90% of eligible credit card receivables, plus 90% of the net amount of eligible pharmacy receivables, plus 90% (or 92.5% for the three consecutive four-week fiscal accounting periods ending nearest to the end of February, March and April of each year) of the “net recovery percentage” of eligible inventory (other than perishable inventory) multiplied by the book value thereof, plus 90% (or 92.5% for the three consecutive four-week fiscal accounting periods ending nearest to the end of February, March and April of each year) of the “net recovery percentage” of eligible perishable inventory multiplied by the book value thereof (subject to a cap of 25% of the borrowing base), plus 85% of the product of the average per script net orderly liquidation value of the eligible prescription files of the borrowers and the guarantors thereunder (the “ABL Eligible Pharmacy Scripts”), multiplied by the number of such ABL Eligible Pharmacy Scripts (subject to a cap of 30% of the borrowing base), minus eligibility reserves. The eligibility of accounts receivable, inventory and prescription files for inclusion in the borrowing base will be determined in accordance with certain customary criteria specified in the credit agreement that governs the ABL Facility, including periodic appraisals.
. Amounts outstanding under the ABL Facility bear interest at a rate per annum equal to, at our option, (i) the base rate, plus an applicable margin equal to (a) 0.25% (if daily average excess availability during the most recently ended fiscal quarter is greater than or equal to 66% of the aggregate commitments), (b) 0.50% (if daily average excess availability during the most recently ended fiscal quarter is less than 66% of the aggregate commitments, but greater than or equal to 20% of the aggregate commitments), or (c) 0.75% (if daily average excess availability during the most recently ended fiscal quarter is less than 20% of the aggregate commitments), or (ii) LIBOR, plus an applicable margin equal to (a) 1.25% (if daily average excess availability during the most recently ended fiscal quarter is greater than or equal to 66% of the aggregate commitments), (b) 1.50% (if daily average excess availability during the most recently ended fiscal quarter is less than 66% of the aggregate commitments, but greater than or equal to 20% of the aggregate commitments), or (c) 1.75% (if daily average excess availability during the most recently ended fiscal quarter is less than 20% of the aggregate commitments). If not paid when due, the ABL Facility bears interest at the rate otherwise applicable to such loans at such time plus an additional 2% per annum during the continuance of such payment event of default and the letter of credit fees increase by 2%. Other overdue amounts bear interest at a rate equal to the rate otherwise applicable to such revolving loans bearing interest at the base rate at such time, plus 2% until such amounts are paid in full.
. Subject to certain exceptions as set forth in the definitive documentation for the ABL Facility, the amounts outstanding under the ABL Facility are guaranteed by each of our existing and future direct and indirect wholly-owned domestic subsidiaries that are not borrowers.
. Subject to certain exceptions as set forth in the definitive documentation for the ABL Facility, the obligations under the ABL Facility are secured by (i) a first-priority security interest in and lien on substantially all of our accounts receivable, inventory, documents of title related to inventory, instruments, general intangibles (excluding any of our equity interests or any of our subsidiaries and intellectual property), chattel paper, and supporting obligations and our subsidiaries that are borrowers or guarantors under the ABL Facility and (ii) a second-priority security interest in and lien on substantially all other assets (other than real property).
. Certain customary fees are payable to the lenders and the agents under the ABL Facility, including a commitment fee on the average daily unused amount of the ABL Facility, in an amount equal to (i) 0.25% per annum if such average daily excess availability amount during the most recently ended fiscal quarter is less than 50% of the aggregate commitments and (ii) 0.375% per annum if such average daily excess availability amount during the most recently ended fiscal quarter is greater than or equal to 50% of the aggregate commitments.
Affirmative and Negative Covenants
. The ABL Facility contains various affirmative and negative covenants (in each case, subject to customary exceptions as set forth in the definitive documentation for the ABL Facility), including, but not limited to, restrictions on our ability and the ability of our restricted subsidiaries to: (i) dispose of assets; (ii) incur additional indebtedness, issue preferred stock and guarantee obligations; (iii) prepay other indebtedness; (iv) make certain restricted payments, including the payment of dividends by us; (v) create liens on assets or agree to restrictions on the creation of liens on assets; (vi) make investments, loans or advances; (vii) restrict dividends and distributions from our subsidiaries; (viii) engage in mergers or consolidations; (ix) engage in certain transactions with affiliates; (x) amend the terms of any of our organizational documents or material indebtedness; (xi) change lines of business; or (xii) make certain accounting changes.
. The ABL Facility provides that if (i) excess availability is less than (a) 10% of the lesser of the aggregate commitments and the then-current borrowing base at any time or (b) $250 million at any time or (ii) an event of default is continuing, we and our subsidiaries must maintain a fixed charge coverage ratio of 1.0:1.0 from the date such triggering event occurs until such event of default is cured or waived, if the triggering event arises as a result of clause (i), and/or the 30th day that all such triggers under clause (i) no longer exist.
. The ABL Facility contains customary events of default (subject to exceptions, thresholds and grace periods as set forth in the definitive documentation for the ABL Facility), including, without limitation: (i) nonpayment of principal or interest; (ii) failure to perform or observe covenants; (iii) inaccuracy or breaches of representations and warranties; (iv) cross-defaults and cross-accelerations with certain other indebtedness; (v) certain bankruptcy related events; (vi) impairment of security interests in collateral; (vii) invalidity of guarantees; (viii) material judgments; (ix) certain ERISA matters; and (x) certain change of control events (including after completion of this offering, any person or group (other than (a) Cerberus; (b) Lubert-Adler; (c) Klaff Realty; (d) Schottenstein Stores; and (e) Kimco, and their affiliates, related funds and managed accounts (the “Equity Investors”))).
ACI, Albertsons, Safeway and NALP (collectively, the “ACI Lead Issuers”), are the lead issuers under (i) an indenture, dated as of February 5, 2020 and as amended and supplemented from time to time (the “2023 Notes Indenture”), by and among the ACI Lead Issuers and substantially all of our subsidiaries as additional issuers (the “Additional Issuers” and together with the ACI Lead Issuers, the “ACI Issuers”), and Wilmington Trust, National
Association, as trustee, under which the ACI Issuers have issued $750 million of 3.50% senior notes due February 15, 2023 (such notes, the “2023 Notes”), (ii) an indenture, dated as of May 31, 2016 and as amended and supplemented from time to time (the “2024 Notes Indenture”), by and among the ACI Lead Issuers, the subsidiary guarantors party thereto and Wilmington Trust, National Association, as trustee, under which the ACI Lead Issuers have issued, $1,250 million of 6.625% senior notes due June 15, 2024 (such notes, the “2024 Notes”), (iii) an indenture, dated as of August 9, 2016 and as amended and supplemented from time to time (the “2025 Notes Indenture”), by and among the ACI Issuers, and Wilmington Trust, National Association, as trustee, under which the ACI Issuers have issued $1,250 million of 5.750% senior notes due September 15, 2025 (such notes, the “2025 Notes”), (iv) an indenture, dated as of February 5, 2019 and as amended and supplemented from time to time (the “2026 Notes Indenture”), by and among the ACI Lead Issuers, the subsidiary guarantors party thereto and Wilmington Trust, National Association, as trustee, under which the ACI Lead Issuers have issued $600 million of 7.5% senior notes due March 15, 2026 (such notes, the “2026 Notes”), (v) an indenture, dated as of November 22, 2019 and as amended and supplemented from time to time (the “2027 Notes Indenture”), by and among the ACI Issuers, and Wilmington Trust, National Association, as trustee, under which the ACI Issuers have issued $1,350 million of 4.625% senior notes due January 15, 2027 (such notes, the “2027 Notes”), (vi) an indenture, dated as of August 15, 2019 and as amended and supplemented from time to time (the “2028 Notes Indenture”), by and among the ACI Issuers, and Wilmington Trust, National Association, as trustee, under which the ACI Issuers have issued $750 million of 5.875% senior notes due February 15, 2028 (such notes, the “2028 Notes”) and (vii) an indenture, dated as of February 5, 2020 and as amended and supplemented from time to time (the “2030 Notes Indenture” and together with the 2023 Notes Indenture, 2024 Notes Indenture, 2025 Notes Indenture, 2026 Notes Indenture, 2027 Notes Indenture and 2028 Notes Indenture, the “ACI Indentures”), by and among the ACI Issuers, and Wilmington Trust, National Association, as trustee, under which the ACI Issuers have issued $1,000 million of 4.875% senior notes due February 15, 2030 (such notes, the “2030 Notes” and together with the 2023 Notes, 2024 Notes, 2025 Notes, 2026 Notes, 2027 Notes and 2028 Notes, the “ACI Notes”).
. Interest is payable on February 15 and August 15 of each year for the 2023 Notes, June 15 and December 15 of each year for the 2024 Notes, March 15 and September 15 of each year for the 2025 Notes and 2026 Notes, January 15 and July 15 of each year for the 2027 Notes and February 15 and August 15 of each year for the 2028 Notes and 2030 Notes.
. The obligations under the ACI Indentures are also guaranteed by the Additional Issuers.
. The ACI Notes are unsecured.
Prior to December 15, 2022, the 2023 Notes may be redeemed in whole or in part at a redemption price equal to 100% of the principal amount thereof plus accrued and unpaid interest thereon, plus an applicable make-whole premium equal to the greater of (i) 1.0% and (ii) the excess of the sum of the present value of 100.00% of the principal amount being redeemed, plus all required interest payments due thereon through December 15, 2022 (exclusive of interest accrued to the date of redemption), discounted to the date of redemption at a rate equal to the then-current interest rate on U.S. Treasury securities of comparable maturities plus 50 basis points and, for the avoidance of doubt, assuming that the interest rate in effect on the date of redemption is the interest rate that will be in effect through December 15, 2022, over the principal amount being redeemed. On or after December 15, 2022, the 2023 Notes may be redeemed in whole or in part at 100.00%.
The 2024 Notes may be redeemed in whole or in part at the following redemption prices: (i) 104.969% if such notes are redeemed on or prior to June 14, 2020, (ii) 103.313% if such notes are redeemed on or after
June 15, 2020 and on or prior to June 14, 2021, (iii) 101.656% if such notes are redeemed on or after June 15, 2021 and on or prior to June 14, 2022, and (iv) at par thereafter.
The 2025 Notes may be redeemed in whole or in part at the following redemption prices: (i) 104.313% if such notes are redeemed on or prior to September 14, 2020, (ii) 102.875% if such notes are redeemed on or after September 15, 2020 and on or prior to September 14, 2021, (iii) 101.438% if such notes are redeemed on or after September 15, 2021 and on or prior to September 14, 2022, and (iv) at par thereafter.
Prior to March 15, 2022, the 2026 Notes may be redeemed in whole or in part at a redemption price equal to 100% of the principal amount thereof plus accrued and unpaid interest thereon, plus an applicable make-whole premium equal to the greater of (i) 1.0% and (ii) the excess of the sum of the present value of 105.625% of the principal amount being redeemed, plus all required interest payments due thereon through March 15, 2022 (exclusive of interest accrued to the date of redemption), discounted to the date of redemption at a rate equal to the then-current interest rate on U.S. Treasury securities of comparable maturities plus 50 basis points and, for the avoidance of doubt, assuming that the interest rate in effect on the date of redemption is the interest rate that will be in effect through March 15, 2022, over the principal amount being redeemed. In addition, subject to certain conditions, the ACI Issuers may redeem up to 40% of the 2026 Notes before March 15, 2022, with the net cash proceeds from certain equity offerings at a redemption price equal to 107.5% of the principal amount of the 2026 Notes redeemed, plus accrued and unpaid interest to (but excluding) the redemption date.
On or after March 15, 2022, the 2026 Notes may be redeemed in whole or in part at the following redemption prices: (i) 105.625% if such notes are redeemed on or prior to March 14, 2023, (ii) 103.750% if such notes are redeemed on or after March 15, 2023 and on or prior to March 14, 2024, (iii) 101.875% if such notes are redeemed on or after March 15, 2024 and on or prior to March 14, 2025, and (iv) at par thereafter.
