Item 1.01. Entry into a Material Definitive Agreement.
Amendment to Credit Agreement
On October 31, 2008, Starbucks Corporation (the "Company") entered into an
amendment (the "Amendment") to its existing Credit Agreement dated August 12,
2005 (as previously amended, the "Credit Agreement") with the lenders parties
thereto (the "Lenders") and Bank of America, N.A., in its capacity as
Administrative Agent for the Lenders, Swing Line Lender and L/C Issuer. The
Amendment amends (i) the definition of "Operating Lease and Rental Expense" set
forth in the Credit Agreement to exclude from the calculation thereof lease
termination expenses and lease exit costs of up to $130,000,000 incurred during
the period beginning on June 30, 2008 and ending on September 27, 2009 and
(ii) the pricing grid contained in the definition of "Applicable Rate" set forth
in the Credit Agreement to increase the interest rate margin applicable to loans
under the Credit Agreement accruing interest on the basis of the Eurocurrency
Rate to between 0.21% and 0.67% in excess of the Eurocurrency Rate, depending on
the Company's Consolidated Fixed Charge Coverage Ratio and senior unsecured
long-term debt rating (to the extent the Company has been issued such a rating).
On July 1, 2008, the Company announced its decision to close approximately
600 company-operated stores in the U.S. following a thorough evaluation of its
U.S. company-operated store portfolio. The closure of these stores is expected
to result in charges related to termination expenses and lease exit costs over
the next few quarters totaling approximately $120-140 million; however, these
store closings, along with reduced capital expenditures from fewer store
openings during fiscal 2009 are expected to better position the Company to
generate higher free cash flow going forward. The effect of the Amendment on the
definition of "Operating Lease and Rental Expense" is to preclude these unusual
charges from negatively affecting the Company's Consolidated Fixed Charge
Coverage Ratio set forth in the Credit Agreement.
A copy of the Amendment is attached to this report as Exhibit 10.1 and is
incorporated herein by reference as though it were fully set forth herein. The
description above is a summary of the Amendment and is qualified in its entirety
by the complete text of the Amendment itself.
Item 2.03. Creation of a Direct Financial Obligation or an Obligation under an
Off-Balance Sheet Arrangement of a Registrant.
Please see the discussion set forth in Item 1.01, "Entry into a Material
Definitive Agreement," of this Form 8-K under the caption Amendment to Credit
Agreement, which discussion is incorporated herein by reference.
Item 9.01. Financial Statements and Exhibits.
(d) Exhibits.
Exhibit 10.1 Amendment No. 4 to Credit Agreement dated October 31, 2008 among
Starbucks Corporation, Bank of America, N.A., as Administrative
Agent and the Lenders party thereto.
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