Annual report pursuant to Section 13 and 15(d)

DEBT

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DEBT
 12 Months Ended
Dec. 31, 2024
Debt Disclosure [Abstract]  
DEBT DEBT
 
Debt outstanding at December 31, 2024 and 2023 was as follows:
  December 31,
  2024 2023
  (In millions)
Commercial paper (“CP”) $ 286.5  $ 196.0 
Notes, 2.60%, due December 2024
 —  750.0 
Notes, 2.60%, due December 2025
 400.0  400.0 
Notes, 3.25%, due June 2026
 275.0  275.0 
Term loan, due August 2026 —  695.6 
Notes, 5.10%, due December 2027
 750.0  750.0 
Notes, 5.10%, due June 2028
 700.0  700.0 
Debentures, 6.90%, due July 2028
 125.0  125.0 
Notes, 4.80%, due September 2029
 650.0  — 
Notes, 3.10%, due May 2030
 600.0  600.0 
Notes, 2.35%, due September 2031
 1,000.0  1,000.0 
Notes, 7.00%, due July 2037
 250.0  250.0 
Other 1.2  — 
Total debt 5,037.7  5,741.6 
Less short-term debt and current maturities (687.7) (963.4)
Less unamortized discounts and debt issuance costs (27.2) (30.4)
Total long-term debt, net $ 4,322.8  $ 4,747.8 
 
Scheduled future maturities of debt at December 31, 2024 are as follows:
Years ending December 31, Amount
  (In millions)
2025 $ 687.7 
2026 275.0 
2027 750.0 
2028 825.0 
2029 650.0 
Thereafter 1,850.0 
Total debt $ 5,037.7 
 
4.8% Senior Notes. In August 2024, we issued $650.0 million in aggregate principal amount of 4.8% five-year Senior Notes due 2029 (the "2029 Notes") in an underwritten public offering. Interest on the 2029 Notes accrues at a rate of 4.8% per year and is payable semi-annually in arrears on March 15 and September 15 of each year. The net proceeds of the sale of the 2029 Notes were ultimately used for general corporate purposes, including the repayment of borrowings under our then-outstanding delayed draw term loan (the "Term Loan") prior to the August 2026 maturity. We must comply with various non-financial covenants, including certain limitations on mortgages, liens and sale-leaseback transactions, as well as mergers and sales of substantially all of our assets. The 2029 Notes are unsecured and rank equally with all of our other unsecured and unsubordinated indebtedness.

5.1% Senior Notes. In May 2023, we issued $700.0 million aggregate principal amount of 5.1% five-year Senior Notes due 2028 (the "2028 Notes") in an underwritten public offering. Interest on the 2028 Notes accrues at a rate of 5.1% per year and is payable semi-annually in arrears on June 1 and December 1 of each year. The net proceeds of the sale of the 2028 Notes were ultimately used to repay our then-outstanding $400.0 million 3.95% Senior Notes due June 2023 at maturity. The remaining proceeds were used for general corporate purposes, including the repayment of borrowings under our CP program. We must comply with various non-financial covenants, including certain limitations on mortgages, liens and sale-leaseback transactions, as well as mergers and sales of substantially all of our assets. The 2028 Notes are unsecured and rank equally with all of our other unsecured and unsubordinated indebtedness.

5.1% Senior Notes. In September 2022, we issued $750.0 million aggregate principal amount of 5.1% five-year Senior Notes due 2027 (the "2027 Notes") in an underwritten public offering. Interest on the 2027 Notes accrues at a rate of 5.1% per year and is payable semi-annually in arrears on June 15 and December 15 of each year. The net proceeds of the sale of the 2027 Notes were ultimately used to repay our then-outstanding $500.0 million 3.30% Senior Notes due December 2022. The remaining proceeds were used for general corporate purposes, including the repayment of borrowings under our CP program. We must comply with various non-financial covenants, including certain limitations on mortgages, liens and sale-leaseback transactions, as well as mergers and sales of substantially all of our assets. The 2027 Notes are unsecured and rank equally with all of our other unsecured and unsubordinated indebtedness.

2.35% Senior Notes. On August 11, 2021, we issued $1.0 billion aggregate principal amount of 2.35% ten-year Senior Notes due 2031 (the “2031 Notes”) in an underwritten public offering. Interest on the 2031 Notes accrues at a rate of 2.35% per year and is payable semi-annually in arrears on March 15 and September 15 of each year. The net proceeds of the sale of the 2031 Notes were used to repay the then-outstanding $300.0 million 3.6% Senior Notes due 2021 and $300.0 million Floating Rate Notes due 2021. The remaining proceeds were used for general corporate purposes, including the repayment of borrowings under our CP program and the funding of acquisitions, including the Company’s $1.825 billion acquisition of Appriss Insights. We must comply with various non-financial covenants, including certain limitations on mortgages, liens and sale-leaseback transactions, as well as mergers and sales of substantially all of our assets. The 2031 Notes are unsecured and rank equally with all of our other unsecured and unsubordinated indebtedness.