Prior to January 15, 2023, the 2027 Notes may be redeemed in whole or in part at a redemption price equal to 100% of the principal amount thereof plus accrued and unpaid interest thereon, plus an applicable make-whole premium equal to the greater of (i) 1.0% and (ii) the excess of the sum of the present value of 103.469% of the principal amount being redeemed, plus all required interest payments due thereon through January 15, 2023 (exclusive of interest accrued to the date of redemption), discounted to the date of redemption at a rate equal to the then-current interest rate on U.S. Treasury securities of comparable maturities plus 50 basis points and, for the avoidance of doubt, assuming that the interest rate in effect on the date of redemption is the interest rate that will be in effect through January 15, 2023, over the principal amount being redeemed. In addition, subject to certain conditions, the ACI Issuers may redeem up to 40% of the 2027 Notes before January 15, 2023, with the net cash proceeds from certain equity offerings at a redemption price equal to 104.625% of the principal amount of the 2027 Notes redeemed, plus accrued and unpaid interest to (but excluding) the redemption date.
On or after January 15, 2023, the 2027 Notes may be redeemed in whole or in part at the following redemption prices: (i) 103.469% if such notes are redeemed on or prior to January 14, 2024, (ii) 102.313% if such notes are redeemed on or after January 15, 2024 and on or prior to January 14, 2025, (iii) 101.156% if such notes are redeemed on or after January 15, 2025 and on or prior to January 14, 2026, and (iv) at par thereafter.
Prior to August 15, 2022, the 2028 Notes may be redeemed in whole or in part at a redemption price equal to 100% of the principal amount thereof plus accrued and unpaid interest thereon, plus an applicable make-whole
premium equal to the greater of (i) 1.0% and (ii) the excess of the sum of the present value of 104.406% of the principal amount being redeemed, plus all required interest payments due thereon through August 15, 2022 (exclusive of interest accrued to the date of redemption), discounted to the date of redemption at a rate equal to the then-current interest rate on U.S. Treasury securities of comparable maturities plus 50 basis points and, for the avoidance of doubt, assuming that the interest rate in effect on the date of redemption is the interest rate that will be in effect through August 15, 2022, over the principal amount being redeemed. In addition, subject to certain conditions, the ACI Issuers may redeem up to 40% of the 2028 Notes before August 15, 2022, with the net cash proceeds from certain equity offerings at a redemption price equal to 105.875% of the principal amount of the 2028 Notes redeemed, plus accrued and unpaid interest to (but excluding) the redemption date.
On or after August 15, 2022, the 2028 Notes may be redeemed in whole or in part at the following redemption prices: (i) 104.406% if such notes are redeemed on or prior to August 14, 2023, (ii) 102.938% if such notes are redeemed on or after August 15, 2023 and on or prior to August 14, 2024, (iii) 101.469% if such notes are redeemed on or after August 15, 2024 and on or prior to August 14, 2025, and (iv) at par thereafter.
Prior to February 15, 2025, the 2030 Notes may be redeemed in whole or in part at a redemption price equal to 100% of the principal amount thereof plus accrued and unpaid interest thereon, plus an applicable make-whole premium equal to the greater of (i) 1.0% and (ii) the excess of the sum of the present value of 103.656% of the principal amount being redeemed, plus all required interest payments due thereon through February 15, 2025 (exclusive of interest accrued to the date of redemption), discounted to the date of redemption at a rate equal to the then-current interest rate on U.S. Treasury securities of comparable maturities plus 50 basis points and, for the avoidance of doubt, assuming that the interest rate in effect on the date of redemption is the interest rate that will be in effect through February 15, 2025, over the principal amount being redeemed. In addition, subject to certain conditions, the
Co-Issuers
may redeem up to 40% of the 2030 Notes before February 15, 2025, with the net cash proceeds from certain equity offerings at a redemption price equal to 104.875% of the principal amount of the 2030 Notes redeemed, plus accrued and unpaid interest to (but excluding) the redemption date.
On or after February 15, 2025, the 2030 Notes may be redeemed in whole or in part at the following redemption prices: (i) 103.656% if such notes are redeemed on or prior to February 14, 2026, (ii) 102.438% if such notes are redeemed on or after February 15, 2026 and on or prior to February 14, 2027, (iii) 101.219% if such notes are redeemed on or after February 15, 2027 and on or prior to February 14, 2028, and (iv) at par thereafter.
. The ACI Notes do not require the making of any mandatory redemption or sinking fund payments.
Repurchase of Notes at the Option of Holders
. If a “change of control” transaction (which includes, subject to certain exceptions, (i) the sale, lease or transfer, in one or a series of related transactions, of all or substantially all our assets and our restricted subsidiaries, taken as a whole, to a person other than the Equity Investors or (ii) we become aware of the acquisition by any person or group, other than any of the Equity Investors, of more than 50% of our voting power or any of our direct or indirect parent companies or (iii) in the case of the 2024 Notes and the 2025 Notes, we cease to, directly or indirectly own 100% of the equity interests of Albertsons, Safeway or NALP, and as a result thereof, a “rating event” occurs (i.e., the applicable series of ACI Notes rating is lowered by certain of the rating agencies then rating such series of ACI Notes due to such change of control by one more gradations within 60 days after the change of control or announcement of an intention to effect a change of control)), the ACI Issuers are required to offer to purchase all of the applicable series of ACI Notes from the holders thereof at a price equal to 101% of the principal amount outstanding plus all accrued interest thereon.
. The ACI Indentures contain various affirmative and negative covenants (subject to customary exceptions), including, but not limited to, restrictions on our ability and our restricted subsidiaries to: (i) dispose
of assets; (ii) incur additional indebtedness, issue preferred stock and guarantee obligations; (iii) make certain restricted payments, including the payment of dividends by us, investments and payments in respect of subordinated indebtedness; (iv) create liens on assets or agree to restrictions on the creation of liens on assets; (v) engage in mergers or consolidations; and (vi) engage in certain transactions with affiliates.
. The ACI Indentures contain events of default (subject to customary exceptions, thresholds and grace periods), including, without limitation: (i) nonpayment of principal, interest or premium; (ii) failure to perform or observe covenants; (iii) cross-acceleration with certain other indebtedness; (iv) certain judgments; and (v) certain bankruptcy related events.
Safeway is party to an indenture, dated September 10, 1997 (the “Safeway Indenture”), with The Bank of New York, as trustee, under which Safeway has the following four outstanding issues of notes (amounts as of February 29, 2020):
(a) $136,826,000 of 3.95% Senior Notes due August 2020 (the “2020 Safeway Notes”);
(b) $130,020,000 of 4.75% Senior Notes due December 2021 (the “2021 Safeway Notes”);
(c) $120,078,000 of 7.45% Senior Debentures due September 2027 (the “2027 Safeway Notes”); and
(d) $262,099,000 of 7.25% Senior Debentures due February 2031 (the “2031 Safeway Notes”).
The 2020 Safeway Notes, 2021 Safeway Notes, 2027 Safeway Notes and 2031 Safeway Notes are collectively referred to as the “Safeway Notes.”
. Interest is payable on (i) February 15 and August 15 of each year for the 2020 Safeway Notes, (ii) June 1 and December 1 of each year for the 2021 Safeway Notes, (iii) March 15 and September 15 of each year for the 2027 Safeway Notes and (iv) February 1 and August 1 of each year for the 2031 Safeway Notes.
. The Safeway Notes are not guaranteed.
. The Safeway Notes are unsecured.
. The Safeway Notes are redeemable at our option at a redemption price equal to the greater of (i) 100% of the principal amount of the Safeway Notes to be redeemed and (ii) an amount equal to the sum of the present values of the remaining scheduled payments of principal and interest on the Safeway Notes to be redeemed (exclusive of interest accrued to the date of redemption) discounted to the date of redemption on a semiannual basis at the then-current interest rate on U.S. Treasury securities of comparable maturities, plus the following:
2020 Safeway Notes: 20 basis points;
2021 Safeway Notes: 45 basis points;
2027 Safeway Notes: 10 basis points; and
2031 Safeway Notes: 25 basis points.
. The Safeway Notes do not require the making of any mandatory redemption or sinking fund payments.
Repurchase of Notes at the Option of Holders
. If a “change of control” transaction (which includes (i) the disposition of all or substantially all of Safeway’s and its subsidiaries properties or assets, (ii) the consummation of any transaction pursuant to which any person owns more than 50% of the voting stock of Safeway or (iii) a
majority of the members of Safeway’s board of directors not constituting continuing directors), and as a result thereof, a “rating event” occurs (i.e., the rating on a series of Safeway Notes is lowered by each of the rating agencies then rating the Safeway Notes below an investment grade rating within 60 days after the change of control or announcement of an intention to effect a change of control), Safeway is required to offer to purchase all of the 2020 Safeway Notes and 2021 Safeway Notes from the holders at a price equal to 101% of the principal amount outstanding plus all accrued interest thereon.
. The Safeway Indenture contains various affirmative and negative covenants (subject to customary exceptions), including, but not limited to, restrictions on the ability of Safeway and its subsidiaries to (i) create liens on assets, (ii) engage in mergers or consolidations or (iii) enter into sale and leaseback transactions.
. The Safeway Indenture contains events of default (subject to customary exceptions, thresholds and grace periods), including, without limitation: (i) nonpayment of principal or interest; (ii) failure to perform or observe covenants; (iii) cross-acceleration with certain other indebtedness and (iv) certain bankruptcy related events.
NALP (as successor to Albertson’s, Inc.) is party to an indenture, dated as of May 1, 1992 with U.S. Bank Trust National Association (as successor to Morgan Guaranty Trust Company of New York) (as supplemented by Supplemental Indenture No. 1, dated as of May 7, 2004; Supplemental Indenture No. 2, dated as of June 1, 2006; and Supplemental Indenture No. 3, dated as of December 29, 2008; collectively, the “NALP Indenture”), under which NALP has the following five outstanding issues of notes (amounts as of February 29, 2020):
(a) $78,911,000 of 6.52% to 7.15% Medium-Term Notes, due July 2027—June 2028 (the “NALP Medium-Term Notes”);
(b) $56,536,000 of 7.75% Debentures due June 2026 (the “2026 NALP Notes”);
(c) $127,206,000 of 7.45% Senior Debentures due August 2029 (the “2029 NALP Notes”);
(d) $135,098,000 of 8.70% Senior Debentures due May 2030 (the “2030 NALP Notes”); and
(e) $108,879,000 of 8.00% Senior Debentures due May 2031 (the “2031 NALP Notes”).
The NALP Medium-Term Notes, 2026 NALP Notes, 2029 NALP Notes, 2030 NALP Notes and 2031 NALP Notes are collectively referred to as the “NALP Notes.”
. Interest on the NALP Notes is payable semiannually.
. The NALP Notes are not guaranteed.
. The NALP Notes are unsecured.
. The NALP Medium-Term Notes and the 2026 NALP Notes are not redeemable or repayable prior to maturity. The 2029 NALP Notes, 2030 NALP Notes, and 2031 NALP Notes are redeemable in whole or in part at any time, at a price equal to the greater of (i) 100% of the principal amount to be redeemed and (ii) an amount equal to the sum of the present values of the remaining scheduled payments of principal and interest on the applicable notes to be redeemed (excluding any portion of payments of interest accrued as of the redemption date) discounted to the redemption date on a semiannual basis at the Adjusted Treasury Rate (as defined therein) plus, in the case of:
(i) the 2031 NALP Notes, 30 basis points; and
(ii) the 2029 NALP Notes and 2030 NALP Notes, 20 basis points.
. The NALP Notes do not require the making of any mandatory redemption or sinking fund payments.
. The NALP Indenture contains certain covenants restricting the ability of NALP and its subsidiaries (subject to customary exceptions) to (i) create liens on certain assets, (ii) engage in mergers or consolidations or (iii) enter into sale and leaseback transactions.
. The NALP Indenture contains events of default (subject to customary exceptions, thresholds and grace periods), including, without limitation: (i) nonpayment of principal or interest; (ii) failure to perform or observe covenants; (iii) cross-acceleration with certain other indebtedness and (iv) certain bankruptcy related events.
