QuidelOrtho Enters Amendment to $3.4B Credit Facility, Resets Covenants

What Happened

• On September 23, 2026, QuidelOrtho Corporation announced Amendment No. 1 to its August 21, 2025 credit agreement, affecting its $1.15B Term Loan A, $100M delayed-draw Term Loan A, $1.45B Term Loan B and $700M revolving credit facility (totaling $3.4B in commitments).
• The Amendment resets the company’s financial covenant levels through the fiscal quarter ending September 30, 2029 (the "Covenant Relief Period") and adjusts pricing and fees for the Term Loan A facilities and the Revolving Credit Facility; the Term Loan B interest terms are unchanged.

Key Details

• Covenant schedule (minimum interest coverage ratio / maximum leverage ratio) during the Covenant Relief Period:
  • On or prior to July 2, 2028: 2.25x interest coverage / 5.50x leverage
  • Oct 1, 2028 or Dec 31, 2028: 2.50x / 5.00x
  • Apr 1, 2029 or Jul 1, 2029: 2.75x / 4.50x
  • On or after Sep 30, 2029: 3.00x / 4.25x
• Initial pricing (from Amendment effective date until first business day after the compliance certificate for the quarter ending Sep 28, 2026): base rate loans at 1.50% p.a.; Term SOFR loans at 2.50% p.a. After that, pricing will follow a grid tied to Consolidated Leverage (Term SOFR: 1.75%–3.00%; base rate: 0.75%–2.00%).
• Commitment fee on unused revolving commitments during the Covenant Relief Period will range from 0.20% to 0.40% per annum based on leverage. The Financing remains guaranteed by certain domestic subsidiaries and secured by liens on substantially all assets (excluding certain real property and other excluded assets).
• The Credit Agreement continues to include customary affirmative and negative covenants; additional restrictions were added to the financial covenants for the Covenant Relief Period.

Why It Matters

• For investors, this amendment provides the company temporary covenant relief and clearer near-term interest/fee terms, which can reduce refinancing or covenant breach risk while the company works to improve leverage and coverage metrics.
• The adjusted covenant thresholds and pricing are concrete metrics investors can monitor each quarter to assess QuidelOrtho’s credit posture and potential risks related to debt compliance or future pricing changes.