Westlake Financial Services announced this week that it closed its fifth term asset backed securitization (ABS) on May 28 in a bond offering increased from $275 million to $321 million due to significant investor demand. 

The company highlighted five classes of bonds were offered, ranging from A1+ to BBB. Westlake also noted all were at least three times oversubscribed by investors.

J.P. Morgan served as structuring lead manager and joint book-runner with Credit Suisse as the co-lead and joint book-runner. Wells Fargo and RBS were co-managers on the deal.

“Westlake’s credit performance has been stable and our business remains strong despite competitive pressures,” Westlake chief financial officer Paul Kerwin said. “We are pleased to see additional names added to our investor base and applaud the efforts of our underwriters in helping make these connections.

“Our ABS investors can expect us to ramp up our issuances as we continue to make inroads in the franchise dealer market,” Kerwin added.

Kerwin also noted Westlake issued BBB bonds for the first time and achieved a 93-percent advance rate on the total bond issuance.

“Westlake Financial has been consistent for a long time. They have a strong platform, strong credit profile, and a strong company name,” J.P. Morgan managing director John Cho said.

 “The bond offering has 15 new investors on the books, which is a large percentage considering there are 31 investors all together,” Cho continued. “Westlake credit spreads will continue to tighten as investors differentiate that this is a strong platform and liquidity continues to build their name.”

Westlake Financial Services boasts a rapidly growing portfolio, which includes a current portfolio of $1.905 billion as of May, up from $210 million at the same month last year.

The company’s dealer base consists of approximately 21,000 independent and franchised stores throughout all 50 states. 

Now with ABS offer finalized, Westlake Financial Services assistant vice president of finance Jonathan Zhan said, “This is a reflection of strong investor demand. This shows the strength of Westlake performance and execution and investors’ belief in our business.”