American Stores Company Indenture
American Stores Company, LLC (“ASC”), is party to an indenture, dated as of May 1, 1995 with Wells Fargo Bank, National Association (as successor to The First National Bank of Chicago), as trustee (as further supplemented, the “ASC Indenture”), under which ASC has the following three outstanding issues of notes:
(a) $2,902,000 of 8.00% Debentures due June 2026 (the “2026 ASC Notes”);
(b) $756,000 of 7.10% Medium Term Notes due March 2028 (the “2028 ASC MT Notes”); and
(c) $143,000 of 7.5% Debentures due May 2037 (the “2037 ASC Notes”).
The 2026 ASC Notes, the 2028 ASC MT Notes, and the 2037 ASC Notes are collectively referred to as the “ASC Notes.” Interest on the ASC Notes is payable semiannually. The ASC Notes are guaranteed by SuperValu. The 2026 ASC Notes and 2037 ASC Notes are not redeemable prior to maturity. The 2028 ASC MT Notes are redeemable in whole or in part, at the option of ASC, subject to certain conditions. The ASC Notes do not require the making of any mandatory redemption or sinking fund payments.
Concurrently with the acquisition of NALP in March 2013, ASC, SuperValu, and JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A., as escrow agent, entered into an escrow agreement pursuant to which ASC has deposited into escrow an amount equal to the outstanding principal balance of the ASC Notes plus funds sufficient to pay interest thereon for three years. ASC granted to SuperValu a security interest in its rights under the escrow agreement to secure reimbursement to SuperValu of any amounts paid by SuperValu under its guarantee of the ASC Notes. The ASC Indenture contains, solely for the benefit of the 2037 ASC Notes (but not any other series of the ASC Notes), certain covenants restricting the ability of ASC and its subsidiaries (subject to customary exceptions) to (i) create liens on certain assets, (ii) engage in mergers or consolidations or (iii) enter into sale and leaseback transactions.
MATERIAL U.S. FEDERAL INCOME TAX CONSEQUENCES
TO
NON-U.S.
HOLDERS OF OUR COMMON STOCK
The following discussion is a summary of the material U.S. federal income tax consequences to
Non-U.S.
Holders (as defined herein) of the purchase, ownership and disposition of our common stock issued pursuant to this offering, but does not purport to be a complete analysis of all potential U.S. federal income tax effects.
The effects of other U.S. federal tax laws, such as estate and gift tax laws, and any applicable state, local or
non-U.S.
tax laws are not discussed.
Non-U.S.
Holders should consult their tax advisors regarding the significant U.S. federal estate tax consequences that could apply to an investment in our common stock.
This discussion is based on the U.S. Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, or the Code, Treasury Regulations promulgated thereunder, judicial decisions, and published rulings and administrative pronouncements of the IRS, in each case, as in effect as of the date hereof. These authorities may change or be subject to differing interpretations. Any such change or differing interpretation may be applied retroactively in a manner that could adversely affect a
Non-U.S.
Holder of our common stock. We have not sought and will not seek any rulings from the IRS regarding the matters discussed below. There can be no assurance the IRS or a court will not take a contrary position to that discussed below regarding the U.S. federal income tax consequences of the purchase, ownership and disposition of our common stock.
This discussion is limited to
Non-U.S.
Holders that hold our common stock as a “capital asset” within the meaning of Section 1221 of the Code (generally, property held for investment). This discussion does not address all U.S. federal income tax consequences relevant to a
Non-U.S.
Holder’s particular circumstances, including the impact of the alternative minimum tax or the Medicare contribution tax on net investment income. In addition, it does not address consequences relevant to
Non-U.S.
Holders subject to special rules, including, without limitation:
| • | U.S. expatriates and former citizens or long-term residents of the United States; |
| • | persons holding our common stock as part of a hedge, straddle or other risk reduction strategy or as part of a conversion transaction or other integrated investment; |
| • | banks, insurance companies, and other financial institutions; |
| • | brokers, dealers or traders in securities, currencies or commodities; |
| • | “controlled foreign corporations,” “passive foreign investment companies,” and corporations that accumulate earnings to avoid U.S. federal income tax; |
| • | partnerships or other entities or arrangements treated as partnerships for U.S. federal income tax purposes (and investors therein); |
| • | tax-exempt entities or governmental entities; |
| • | persons deemed to sell our common stock under the constructive sale provisions of the Code; |
| • | persons who hold or receive our common stock pursuant to the exercise of any employee stock option or otherwise as compensation; |
| • | tax-qualified retirement plans; |
| • | “qualified foreign pension funds” as defined in Section 897(l)(2) of the Code and entities all of the interests of which are held by qualified foreign pension funds; |
| • | persons subject to special tax accounting rules as a result of any item of gross income with respect to the stock being taken into account in an “applicable financial statement” (as defined in the Code); |
| • | regulated investment companies; and |
| • | real estate investment trusts. |
If dividends paid to a
Non-U.S.
Holder are effectively connected with the
Non-U.S.
Holder’s conduct of a trade or business within the United States, the
Non-U.S.
Holder will be exempt from the U.S. federal withholding tax described above, unless an applicable income tax treaty provides otherwise. To claim the exemption, the
Non-U.S.
Holder generally must furnish to the applicable withholding agent a valid IRS Form
W-8ECI,
certifying that the dividends are effectively connected with the
Non-U.S.
Holder’s conduct of a trade or business within the United States.
Any effectively connected dividends generally will be subject to U.S. federal income tax on a net income basis at the regular graduated rates in the same manner as if the
Non-U.S.
Holder were a U.S. person, unless an applicable income tax treaty provides otherwise. A
Non-U.S.
Holder that is a corporation also may be subject to a branch profits tax at a rate of 30% (or such lower rate specified by an applicable income tax treaty) on its effectively connected earnings and profits, as adjusted for certain items.
Non-U.S.
Holders should consult their tax advisors regarding any applicable tax treaties that may provide for different rules.
Sale or Other Taxable Disposition
Subject to the discussion below on backup withholding and FATCA, a
Non-U.S.
Holder will not be subject to U.S. federal income tax on any gain recognized upon the sale or other taxable disposition of our common stock unless:
| • | the gain is effectively connected with the Non-U.S. Holder’s conduct of a trade or business within the United States; |
| • | the Non-U.S. Holder is a nonresident alien individual present in the United States for 183 days or more during the taxable year of the disposition and certain other requirements are met; or |
| • | subject to certain exceptions, our common stock constitutes a U.S. real property interest, or USRPI, by reason of our status as a U.S. real property holding corporation, or USRPHC, for U.S. federal income tax purposes. |
Gain described in the first bullet point above generally will be subject to U.S. federal income tax on a net income basis at the regular graduated rates in the same manner as if the
Non-U.S.
Holder were a U.S. person, unless an applicable income tax treaty provides otherwise. A
Non-U.S.
Holder that is a corporation also may be subject to a branch profits tax at a rate of 30% (or such lower rate specified by an applicable income tax treaty) on its effectively connected earnings and profits, as adjusted for certain items.
Gain described in the second bullet point above will be subject to U.S. federal income tax at a rate of 30% (or such lower rate specified by an applicable income tax treaty), and may be offset by certain U.S. source capital losses of the
Non-U.S.
Holder (even though the individual is not considered a resident of the United States), provided the
Non-U.S.
Holder has timely filed U.S. federal income tax returns with respect to such losses.
With respect to the third bullet point above, we believe we currently are not, and do not anticipate becoming, a USRPHC. Because the determination of whether we are a USRPHC depends, however, on the fair market value of our USRPIs relative to the fair market value of our
non-U.S.
real property interests and our other business assets, there can be no assurance we currently are not a USRPHC or will not become one in the future. Even if we are or were to become a USRPHC, gain arising from the sale or other taxable disposition by a
Non-U.S.
Holder of our common stock will not be subject to U.S. federal income tax if our common stock is “regularly traded,” as defined by applicable Treasury Regulations, on an established securities market, and such
Non-U.S.
Holder owned, actually and constructively, 5% or less of our common stock throughout the shorter of the five-year period ending on the date of the sale or other taxable disposition or the
Non-U.S.
Holder’s holding period.
Non-U.S.
Holders should consult their tax advisors regarding potentially applicable income tax treaties that may provide for different rules.
Information Reporting and Backup Withholding
Payments of dividends on our common stock will not be subject to backup withholding, provided the holder either certifies its
non-U.S.
status, such as by furnishing a valid IRS Form
W-8BEN,
W-8BEN-E
or
W-8ECI,
or otherwise establishes an exemption. However, information returns are required to be filed with the IRS in connection with any dividends on our common stock paid to the
Non-U.S.
Holder, regardless of whether any tax was actually withheld. In addition, proceeds of the sale or other taxable disposition of our common stock within the United States or conducted through U.S. brokers or certain
non-U.S.
brokers with specified connections to the United States may be subject to backup withholding or information reporting, unless the applicable withholding agent receives the certification described above, or the holder otherwise establishes an exemption. Proceeds of a disposition of our common stock conducted through a
non-U.S.
office of a
non-U.S.
broker without specified connections to the United States generally will not be subject to backup withholding or information reporting.
Copies of information returns that are filed with the IRS may also be made available under the provisions of an applicable treaty or agreement to the tax authorities of the country in which the
Non-U.S.
Holder resides or is established.
Backup withholding is not an additional tax. Any amounts withheld under the backup withholding rules may be allowed as a refund or a credit against a
Non-U.S.
Holder’s U.S. federal income tax liability, provided the required information is timely furnished to the IRS.
Additional Withholding Tax on Payments Made to Foreign Accounts
Withholding taxes may be imposed under Sections 1471 to 1474 of the Code (such Sections commonly referred to as the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act, or FATCA) on certain types of payments made to
non-U.S.
financial institutions and certain other
non-U.S.
entities. Specifically, a 30% withholding tax may be imposed on dividends on, or (subject to the proposed Treasury Regulations discussed below) gross proceeds from the sale or other disposition of, our common stock paid to a “foreign financial institution” or a
“non-financial
foreign entity” (each as defined in the Code), whether such foreign financial institution or
non-financial
foreign entity is the beneficial owner or an intermediary, unless (1) the foreign financial institution undertakes certain diligence, withholding and reporting obligations, (2) the
non-financial
foreign entity either certifies it does not have any “substantial United States owners” (as defined in the Code) or furnishes identifying information regarding each substantial United States owner (including debt holders), or (3) the foreign financial institution or
non-financial
foreign entity otherwise qualifies for an exemption from these rules. If the payee is a foreign financial institution and is subject to the diligence and reporting requirements in (1) above, it must enter into an agreement with the U.S. Department of the Treasury requiring, among other things, that it undertake to identify accounts held by certain “specified United States persons” or “United States owned foreign entities” (each as defined in the Code), annually report certain information about such accounts, and withhold 30% on certain payments to
non-compliant
foreign financial institutions and certain other account holders. Foreign financial institutions located in jurisdictions that have an intergovernmental agreement with the United States governing FATCA may be subject to different rules.
Under the applicable Treasury Regulations and administrative guidance, withholding under FATCA generally applies to payments of dividends. While withholding under FATCA would have applied also to payments of gross proceeds from the sale or other disposition of our common stock on or after January 1, 2019, recently proposed Treasury Regulations eliminate FATCA withholding on payments of gross proceeds entirely. Taxpayers generally may rely on these proposed Treasury Regulations until final Treasury Regulations are issued.
Prospective investors should consult their tax advisors regarding the potential application of withholding under FATCA to their investment in our common stock.
(c) to fewer than 150 natural or legal persons (other than qualified investors as defined in the Prospectus Directive) subject to obtaining the prior consent of the representatives for any such offer; or
(d) in any other circumstances which do not require the publication by the Company of a prospectus pursuant to Article 3 of the Prospectus Directive.
For the purposes of this provision, the expression an “offer of shares to the public” in relation to any shares in any Relevant Member State means the communication in any form and by any means of sufficient information on the terms of the offer and the shares to be offered so as to enable an investor to decide to purchase or subscribe the shares, as the same may be varied in that Relevant Member State by any measure implementing the Prospectus Directive in that Relevant Member State and the expression Prospectus Directive means Directive 2003/71/EC and includes any relevant implementing measure in each Relevant Member State.
Each underwriter has represented and agreed that:
(a) it has only communicated or caused to be communicated and will only communicate or cause to be communicated an invitation or inducement to engage in investment activity (within the meaning of Section 21 of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (Financial Promotion) Order 2005, as amended (the “FSMA”)) received by it in connection with the issue or sale of the shares in circumstances in which Section 21(1) of the FSMA would not apply to the Company; and
(b) it has complied and will comply with all applicable provisions of the FSMA with respect to anything done by it in relation to the shares in, from or otherwise involving the United Kingdom.
The shares may not be offered or sold by means of any document other than (i) in circumstances which do not constitute an offer to the public within the meaning of the Companies Ordinance (Cap.32, Laws of Hong Kong), or (ii) to “professional investors” within the meaning of the Securities and Futures Ordinance (Cap.571, Laws of Hong Kong) and any rules made thereunder or (iii) in other circumstances which do not result in the document being a “prospectus” within the meaning of the Companies Ordinance (Cap.32, Laws of Hong Kong), and no advertisement, invitation or document relating to the shares may be issued or may be in the possession of any person for the purpose of issue (in each case whether in Hong Kong or elsewhere), which is directed at, or the contents of which are likely to be accessed or read by, the public in Hong Kong (except if permitted to do so under the laws of Hong Kong) other than with respect to shares which are or are intended to be disposed of only to persons outside Hong Kong or only to “professional investors” within the meaning of the Securities and Futures Ordinance (Cap. 571, Laws of Hong Kong) and any rules made thereunder.
This prospectus has not been registered as a prospectus with the Monetary Authority of Singapore. Accordingly, this prospectus and any other document or material in connection with the offer or sale, or invitation for subscription or purchase, of the shares may not be circulated or distributed, nor may the shares be offered or sold, or be made the subject of an invitation for subscription or purchase, whether directly or indirectly, to persons in Singapore other than (i) to an institutional investor under Section 274 of the Securities and Futures Act, Chapter 289 of Singapore (the “SFA”), (ii) to a relevant person, or any person pursuant to Section 275(1A), and in accordance with the conditions, specified in Section 275 of the SFA or (iii) otherwise pursuant to, and in accordance with the conditions of, any other applicable provision of the SFA.
Where the shares are subscribed or purchased under Section 275 of the SFA by a relevant person which is: (a) a corporation (which is not an accredited investor) the sole business of which is to hold investments and the entire share capital of which is owned by one or more individuals, each of whom is an accredited investor; or (b) a trust (where the trustee is not an accredited investor) whose sole purpose is to hold investments and each beneficiary is an accredited investor, shares, debentures and units of shares and debentures of that corporation or the beneficiaries’ rights and interest in that trust shall not be transferable for 6 months after that corporation or that trust has acquired the shares under Section 275 of the SFA except: (1) to an institutional investor under Section 274 of the SFA or to a relevant person, or any person pursuant to Section 275(1A), and in accordance with the conditions, specified in Section 275 of the SFA; (2) where no consideration is given for the transfer; or (3) by operation of law.
The validity of the common stock offered hereby will be passed upon for us by Schulte Roth & Zabel LLP, New York, New York. The underwriters are being represented in connection with this offering by Cahill Gordon & Reindel LLP, New York, New York.
The consolidated financial statements of Albertsons Companies, Inc. as of February 29, 2020 and February 23, 2019, and for each of the three years in the period ended February 29, 2020, included elsewhere in this prospectus have been audited by Deloitte & Touche LLP, an independent registered public accounting firm, as stated in their report, which appears herein (which report expresses an unqualified opinion on the financial statements and includes an explanatory paragraph referring to a change in accounting principle related to leases). Such consolidated financial statements have been so included in reliance upon the report of such firm given upon their authority as experts in accounting and auditing.
WHERE YOU CAN FIND ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
We have filed with the SEC a registration statement on Form
S-1
under the Securities Act with respect to the shares of our common stock offered by this prospectus. This prospectus, which constitutes a part of the registration statement, does not contain all of the information set forth in the registration statement, some of which is contained in exhibits to the registration statement as permitted by the rules and regulations of the SEC. For further information with respect to us and our common stock, we refer you to the registration statement, including the exhibits filed as a part of the registration statement. Statements contained in this prospectus concerning the contents of any contract or any other document are not necessarily complete. If a contract or document has been filed as an exhibit to the registration statement, please see the copy of the contract or document that has been filed. Each statement in this prospectus relating to a contract or document filed as an exhibit is qualified in all respects by the filed exhibit. The SEC maintains a website that contains reports, proxy statements and other information about issuers, like us, that file electronically with the SEC. The address of that website is www.sec.gov.
As a result of this offering, we will become subject to the information and reporting requirements of the Exchange Act and, in accordance with this law, will file periodic reports, proxy statements and other information with the SEC. Historically, we have voluntarily filed annual, quarterly and current reports and other information with the SEC. These periodic reports, proxy statements and other information are and will be available for inspection and copying at the public reference facilities and website of the SEC referred to above. We also maintain a website at www.albertsonscompanies.com where, upon completion of this offering, you may access these materials free of charge as soon as reasonably practicable after they are electronically filed with, or furnished to, the SEC. The information on or that can be accessed through our website is not a part of this prospectus and the inclusion of our website address in this prospectus is an inactive textual reference only.
Consolidated Balance Sheets. As of February 29, 2020, and February 23, 2019, immaterial amounts of assets and liabilities held for sale are recorded in other current assets and other current liabilities, respectively.
Property and equipment, net:
Property and equipment is recorded at cost or fair value for assets acquired as part of a business combination, and depreciation is calculated on the straight-line method over the estimated useful lives of the assets. Estimated useful lives are generally as follows: buildings—
seven to 40 years; leasehold improvements—the shorter of the remaining lease term or
ten to 20 years; fixtures and equipment—
three to 20 years; and specialized supply chain equipment—
six to 25 years.
Property and equipment under finance leases are recorded at the lower of the present value of the future minimum lease payments or the fair value of the asset and are amortized on the straight-line method over the lesser of the lease term or the estimated useful life. Interest capitalized on property under construction was immaterial for all periods presented.
The Company leases certain retail stores, distribution centers, office facilities and equipment from third parties. The Company determines whether a contract is or contains a lease at contract inception. Operating and finance lease assets and liabilities are recognized at the lease commencement date. Operating leases are included in operating lease
right-of-use
(“ROU”) assets, current operating lease obligations and long-term operating lease obligations on the Consolidated Balance Sheets. Finance leases are included in Property and equipment, net, current maturities of long-term debt and finance lease obligations and long-term debt and finance lease obligations on the Consolidated Balance Sheets. Operating lease assets represent the Company’s right to use an underlying asset for the lease term, and lease liabilities represent the Company’s obligation to make lease payments arising from the lease. Lease liabilities are based on the present value of remaining lease payments over the lease term. As the rate implicit in the Company’s leases is not readily determinable, the Company’s applicable incremental borrowing rate, which is estimated to approximate the interest rate on a collateralized basis with similar terms, is used in calculating the present value of the sum of the lease payments. Operating lease assets are based on the lease liability, adjusted for any prepayments, lease incentives and initial direct costs incurred. The typical real estate lease period is 15 to 20 years with renewal options for varying terms and, to a limited extent, options to purchase. The Company includes renewal options that are reasonably certain to be exercised as part of the lease term.
The Company has lease agreements with
non-lease
components that relate to the lease components. Certain leases contain percent rent based on sales, escalation clauses or payment of executory costs such as property taxes, utilities, insurance and maintenance.
Non-lease
components primarily relate to common area maintenance.
Non-lease
components and the lease components to which they relate are accounted for together as a single lease component for all asset classes. The Company recognizes lease payments for short-term leases as expense either straight-line over the lease term or as incurred depending on whether lease payments are fixed or variable.
Impairment of long-lived assets:
The Company regularly reviews its individual stores’ operating performance, together with current market conditions, for indicators of impairment. When events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying value of the individual store’s assets may not be recoverable, its future undiscounted cash flows are compared to the carrying value. If the carrying value of store assets to be held and used is greater than the future undiscounted cash flows, an impairment loss is recognized to record the assets at fair value. For assets held for sale, the Company recognizes impairment charges for the excess of the carrying value plus estimated costs of disposal over the fair value. Fair values are based on discounted cash flows or current market rates. These estimates of fair value can be significantly impacted by factors such as changes in the current economic environment and real estate market conditions. Long-lived asset impairments are recorded as a component of (Gain) loss on property dispositions and impairment losses, net.
Intangible assets with finite lives consist primarily of trade names, naming rights, customer prescription files and internally developed software. Intangible assets with finite lives are amortized on a straight-line basis over an estimated economic life ranging from
three to 40 years. The Company reviews finite-
lived intangible assets for impairment in accordance with its policy for long-lived assets. Intangible assets with indefinite useful lives, which are not amortized, consist of restricted covenants and liquor licenses. The Company reviews intangible assets with indefinite useful lives and tests for impairment annually on the first day of the fourth quarter and also if events or changes in circumstances indicate the occurrence of a triggering event. The review consists of comparing the estimated fair value of the cash flows generated by the asset to the carrying value of the asset.
Business combination measurements:
In accordance with applicable accounting standards, the Company estimates the fair value of acquired assets and assumed liabilities as of the acquisition date of business combinations. These fair value adjustments are input into the calculation of goodwill related to the excess of the purchase price over the fair value of the tangible and identifiable intangible assets acquired and liabilities assumed in the acquisition.
The fair value of assets acquired and liabilities assumed are determined using market, income and cost approaches from the perspective of a market participant. The fair value measurements can be based on significant inputs that are not readily observable in the market. The market approach indicates value for a subject asset based on available market pricing for comparable assets. The market approach used includes prices and other relevant information generated by market transactions involving comparable assets, as well as pricing guides and other sources. The income approach indicates value for a subject asset based on the present value of cash flows projected to be generated by the asset. Projected cash flows are discounted at a required market rate of return that reflects the relative risk of achieving the cash flows and the time value of money. The cost approach, which estimates value by determining the current cost of replacing an asset with another of equivalent economic utility, was used for certain assets for which the market and income approaches could not be applied due to the nature of the asset. The cost to replace a given asset reflects the estimated reproduction or replacement cost for the asset, adjusted for obsolescence, whether physical, functional or economic.
Goodwill represents the difference between the purchase price and the fair value of assets and liabilities acquired in a business combination. Goodwill is not amortized as the Company reviews goodwill for impairment annually on the first day of its fourth quarter and also if events or changes in circumstances indicate the occurrence of a triggering event. The Company reviews goodwill for impairment by initially considering qualitative factors to determine whether it is more likely than not that the fair value of a reporting unit is less than its carrying amount, including goodwill, as a basis for determining whether it is necessary to perform a quantitative analysis. If it is determined that it is more likely than not that the fair value of reporting unit is less than its carrying amount, a quantitative analysis is performed to identify goodwill impairment. If it is determined that it is not more likely than not that the fair value of the reporting unit is less than its carrying amount, it is unnecessary to perform a quantitative analysis. The Company may elect to bypass the qualitative assessment and proceed directly to performing a quantitative analysis.
During the second quarter of fiscal 2017, there was a sustained decline in the market multiples of publicly traded peer companies. In addition, during the second quarter of fiscal 2017, the Company revised its short-term operating plan. As a result, the Company determined that an interim review of its recoverability of goodwill was necessary. Consequently, during the second quarter of fiscal 2017, the Company recorded a goodwill impairment loss of $142.3 million, substantially all within the Acme reporting unit relating to the November 2015 acquisition of stores from The Great Atlantic and Pacific Tea Company, Inc., due to changes in the estimate of its long-term future financial performance to reflect lower expectations for growth in revenue and earnings than previously estimated. The goodwill impairment loss was based on a quantitative analysis using a combination of a discounted cash flow model (income approach) and a guideline public company comparative analysis (market approach).
Business combination measurements:
In accordance with applicable accounting standards, the Company estimates the fair value of acquired assets and assumed liabilities as of the acquisition date of business combinations. These fair value adjustments are input into the calculation of goodwill related to the excess of the
As of February 29, 2020, the future maturities of long-term debt, excluding finance lease obligations, debt discounts and deferred financing costs, consisted of the following (in millions):
The Company’s term loans (the “Albertsons Term Loans”) had, and the ABL Facility and certain of the outstanding notes and debentures have, restrictive covenants, subject to the right to cure in certain circumstances, calling for the acceleration of payments due in the event of a breach of a covenant or a default in the payment of a specified amount of indebtedness due under certain debt arrangements. There are no restrictions on the Company’s ability to receive distributions from its subsidiaries to fund interest and principal payments due under the ABL Facility, the Albertsons Term Loans and the Company’s senior unsecured notes (the “Senior Unsecured Notes”). Each of the ABL Facility, Albertsons Term Loans and the Senior Unsecured Notes restrict the ability of the Company to pay dividends and distribute property to the Company’s stockholders. As a result, all of the Company’s consolidated net assets are effectively restricted with respect to their ability to be transferred to the Company’s stockholders. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the ABL Facility, the Albertsons Term Loans and the Senior Unsecured Notes each contain customary exceptions for certain dividends and distributions, including the ability to make cumulative distributions under the Albertsons Term Loans and Senior Unsecured Notes of up to the greater of $1.0 billion or 4.0% of the Company’s total assets (which is measured at the time of such distribution) and the ability to make distributions if certain payment conditions are satisfied under the ABL Facility. During fiscal 2017, the Company utilized the foregoing exception in connection with distributions to equity holders (as described in Note 9—Stockholders’ Equity). The Company was in compliance with all such covenants and provisions as of and for the fiscal year ended February 29, 2020.
As of February 25, 2017, the Albertsons Term Loans under the Albertsons term loan agreement totaled $6,013.9 million, excluding debt discounts and deferred financing costs. The Albertsons Term Loans consisted of a Term
B-4
Loan of $3,271.8 million with an interest rate of LIBOR, subject to a 0.75% floor, plus 3.00%, a Term
B-5
Loan of $1,142.1 million with an interest rate of LIBOR, subject to a 0.75% floor, plus 3.25%, and a Term
B-6
Loan of $1,600.0 million with an interest rate of LIBOR, subject to a 0.75% floor, plus 3.25%.
On June 16, 2017, the Company repaid $250.0 million of the existing term loans. In connection with the repayment, the Company wrote off $7.6 million of previously deferred financing costs and original issue discount. The amounts expensed were included as a component of Interest expense, net.
On June 27, 2017, the Company entered into a repricing amendment to the term loan agreement which established 3 new term loan tranches. The new tranches consisted of $3,013.6 million of a new Term
B-4
Loan, $1,139.3 million of a new Term
B-5
Loan and $1,596.0 million of a new Term
B-6
Loan. The (i) new Term
B-4
Loan had a maturity date of August 25, 2021, and had an interest rate of LIBOR, subject to a 0.75% floor, plus 2.75%, (ii) new Term
B-5
Loan had a maturity date of December 21, 2022, and had an interest rate of LIBOR, subject to a 0.75% floor, plus 3.00%, and (iii) new Term
B-6
Loan had a maturity date of June 22, 2023, and had an interest rate of LIBOR, subject to a 0.75% floor, plus 3.00%. The repricing amendment to the term loans was accounted for as a debt modification. In connection with the term loan amendment, the Company expensed $3.9 million of newly incurred financing costs and also expensed $17.8 million of previously deferred financing costs associated with the original term loans. The amounts expensed were included as a component of Interest expense, net.
On November 16, 2018, the Company repaid approximately $976 million in aggregate principal amount of the $2,976.0 million term loan tranche
B-4
(the “2017 Term
B-4
Loan”) along with accrued and unpaid interest on such amount and fees and expenses related to the Term Loan Repayment and the 2018 Term
B-7
Loan (each as defined below), for which the Company used approximately $610 million of cash on hand and approximately $410 million of borrowings under the ABL Facility (such repayment, the “Term Loan Repayment”). Substantially concurrently with the Term Loan Repayment, the Company amended the Company’s Second Amended and Restated Term Loan Agreement, dated as of August 25, 2014 and effective as of January 30, 2015 (as amended, the “Term Loan Agreement”), to establish a new term loan tranche and amend certain provisions of the Term Loan Agreement. The new tranche consisted of $2,000.0 million of new term
B-7
loans (the “2018 Term
B-7
Loan”). The 2018 Term
B-7
Loan, together with cash on hand, was used to repay in full the remaining principal amount outstanding under the 2017 Term
B-4
Loan (the “2018 Term Loan Refinancing”). The 2018 Term Loan Refinancing was accounted for as a debt modification or extinguishment on a lender by lender basis. In connection with the 2018 Term Loan Refinancing and Term Loan Repayment, the Company expensed $4.1 million of newly incurred financing costs and capitalized $3.6 million of new incurred financing costs and $15.0 million of original issue discount. For previously deferred financing costs and original issue discount associated with the 2017 Term
B-4
Loan, the Company expensed $12.9 million of financing costs and $8.6 million of original issue discount. The amounts expensed were included as a component of Interest expense, net. The 2018 Term
B-7
Loan had a maturity date of November 17, 2025. The 2018 Term
B-7
Loan amortized, on a quarterly basis, at a rate of 1.0% per annum of the original principal amount of the 2018 Term
B-7
Loan (which payments will be reduced as a result of the application of prepayments in accordance with the terms therewith). The 2018 Term
B-7
Loan bore interest, at the borrower’s option, at a rate per annum equal to either (a) the base rate plus 2.00% or (b) LIBOR, subject to a 0.75% floor, plus 3.0%.
On August 15, 2019, the Company repaid $1,570.6 million of aggregate principal amount outstanding under its term loan facilities, along with accrued and unpaid interest and fees and expenses, for which the Company used approximately $864 million of cash on hand and proceeds from the issuance of the 2028 Notes (as defined below) (such repayment, the
“2019-1
Term Loan Repayment”). Contemporaneously with the
2019-1
Term Loan Repayment, the Company refinanced the remaining amounts outstanding with new term loan tranches. The new tranches consisted of $3,100.0 million in aggregate principal, of which $1,500.0 million had a maturity date of November 17, 2025 and $1,600.0 million had a maturity date of August 17, 2026. For newly incurred financing costs and original issue discount, the Company expensed $4.2 million of financing costs and recorded $4.4 million of financing costs and $15.5 million of original issue discount as a reduction of the principal amount. For previously deferred financing costs and original issue discount, the Company expensed $15.5 million of financing costs and $13.3 million of original issue discount. The amounts expensed were included as a component of Interest expense, net.
The new loans amortized, on a quarterly basis, at a rate of 1.0% per annum of the original principal amount (which payments would have been reduced as a result of the application of prepayments in accordance with the terms therewith). The new loans bore interest, at the borrower’s option, at a rate per annum equal to either (a) the base rate plus 1.75% or (b) LIBOR, subject to a 0.75% floor, plus 2.75%.
On November 22, 2019, the Company repaid $742.5 million of aggregate principal amount outstanding under its term loan facility, along with accrued and unpaid interest and fees and expenses, with the proceeds from the issuance of the 2027 Notes (as defined below) (such repayment, the
“2019-2
Term Loan Repayment”). In connection with the
2019-2
Term Loan Repayment, the Company expensed $5.1 million of previously deferred financing costs and $14.3 million of original issue discount. The amounts expensed were included as a component of Interest expense, net.
On February 5, 2020, the Company repaid $2,349.8 million of aggregate principal amount outstanding under its term loan facilities, which represented the entire outstanding term loan balance, along with accrued and unpaid interest and fees and expenses, with cash on hand and the proceeds from the issuance of the New Notes (as defined below) (such repayment, the
“2019-3
Term Loan Repayment”). In connection with the
2019-3
Term
Loan Repayment, the Company expensed $15.2 million of previously deferred financing costs and $29.9 million of original issue discount. The amounts expensed, along with related fees, were included as a component of Loss (gain) on debt extinguishment.
The Albertsons Term Loan facilities were guaranteed by Albertsons’ existing and future direct and indirect wholly owned domestic subsidiaries that were not borrowers, subject to certain exceptions. The Albertsons Term Loan facilities were secured by, subject to certain exceptions, (i) a first-priority lien on substantially all of the assets of the borrowers and guarantors (other than accounts receivable, inventory and related assets of the proceeds thereof (the “Albertsons ABL Priority Collateral”)) and (ii) a second-priority lien on substantially all of the Albertsons ABL Priority Collateral.
Asset-Based Loan Facility
On November 16, 2018, the Company’s existing ABL Facility, which provides for a $4,000.0 million senior secured revolving credit facility, was amended and restated in connection with the 2018 Term Loan Refinancing to extend the maturity date of the facility to November 16, 2023. The ABL Facility has an interest rate of LIBOR plus a margin ranging from 1.25% to 1.75% and also provides for a letters of credit (“LOC”)
sub-facility
of $1,975.0 million. In connection with the ABL Facility amendment, the Company capitalized $13.5 million of financing costs.
During fiscal 2018, borrowings of $610.0 million under the ABL Facility were used in connection with the Term Loan Repayment and the Safeway Notes Repurchase (as defined below). The $610.0 million was repaid on December 2, 2018.
As of February 29, 2020 and February 23, 2019, there were 0 outstanding borrowings and the ABL LOC
sub-facility
had $454.5 million and $520.8 million letters of credit outstanding, respectively.
On March 12, 2020, the Company provided notice to the lenders to borrow $2.0 billion under the ABL Facility (the “ABL Borrowing”), so that a total of $2.0 billion (excluding $454.5 million in letters of credit) was outstanding immediately following the ABL Borrowing. The interest rate at the time of the ABL Borrowing under the ABL Facility was approximately 2.0% (which represents
30-day
LIBOR plus 125 basis points). The Company increased its borrowings under the ABL Facility as a precautionary measure in order to increase its cash position and preserve financial flexibility in light of current uncertainty in the global markets resulting from the coronavirus
(COVID-19)
pandemic. In accordance with the terms of the ABL Facility, the proceeds from the ABL Borrowing may in the future be used for working capital, general corporate or other purposes permitted by the ABL Facility.
The ABL Facility is guaranteed by the Company’s existing and future direct and indirect wholly owned domestic subsidiaries that are not borrowers, subject to certain exceptions. The ABL Facility is secured by, subject to certain exceptions, (i) a first-priority lien on substantially all of the ABL Facility priority collateral and (ii) a second-priority lien on substantially all other assets (other than real property). Following the
2019-3
Term Loan Repayment, the ABL Facility has a first-priority lien on substantially all other assets (other than real property). The ABL Facility contains no financial covenant unless and until (a) excess availability is less than (i) 10.0% of the lesser of the aggregate commitments and the then-current borrowing base at any time or is (ii) $250.0 million at any time or (b) an event of default is continuing. If any of such events occur, the Company must maintain a fixed charge coverage ratio of 1.0 to 1.0 from the date such triggering event occurs until such event of default is cured or waived and/or the 30th day that all such triggers under clause (a) no longer exist.
On May 31, 2016, Albertsons Companies, LLC and substantially all of its subsidiaries completed the issuance of $1,250.0 million in aggregate principal amount of 6.625% Senior Unsecured Notes (the “2024
Notes”)
will
mature on June 15, 2024. Interest on the 2024 Notes is payable semi-annually in arrears on June 15 and December 15 of each year, commencing on December 15, 2016. The 2024 Notes are also fully and unconditionally guaranteed, jointly and severally, by each of the subsidiaries that are additional issuers under the indenture governing such notes.
On August 9, 2016, Albertsons Companies, LLC and substantially all of its subsidiaries completed the issuance of $1,250.0 million in aggregate principal amount of 5.750% Senior Unsecured Notes (the “2025 Notes”) which will mature on March 15, 2025. Interest on the 2025 Notes is payable semi-annually in arrears on March 15 and September 15 of each year, commencing on March 15, 2017. The 2025 Notes are also fully and unconditionally guaranteed, jointly and severally, by each of the subsidiaries that are additional issuers under the indenture governing such notes.
On February 5, 2019, the Company and substantially all of its subsidiaries completed the issuance of $600.0 million in aggregate principal amount of 7.5% Senior Unsecured Notes which will mature on March 15, 2026 (the “2026 Notes”). Interest on the 2026 Notes is payable semi-annually in arrears on March 15 and September 15 of each year, commencing on September 15, 2019. The 2026 Notes have not been and will not be registered with the SEC. The 2026 Notes are also fully and unconditionally guaranteed, jointly and severally, by substantially all of our subsidiaries that are not issuers under the indenture governing such notes. A portion of the proceeds from the 2026 Notes was used to fully redeem the Safeway 5.00% Senior Notes due in 2019.
On August 15, 2019, the Company and substantially all of its subsidiaries completed the issuance of $750.0 million in aggregate principal amount of 5.875% Senior Unsecured Notes which will mature on February 15, 2028 (the “2028 Notes”). Interest on the 2028 Notes is payable semi-annually in arrears on February 15 and August 15 of each year, commencing on February 15, 2020. The 2028 Notes have not been and will not be registered with the SEC. The 2028 Notes are also fully and unconditionally guaranteed, jointly and severally, by substantially all of the Company’s subsidiaries that are not issuers under the indenture governing such notes. Proceeds from the 2028 Notes were used to partially fund the
2019-1
Term Loan Repayment.
On November 22, 2019, the Company and substantially all of its subsidiaries completed the issuance of $750.0 million in aggregate principal amount of 4.625% Senior Unsecured Notes which will mature on January 15, 2027 (the “2027 Notes”). Interest on the 2027 Notes is payable semi-annually in arrears on January 15 and July 15 of each year, commencing on July 15, 2020. The 2027 Notes have not been and will not be registered with the SEC. The 2027 Notes are also fully and unconditionally guaranteed, jointly and severally, by substantially all of the Company’s subsidiaries that are not issuers under the indenture governing such notes. Proceeds from the 2027 Notes were used to fund the
2019-2
Term Loan Repayment.
On February 5, 2020, the Company completed the issuance of $750.0 million in aggregate principal amount of new 3.50% senior notes due February 15, 2023 (the “2023 Notes”), $600.0 million in aggregate principal amount of additional 2027 Notes (the “Additional 2027 Notes”) and $1,000.0 million in aggregate principal amount of new 4.875% senior notes due February 15, 2030 (the “2030 Notes” and together with the 2023 Notes and Additional 2027 Notes, the “New Notes”). The net proceeds received from the issuance of the New Notes, together with approximately $18 million of cash on hand, were used to (i) to fund the
2019-3
Term Loan Repayment and (ii) pay fees and expenses related to the
2019-3
Term Loan Repayment and the issuance of the New Notes.
The Additional 2027 Notes were issued as “additional securities” under the indenture governing the outstanding 2027 Notes (the “Existing 2027 Notes”). The Additional 2027 Notes are expected to be treated as a single class with the Existing 2027 Notes for all purposes and have the same terms as those of the Existing 2027 Notes.
Interest on the 2023 Notes and 2030 Notes is payable semi-annually in arrears on February 15 and August 15 of each year, commencing on August 15, 2020.
The New Notes have not been and will not be registered with the SEC. The New Notes are also fully and unconditionally guaranteed, jointly and severally, by substantially all of the Company’s subsidiaries that are not issuers under the indenture governing such notes.
The Company, an issuer and direct or indirect parent of each of the other issuers of the 2023 Notes, the 2024 Notes, the 2025 Notes, the 2026 Notes, the 2027 Notes (and Additional 2027 Notes), the 2028 Notes and the 2030 Notes, has no independent assets or operations. All of the direct or indirect subsidiaries of the Company, other than subsidiaries that are issuers, or guarantors, as applicable, of the 2023 Notes, the 2024 Notes, the 2025 Notes, the 2026 Notes, the 2027 Notes (and Additional 2027 Notes), the 2028 Notes and the 2030 Notes are minor, individually and in the aggregate.
During fiscal 2018, Safeway repurchased its 7.45% Senior Debentures due 2027 and 7.25% Debentures due 2031 with a par value of $333.7 million and a book value of $322.4 million for $333.7 million plus accrued interest of $7.7 million (the “Safeway Notes Repurchase”). The Company recognized a loss on debt extinguishment related to the Safeway Notes Repurchase of $11.3 million.
On February 6, 2019, a portion of the net proceeds from the issuance of the 2026 Notes were used to fully redeem $268.6 million of principal of Safeway 5.00% Senior Notes due 2019, and to pay an associated make-whole premium of $3.1 million and accrued interest of $6.4 million (the “2019 Redemption”). The Company recognized a loss on debt extinguishment related to the 2019 Redemption of $3.1 million.
On May 24, 2019, the Company completed a cash tender offer and early redemption of Safeway notes with a par value of $34.1 million and a book value of $33.3 million for $32.6 million, plus accrued and unpaid interest of $0.7 million (the “Safeway Tender”). Including related fees, the Company recognized a loss on debt extinguishment related to the Safeway Tender of $0.5 million.
During fiscal 2017, the Company repurchased NALP Notes with a par value of $160.0 million and a book value of $140.2 million for $135.5 million plus accrued interest of $3.7 million (the “2017 NALP Notes Repurchase”). In connection with the 2017 NALP Notes Repurchase, the Company recorded a gain on debt extinguishment of $4.7 million.
During fiscal 2018, the Company repurchased NALP Notes with a par value of $108.4 million and a book value of $96.4 million for $90.7 million plus accrued interest of $1.2 million (the “2018 NALP Notes Repurchase”). In connection with the 2018 NALP Notes Repurchase, the Company recorded a gain on debt extinguishment of $5.7 million.
On May 24, 2019, the Company completed a cash tender offer and early redemption of NALP Notes with a par value of $402.9 million and a book value of $363.7 million for $382.7 million, plus accrued and unpaid interest of $8.2 million (the “NALP Notes Tender”). Including related fees, the Company recognized a loss on debt extinguishment related to the NALP Notes Tender of $19.1 million.
Also during fiscal 2019, the Company repurchased NALP Notes on the open market with an aggregate par value of $553.9 million and a book value of $502.0 million for $547.5 million plus accrued and unpaid interest of $11.3 million (the “NALP Notes Repurchase”). Including related fees, the Company recognized a loss on debt extinguishment related to the NALP Notes Repurchase of $46.2 million.
On June 25, 2018, in connection with the Merger Agreement, the Company issued $750.0 million in aggregate principal amount of floating rate senior secured notes (the “Floating Rate Notes”) at an issue price of
Future minimum lease payments for operating and finance lease obligations as of February 29, 2020 consisted of the following (in millions):
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Total future minimum obligations | | | | | | | | |
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Present value of net future minimum lease obligations | | | | | | | | |
| | | | ) | | | | ) |
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| | $ | | | | $ | | |
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The Company subleases certain property to third parties. Future minimum tenant operating lease payments
remaining
under these
non-cancelable
operating leases as of February 29, 2020 was $340.1 million.
During the second quarter of fiscal 2019, the Company, through 3 separate transactions, completed the sale and leaseback of 53 store properties and 1 distribution center for an aggregate purchase price, net of closing costs, of $931.3 million. In connection with the sale leaseback transactions, the Company entered into lease agreements for each of the properties for initial terms ranging from 15 to 20 years. The aggregate initial annual rent payment for the properties is approximately $53 million and includes 1.50% to 1.75% annual rent increases over the initial lease terms. All of the properties qualified for sale leaseback and operating lease accounting, and the Company recorded total gains of $463.6 million, which is included as a component of (Gain) loss on property dispositions and impairment losses, net. The Company also recorded operating lease
right-of-use assets
and corresponding operating lease liabilities of $602.5 million.
Future minimum lease payments for operating and capital lease obligations as of February 23, 2019 under the previous lease accounting standard consisted of the following (in millions):
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Total future minimum obligations | | $ | | | | | | |
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Present value of net future minimum lease obligations | | | | | | | | |
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Rent expense and tenant rental income under operating leases under the previous lease accounting standard consisted of the following (in millions):
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| | $ | | | | $ | | |
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Total rent expense, net of tenant rental income | | $ | | | | $ | | |
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During fiscal 2018, the Company, through 3 separate transactions, completed the sale and leaseback of 7 of the Company’s distribution centers for an aggregate purchase price, net of closing costs, of approximately $950 million. In connection with the sale leasebacks, the Company entered into lease agreements for each of the properties for initial terms of 15 to 20 years. The aggregate initial annual rent payment for the properties was approximately $55 million and includes 1.50% to 1.75% annual rent increases over the initial lease terms. The Company qualified for sale leaseback and operating lease accounting on all of the distribution centers, and the Company recorded total deferred gains of $362.5 million. Under the previous lease accounting standard, the deferred gains were being amortized over the respective lease periods and, upon adoption of ASC Topic 842 on February 24, 2019, the related unamortized deferred gains were recognized as a transitional adjustment to retained earnings.
During fiscal 2017, the Company sold 94 of the Company’s store properties for an aggregate purchase price, net of closing costs, of approximately $962 million. In connection with the sale and leaseback, the Company entered into lease agreements for each of the properties for initial terms of 20 years with varying multiple five-year renewal options. The aggregate initial annual rent payments for the 94 properties was approximately $65 million, with scheduled rent increases occurring generally every one or five years over the initial
20-year
term. The Company qualified for sale leaseback and operating lease accounting on 80 of the store properties and recorded total deferred gains of $360.1 million. The remaining 14 stores did not qualify for sale leaseback accounting primarily due to continuing involvement with adjacent properties that had not been legally subdivided from the store properties. Subsequently, 12 of the 14 properties qualified for sale leaseback and operating lease accounting as the properties had been legally subdivided. Under the previous lease accounting standard, the deferred gains were being amortized over the respective lease periods and, upon adoption of ASC Topic 842 on February 24, 2019, the related unamortized deferred gains were recognized as a transitional adjustment to retained earnings.
NOTE 9—STOCKHOLDERS’ EQUITY
Equity-Based Compensation
The Company maintains the Albertsons Companies, Inc. Phantom Unit Plan (formerly, the AB Acquisition LLC Phantom Unit Plan) (the “Phantom Unit Plan”), an equity-based incentive plan, which provides for grants of phantom units (“Phantom Units”) to certain employees, directors and consultants. Prior to the Reorganization Transactions, the Phantom Unit Plan was maintained by its former parent, AB Acquisition, and each Phantom Unit provided the participant with a contractual right to receive, upon vesting, 1 incentive unit in AB Acquisition. Subsequent to the Reorganization Transactions, each Phantom Unit now provides the participant with a contractual right to receive, upon vesting, 1 management incentive unit in each of the Company’s parents, Albertsons Investor and KIM ACI, that collectively own all of the outstanding shares of the Company. The Phantom Units vest over a service period, or upon a combination of both a service period and achievement of certain performance-based thresholds. The fair value of the Phantom Units is determined using an option pricing model, adjusted for lack of marketability and using an expected term or time to liquidity based on judgments made by management.
During fiscal 2019, the Company granted 0.6 million Phantom Units to its employees and directors, consisting of 0.4 million new awards issued and granted in fiscal 2019 and 0.2 million previously issued awards of performance-based Phantom Units that were deemed granted upon the establishment of the fiscal 2019 performance target and that would vest upon both the achievement of such performance target and continued service through the last day of fiscal 2019. The 0.4 million new awards issued and granted in fiscal 2019 include 0.3 million Phantom Units that have solely time-based vesting and 0.1 million performance-based Phantom Units that were deemed granted upon the establishment of the fiscal 2019 annual performance target and that would vest upon both the achievement of such performance target and continued service through the last day of fiscal 2019. The 0.6 million Phantom Units deemed granted have an aggregate grant date value of $20.0 million.
Equity-based compensation expense recognized by the Company related to Phantom Units was $28.9 million, $47.7 million and $45.9 million in fiscal 2019, fiscal 2018 and fiscal 2017, respectively. The Company recorded an income tax benefit related to Phantom Units of $7.5 million, $12.9 million and $15.6 million related to equity-based compensation in fiscal 2019, fiscal 2018 and fiscal 2017, respectively.
As of February 29, 2020, the Company had $30.2 million of unrecognized compensation cost related to 0.9 million unvested Phantom Units. That cost is expected to be recognized over a weighted average period of 2.0 years. The aggregate fair value of Phantom Units that vested in fiscal 2019 was $29.3 million.
On April 25, 2019, upon the commencement of employment, the Company’s President and Chief Executive Officer was granted direct equity interests in each of the Company’s parents, Albertsons Investor and KIM ACI. These equity interests generally vest over five years, with 50% based solely on a service period and 50% upon a service period and achievement of certain performance-based thresholds. The fair value of the equity interests is determined using an option pricing model, adjusted for lack of marketability and using an expected term or time to liquidity based on judgments made by management. The fair value of the equity interests deemed granted in fiscal 2019 was approximately $10.8 million, which excludes approximately 40% of the equity units that vest based upon the achievement of future fiscal year annual performance targets that will only be deemed granted for accounting purposes upon the establishment of such respective future fiscal year annual performance targets. Equity-based compensation expense recognized by the Company related to these equity interests was $3.9 million for fiscal 2019. As of February 29, 2020, there was $6.9 million of unrecognized costs related to the equity interests deemed granted. That cost is expected to be recognized over a weighted average period of 4.0 years.
During fiscal 2018, the Company repurchased 3,671,621 shares of common stock allocable to certain current and former members of management (the “management holders”) for $25.8 million in cash. The shares are classified as treasury stock on the Consolidated Balance Sheet. The shares repurchased represented a portion of the shares allocable to management. Proceeds from the repurchase were used by the management holders to repay outstanding loans of the management holders with a third-party financial institution. As there is no current active market for shares of the Company’s common stock, the shares were repurchased at a negotiated price between the Company and the management holders.
On June 30, 2017, the Company’s predecessor, Albertsons Companies, LLC, made a cash distribution of $250.0 million to its equityholders, which resulted in a modification of certain vested awards. As a result of the modification, equity-based compensation expense recognized for fiscal 2017 includes $2.4 million of additional expense.
The Tax Act, enacted in December 2017, resulted in significant changes to U.S. income tax and related laws. The Company is impacted by a number of aspects of the Tax Act, most notably the reduction in the top U.S. corporate income tax rate from 35% to 21%, a
one-time
transition tax on the accumulated unremitted foreign earnings and profits of the Company’s foreign subsidiaries and 100% expensing of certain qualified property acquired and placed in service after September 27, 2017.
The SEC staff issued Staff Accounting Bulletin No. 118 (“SAB 118”), which allowed companies to record a provisional amount during a measurement period not to extend beyond one year from the date of enactment, which ended in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2018. In fiscal 2017, the Company recorded a provisional
non-cash
tax benefit of $430.4 million. In fiscal 2018, the Company recorded $56.9 million of additional tax benefit, primarily to account for refinement of transition tax and the remeasurement of deferred taxes. The Company completed its analysis of the Tax Act in fiscal 2018 based on currently available technical guidance. The Company will continue to assess further guidance issued by the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) and record the impact of such guidance, if any, in the year issued.
In connection with the Reorganization Transactions, the Company recorded deferred tax liabilities in excess of deferred tax assets of $46.7 million in fiscal 2017 for the limited liability companies held by AB Acquisition and taxed previously to the members.
Also in connection with the Reorganization Transactions, the Company reorganized its Subchapter C corporation subsidiaries which allows the Company to use deferred tax assets, which previously had offsetting valuation allowance, against future taxable income of certain other Subchapter C subsidiaries that have a history of taxable income and are projected to continue to have future taxable income. The Company reassessed its valuation allowance based on available negative and positive evidence to estimate if sufficient taxable income will be generated to use existing deferred tax assets. On the basis of this evaluation, the Company released a substantial portion of its valuation allowance against its net deferred tax assets, resulting in a $218.0 million
non-cash
tax benefit in fiscal 2017. The Company continues to maintain a valuation allowance against net deferred tax assets in jurisdictions where it is not more likely than not to be realized.
Prior to the Reorganization Transactions, taxes on income from limited liability companies held by AB Acquisition were payable by the members in accordance with their respective ownership percentages, resulting in tax expense of $83.1 million in fiscal 2017 for losses benefited by the members.
Deferred income taxes reflect the net tax effects of temporary differences between the bases of assets and liabilities for financial reporting and income tax purposes. The Company’s deferred tax assets and liabilities consisted of the following (in millions):
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Compensation and benefits | | $ | | | | $ | | |
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Pension & postretirement benefits | | | | | | | | |
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Gross deferred tax assets | | | | | | | | |
Less: valuation allowance | | | | ) | | | | ) |
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Total deferred tax assets | | | | | | | | |
Deferred tax liabilities: | | | | | | | | |
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Depreciation and amortization | | | | | | | | |
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Total deferred tax liabilities | | | | | | | | |
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Net deferred tax liability | | $ | | ) | | $ | | ) |
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Noncurrent deferred tax asset | | $ | | | | $ | | |
Noncurrent deferred tax liability | | | | ) | | | | ) |
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| | $ | | ) | | $ | | ) |
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The Company assesses the available positive and negative evidence to estimate if sufficient future taxable income will be generated to use the existing deferred tax assets. On the basis of this evaluation, as of February 29, 2020, a valuation allowance of $135.1 million has been recorded for the portion of the deferred tax asset that is not more likely than not to be realized, consisting primarily of carryovers in jurisdictions where the Company has minimal presence or does not expect to have future taxable income. The Company will continue to evaluate the need to adjust the valuation allowance. The amount of the deferred tax asset considered realizable, however, could be adjusted depending on the Company’s performance in certain subsidiaries or jurisdictions.
The Company currently has federal and state NOL carryforwards of $32.3 million and $1,696.8 million, respectively, which will begin to expire in 2020 and continue through the fiscal year ending February 2040. As of February 29, 2020, the Company had $41.7 million of state credit carryforwards, the majority of which will expire in 2023. The Company had 0 federal credit carryforwards as of February 29, 2020.
Changes in the Company’s unrecognized tax benefits consisted of the following (in millions):
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| | $ | | | | $ | | | | $ | | |
Increase related to tax positions taken in the current year | | | | | | | | | | | | |
Increase related to tax positions taken in prior years | | | | | | | | | | | | |
Decrease related to tax position taken in prior years | | | | ) | | | | ) | | | | ) |
Decrease related to settlements with taxing authorities | | | | ) | | | | ) | | | | ) |
Decrease related to lapse of statute of limitations | | | | | | | | ) | | | | ) |
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| | $ | | | | $ | | | | $ | | |
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Included in the balance of unrecognized tax benefits as of February 29, 2020, February 23, 2019 and February 24, 2018 are tax positions of $268.2 million, $267.7 million and $249.0 million, respectively, which would reduce the Company’s effective tax rate if recognized in future periods. Of the $268.2 million that could impact tax expense, the Company has recorded $7.9 million of indemnification assets that would offset any future recognition. As of February 29, 2020, the Company is no longer subject to federal income tax examinations for the fiscal years prior to 2012 and in most states, is no longer subject to state income tax examinations for fiscal years before 2007. The Company recognizes accrued interest and penalties related to unrecognized tax benefits as a component of income tax expense. The Company recognized expense related to interest and penalties, net of settlement adjustments, of $9.6 million, $1.8 million and $4.6 million for fiscal 2019, fiscal 2018 and fiscal 2017, respectively.
In fiscal 2017, the Company adopted the IRS safe harbor rule for taxpayers operating retail establishments for determining whether expenditures paid or incurred to remodel or refresh a qualified building are deductible. As a result of adopting this safe harbor, the Company reduced $70.1 million of uncertain tax benefit in fiscal 2017, and there was no impact on the tax provision due to an offsetting deferred adjustment. The Company believes it is reasonably possible that the reserve for uncertain tax positions may be reduced by approximately $137.6 million in the next 12 months due to ongoing tax examinations and expiration of statutes of limitations.
NOTE 11—EMPLOYEE BENEFIT PLANS AND COLLECTIVE BARGAINING AGREEMENTS
The Company sponsors a defined benefit pension plan (the “Safeway Plan”) for substantially all of its employees under the Safeway banners not participating in multiemployer pension plans. Effective April 1, 2015, the Company implemented a soft freeze of the Safeway Plan. A soft freeze means that all existing employees as of March 31, 2015 then participating remained in the Safeway Plan, but any new
non-union
employees hired after that date would instead earn retirement benefits under an enhanced 401(k) program. On December 30, 2018, the Company implemented a hard freeze of
non-union
benefits of employees of the Safeway Plan and all future benefit accruals for
non-union
employees ceased as of that date. Instead,
non-union
participants earned retirement benefits under the Company’s 401(k) plans. The Safeway Plan continues to remain fully open to union employees and past service benefits, including future interest credits, for
non-union
employees continue to be accrued under the Safeway Plan. The hard freeze resulted in an immaterial curtailment charge in fiscal 2018.
The Company sponsors a defined benefit pension plan (the “Shaw’s Plan”) covering union employees under the Shaw’s banner. Under the United banner, the Company sponsors a frozen plan (the “United Plan”) covering certain United employees and an unfunded Retirement Restoration Plan that provides death benefits and supplemental income payments for certain United senior executives after retirement.
The weighted average actuarial assumptions used to determine
year-end
projected benefit obligations for pension plans were as follows:
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Rate of compensation increase | | | | % | | | | % |
The weighted average actuarial assumptions used to determine net periodic benefit costs for pension plans were as follows:
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| | | | % | | | | % |
Expected return on plan assets: | | | | % | | | | % |
On February 29, 2020, the Company adopted the latest Society of Actuaries’ mortality table for private pension plans for calculating the Company’s 2019
year-end
benefit obligations. This table assumes a slight improvement in life expectancy in the future compared to the
RP-2014
mortality table used for calculating the Company’s 2018
year-end
benefit obligations and 2019 expense. Similarly, on February 29, 2020, the Company adopted the new
MP-2019
mortality improvement projection scale which assumes an improvement in life expectancy at a marginally slower rate than the
MP-2018
projection scale. The change in mortality assumption and future mortality improvement resulted in an immaterial decrease in the Company’s current year benefit obligations and future expenses.
The Company has adopted and implemented an investment policy for the defined benefit pension plans that incorporates a strategic long-term asset allocation mix designed to meet the Company’s long-term pension requirements. This asset allocation policy is reviewed annually and, on a regular basis, actual allocations are rebalanced to the prevailing targets. The investment policy also emphasizes the following key objectives: (1) maintaining a diversified portfolio among asset classes and investment styles; (2) maintaining an acceptable level of risk in pursuit of long-term economic benefit; (3) maximizing the opportunity for value-added returns from active investment management while establishing investment guidelines and monitoring procedures for each investment manager to ensure the characteristics of the portfolio are consistent with the original investment mandate; and (4) maintaining adequate controls over administrative costs.
The following table summarizes actual allocations for the Safeway Plan which had approximately $1,445 million in plan assets as of February 29, 2020:
In fiscal 2019, fiscal 2018 and fiscal 2017, the Company contributed $11.0 million, $199.3 million and $21.9 million, respectively, to its pension and post-retirement plans. The Company’s funding policy for the defined benefit pension plan is to contribute the minimum contribution required under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as amended, and other applicable laws as determined by the Company’s external actuarial consultant. At the Company’s discretion, additional funds may be contributed to the defined benefit pension plans. The Company’s fiscal 2018 contributions include $150.0 million of additional discretionary contributions to reduce the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (“PBGC”) premium costs and improve the overall funded status of the plans. The Company expects to contribute $69.5 million to its pension and post-retirement plans in fiscal 2020. The Company will recognize contributions in accordance with applicable regulations, with consideration given to recognition for the earliest plan year permitted.
Estimated Future Benefit Payments
The following benefit payments, which reflect expected future service as appropriate, are expected to be paid (in millions):
Multiemployer Pension Plans
The Company contributes to various multiemployer pension plans. These multiemployer plans generally provide retirement benefits to participants based on their service to contributing employers. The benefits are paid from assets held in trust for that purpose. Plan trustees typically are responsible for determining the level of benefits to be provided to participants, the investment of the assets and plan administration. Expense is recognized in connection with these plans as contributions are funded.
The risks of participating in these multiemployer plans are different from the risks associated with single-employer plans in the following respects:
| • | Assets contributed to the multiemployer plan by one employer may be used to provide benefits to employees of other participating employers. |
| • | If a participating employer stops contributing to the plan, the unfunded obligations of the plan may be borne by the remaining participating employers. |
| • | With respect to some multiemployer plans, if the Company chooses to stop participating, or makes market exits or store closures or otherwise has participation in the plan fall below certain levels, the Company may be required to pay the plan an amount based on the underfunded status of the plan, referred to as withdrawal liability. The Company records the actuarially determined liability at an undiscounted amount. |
The Company’s participation in these plans is outlined in the table below. The
EIN-Pension
Plan Number column provides the Employer Identification Number (“EIN”) and the three-digit plan number, if applicable. Unless otherwise noted, the most recent Pension Protection Act of 2006 (“PPA”) zone status available for fiscal 2019 and fiscal 2018 is for the plan’s year ending at December 31, 2018 and December 31, 2017, respectively. The zone status is based on information received from the plans and is certified by each plan’s actuary. The FIP/RP Status Pending/Implemented column indicates plans for which a funding improvement plan (“FIP”) or a rehabilitation plan (“RP”) is either pending or has been implemented by the plan trustees.
(2) | Under the PPA, a surcharge may be imposed when employers make contributions under a collective bargaining agreement that is not in compliance with a rehabilitation plan. As of February 29, 2020, the collective bargaining agreements under which the Company was making contributions were in compliance with rehabilitation plans adopted by the applicable pension fund. |
(3) | These columns represent the number of most significant collective bargaining agreements aggregated by common expiration dates for each of the Company’s pension funds listed above. |
(4) | The information for this fund was obtained from the Form 5500 filed for the plan’s year-end at March 31, 2019 and March 31, 2018. |
(5) | The information for this fund was obtained from the Form 5500 filed for the plan’s year-end at June 30, 2018 and June 30, 2017. |
(6) | The information for this fund was obtained from the Form 5500 filed for the plan’s year-end at September 30, 2018 and September 30, 2017. |
(7) | The information for this fund was obtained from the Form 5500 filed for the plan’s year-end at August 31, 2018 and August 31, 2017. |
The Company is the second largest contributing employer to the Food Employers Labor Relations Association and United Food and Commercial Workers Pension Fund (“FELRA”) which is currently projected by FELRA to become insolvent in the first quarter of 2021, and to the
Mid-Atlantic
UFCW and Participating Pension Fund (“MAP”). The Company continues to fund all of its required contributions to FELRA and MAP.
On March 5, 2020, the Company agreed with the two applicable local unions to new collective bargaining agreements pursuant to which the Company contributes to FELRA and MAP. In connection with these agreements, to address the pending insolvency of FELRA, the Company and the two local unions, along with the largest contributing employer, agreed to combine MAP into FELRA (“Combined Plan”). Upon the formation of the Combined Plan, the Combined Plan will be frozen and the Company will be required to annually pay $23.2 million to the Combined Plan for the next 25 years. After making all 25 years of payments, the Company will receive a release of all withdrawal liability and mass withdrawal liability from FELRA, MAP, the Combined Plan and the PBGC. This payment will replace the Company’s current annual contribution to both MAP and FELRA, which was a combined $26.2 million in fiscal 2019. In addition to the $23.2 million annual payment, the Company will begin to contribute to a new multiemployer pension plan. This new multiemployer plan will be limited to providing benefits to participants in MAP and FELRA in excess of the benefits the PBGC insures under law.
Furthermore, upon formation of the Combined Plan, the Company will establish and contribute to a new variable defined benefit plan that will provide benefits to participants for future services. These agreements are subject to approval by the PBGC and the Company is in discussions with the local unions, the largest contributing employer, and the PBGC with respect to these other plans and the Combined Plan. It is possible some provisions of our agreements with local unions may change as a result of negotiations with the PBGC. The Company expects to reach final agreements on formation of the Combined Plan by no later than December 31, 2020. Under the terms of the new collective bargaining agreements, the Company will continue to contribute to FELRA and MAP under the same terms of the previous collective bargaining agreements until approval by the PBGC and formation of the Combined Plan. The Company is currently evaluating the effect of these new agreements to its consolidated financial statements and preliminarily expects to record a material increase to its pension-related liabilities with a corresponding
non-cash
charge to pension expense upon approval by the PBGC.
As a part of the Safeway acquisition, the Company assumed withdrawal liabilities related to Safeway’s 2013 closure of its Dominick’s division. The Company recorded a $221.8 million multiemployer pension withdrawal liability related to Safeway’s withdrawal from these plans. One of the plans, the UFCW & Employers Midwest Pension Fund (the “Midwest Plan”), had asserted the Company may be liable for mass withdrawal liability, if the plan has a mass withdrawal, in addition to the liability the Midwest Plan already had assessed. The Company disputed that the Midwest Plan would have the right to assess mass withdrawal liability on the Company and the Company also disputed in arbitration the amount of the withdrawal liability the Midwest Plan had assessed. On
INFORMATION NOT REQUIRED IN PROSPECTUS
ITEM 13. OTHER EXPENSES OF ISSUANCE AND DISTRIBUTION.
The following table sets forth all expenses to be paid by us, other than underwriting discounts and commissions, upon completion of this offering. All amounts shown are estimates except for the SEC registration fee and the FINRA filing fee.
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| | $ | | |
| | $ | | |
| | $ | | |
Printing and engraving expenses | | $ | | |
| | $ | | |
Accounting fees and expenses | | $ | | |
Blue sky fees and expenses | | $ | | |
Transfer agent and registrar fees | | $ | | |
| | $ | | |
| | $ | | |
ITEM 14. INDEMNIFICATION OF DIRECTORS AND OFFICERS.
Section 145 of the DGCL authorizes a court to award, or a corporation’s board of directors to grant, indemnity to directors and officers under certain circumstances and subject to certain limitations. The terms of Section 145 of the DGCL are sufficiently broad to permit indemnification under certain circumstances for liabilities, including reimbursement of expenses incurred, arising under the Securities Act.
As permitted by the DGCL, ACI’s certificate of incorporation contains provisions that eliminate the personal liability of its directors for monetary damages for any breach of fiduciary duties as a director.
As permitted by the DGCL, ACI’s bylaws provide that:
| • | ACI is required to indemnify its directors and executive officers to the fullest extent permitted by the DGCL, subject to very limited exceptions; |
| • | ACI may indemnify its other employees and agents as set forth in the DGCL; |
| • | ACI is required to advance expenses, as incurred, to its directors and executive officers in connection with a legal proceeding to the fullest extent permitted by the DGCL, subject to very limited exceptions; and |
| • | the rights conferred in the bylaws are not exclusive. |
ACI has entered, and intends to continue to enter, into separate indemnification agreements with its directors and executive officers to provide these directors and executive officers additional contractual assurances regarding the scope of the indemnification set forth in ACI’s certificate of incorporation and bylaws and to provide additional procedural protections. At present, there is no pending litigation or proceeding involving a director or executive officer of ACI regarding which indemnification is sought. The indemnification provisions in ACI’s certificate of incorporation, bylaws and the indemnification agreements entered into or to be entered into between ACI and each of its directors and executive officers may be sufficiently broad to permit indemnification of ACI’s directors and executive officers for liabilities arising under the Securities Act. ACI currently carries liability insurance for its directors and officers.
ITEM 15. RECENT SALES OF UNREGISTERED SECURITIES.
Set forth below is information regarding all unregistered securities sold, issued or granted by us within the past three years.
On July 19, 2017, August 3, 2017, October 23, 2017, January 11, 2018, February 28, 2018, March 1, 2018, May 21, 2018, August 28, 2018, September 11, 2018, October 10, 2018, November 9, 2018, January 2, 2019, February 24, 2019, July 1, 2019, September 11, 2019, October 29, 2019, February 7, 2020 and May 14, 2020, we granted 264,912, 49,671, 140,733, 132,456, 15,720, 222,498, 75,000, 22,767, 250,000, 100,000, 1,281,416, 13,140, 35,320, 7,653, 242,424, 84,653, 92,885 and 1,046,098 Phantom Units, respectively, to certain of our officers, executives, directors and consultants under our Phantom Unit Plan. Upon the amendment and restatement of the Phantom Unit Plan as the Restricted Stock Unit Plan, all awards that were previously outstanding were converted to awards of Restricted Stock Units. Upon vesting, an award of Restricted Stock Units will be settled in shares of our common stock.
On December 3, 2017, Albertsons Companies, LLC and its parent, AB Acquisition, completed a reorganization of their legal entity structure whereby the existing equityholders of AB Acquisition each contributed their equity interests in AB Acquisition to Albertsons Investor or KIM ACI. In exchange, equityholders received a proportionate share of units in Albertsons Investor and KIM ACI, respectively. Albertsons Investor and KIM ACI then contributed all of the equity interests they received to ACI in exchange for common stock issued by ACI.
On April 25, 2019, upon the commencement of employment, our President and Chief Executive Officer was granted profits interests consisting of 584,289 Class
B-1
Units in Albertsons Investor, 588,315 Class
B-1
Units in KIM ACI, 584,289 Class
B-2
Units in Albertsons Investor, and 588,315 Class
B-2
Units in KIM ACI.
On October 21, 2019, we issued 3,206,822 shares of common stock to Albertsons Investor and 347,283 shares of common stock to KIM ACI related to the settlement of Phantom Units upon vesting.
On April 23, 2020, we issued 1,184,163 shares of common stock to Albertsons Investor and 128,696 shares of common stock to KIM ACI related to the settlement of Phantom Units upon vesting.
On June 9, 2020, we issued an aggregate of 1,410,000 shares of Series A-1 preferred stock and an aggregate of 340,000 shares of Series A preferred stock, each share with an initial liquidation preference of $1,000 per share, for an aggregate purchase price of approximately $1.65 billion.
Unless otherwise stated, the sales and/or granting of the above securities were deemed to be exempt from registration under the Securities Act in reliance upon Section 4(a)(2) of the Securities Act (or Regulation D promulgated thereunder), or Rule 701 promulgated under Section 3(b) of the Securities Act as transactions by an issuer not involving any public offering or pursuant to benefit plans and contracts relating to compensation as provided under Rule 701. We did not pay or give, directly or indirectly, any commission or other remuneration, including underwriting discounts or commissions, in connection with any of the issuances of securities listed above. The recipients of the securities in each of these transactions represented their intentions to acquire the securities for investment only and not with a view to or for sale in connection with any distribution thereof. All recipients had adequate access, through their employment or other relationship with us or through other access to information provided by us, to information about us. The sales of these securities were made without any general solicitation or advertising.
ITEM 16. EXHIBITS AND FINANCIAL STATEMENT SCHEDULES.
The list of exhibits is set forth under “Exhibit Index” at the end of this registration statement and is incorporated herein by reference.
(b) Financial Statement Schedules
All financial statement schedules have been omitted because the required information is included in the consolidated financial statements and the notes thereto or the information therein is not applicable.
The undersigned registrant hereby undertakes to provide to the underwriters at the closing specified in the underwriting agreement certificates in such denominations and registered in such names as required by the underwriters to permit prompt delivery to each purchaser.
Insofar as indemnification for liabilities arising under the Securities Act, may be permitted to directors, officers and controlling persons of the registrant pursuant to the foregoing provisions, or otherwise, the registrant has been advised that in the opinion of the Securities and Exchange Commission such indemnification is against public policy as expressed in the Act and is, therefore, unenforceable. In the event that a claim for indemnification against such liabilities (other than the payment by the registrant of expenses incurred or paid by a director, officer or controlling person of the registrant in the successful defense of any action, suit or proceeding) is asserted by such director, officer or controlling person in connection with the securities being registered, the registrant will, unless in the opinion of its counsel the matter has been settled by controlling precedent, submit to a court of appropriate jurisdiction the question whether such indemnification by it is against public policy as expressed in the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and will be governed by the final adjudication of such issue.
The undersigned registrant hereby undertakes that:
| (1) | For purposes of determining any liability under the Securities Act, the information omitted from the form of prospectus filed as part of this registration statement in reliance upon Rule 430A and contained in a form of prospectus filed by the Registrant pursuant to Rule 424(b)(1) or (4) or 497(h) under the Securities Act shall be deemed to be part of this registration statement as of the time it was declared effective. |
| (2) | For the purpose of determining any liability under the Securities Act, each post-effective amendment that contains a form of prospectus shall be deemed to be a new registration statement relating to the securities offered therein, and the offering of such securities at that time shall be deemed to be the initial bona fide offering thereof. |