2.6% and 3.1% Senior Notes. On April 22, 2020, we issued $400.0 million aggregate principal amount of 2.6% five-year Senior Notes due 2025 (the "2025 Notes") and $600.0 million aggregate principal amount of 3.1% ten-year Senior Notes due 2030 (the "2030 Notes") in an underwritten public offering. Interest on the 2025 Notes accrues at a rate of 2.6% per year and is payable semi-annually in arrears on June 15 and December 15 of each year. Interest on the 2030 Notes accrues at a rate of 3.1% per year and is payable semi-annually in arrears on May 15 and November 15 of each year. The net proceeds of the sale of the notes were used to repay borrowings under our Receivables Facility and our $1.5 billion five-year unsecured revolving credit facility (the "Revolver"), while the remaining funds were used for general corporate purposes, including the repayment of a portion of the 2021 debt maturities. We must comply with various non-financial covenants, including certain limitations on mortgages, liens and sale-leaseback transactions, as well as mergers and sales of substantially all of our assets. The 2025 Notes and 2030 Notes are unsecured and rank equally with all of our other unsecured and unsubordinated indebtedness.

2.6% Senior Notes. On November 15, 2019, we issued $750.0 million aggregate principal amount of 2.6% five-year Senior Notes due 2024 (the “2024 Notes”) in an underwritten public offering. Interest on the 2024 Notes accrues at a rate of 2.6% per year and is payable semi-annually in arrears on June 1 and December 1 of each year of each year. The net proceeds of the sale of the notes were used to repay borrowings under our Receivables Facility and our CP program and for general corporate purposes. We must comply with various non-financial covenants, including certain limitations on mortgages, liens and sale-leaseback transactions, as well as mergers and sales of substantially all of our assets. The 2024 Notes were unsecured and rank equally with all of our other unsecured and unsubordinated indebtedness. In December 2024, we repaid the 2.6% Senior Notes with cash on hand and CP outstanding.
Senior Credit Facility. We have access to a $1.5 billion five-year unsecured revolving credit facility (the Revolver), which matures in August 2027. In March 2023, we amended the Revolver (as well as our then-outstanding Term Loan) to adjust our debt covenant requirements and incorporate the Secured Overnight Financing Rate (SOFR) into our agreement, among other changes. Borrowings under the Revolver may be used for working capital, for capital expenditures, to refinance existing debt, to finance acquisitions and for other general corporate purposes. The Revolver includes an option to request a maximum of three one-year extensions of the maturity date any time after the first anniversary of the closing date of the Revolver. In May 2024, we exercised our first option to extend the maturity date by one year, from August 2026 to August 2027, and amended the Revolver agreement to replace a discontinued reference rate for Canadian Dollar-denominated commitments. Availability of the Revolver is reduced by the outstanding principal balance of our CP notes and by any letters of credit issued under the Revolver. As of December 31, 2024, there were $286.5 million of outstanding CP notes, $1.4 million of letters of credit outstanding, and no outstanding borrowings under the Revolver. Availability under the Revolver was $1,212.1 million at December 31, 2024.

Under the Revolver, the Company must comply with various financial and non-financial covenants. The Revolver requires a maximum leverage ratio, defined as consolidated funded debt divided by consolidated EBITDA, of 3.75 to 1.0. We may also elect to increase the maximum leverage ratio by 0.5 to 1.0 (subject to a maximum leverage ratio of 4.25 to 1.0) in connection with certain material acquisitions if we satisfy certain requirements. The Revolver also permits cash in excess of $175 million to be netted against debt in the calculation of the leverage ratio, subject to certain restrictions. Compliance with this financial covenant is tested quarterly. The non-financial covenants include limitations on liens, subsidiary debt, mergers, liquidations, asset dispositions and certain government regulations. As of December 31, 2024, we were in compliance with our covenants under the Revolver. Our borrowings under these facilities, which have not been guaranteed by any of our subsidiaries, are unsecured and will rank on parity in right of payment with all of our other unsecured and unsubordinated indebtedness from time to time outstanding.

At December 31, 2024, interest was payable on borrowings under the Revolver at the base rate or Secured Overnight Financing Rate, or SOFR, plus a specified margin. The Company is required to pay on a quarterly basis a commitment fee with respect to our Revolver, which is calculated based upon the amount of daily usage of the Revolver over the available aggregate lender commitments thereunder during the applicable quarterly period. Both the applicable interest rate and the commitment fee are subject to adjustment based on the Company’s debt ratings.
 
Commercial Paper Program.  Our $1.5 billion CP program has been established through the private placement of CP notes from time-to-time, in which borrowings may bear interest at either a variable or a fixed rate, plus the applicable margin. Maturities of CP can range from overnight to 397 days. Because the CP is backstopped by our Revolver, the amount of CP which may be issued under the program is reduced by the outstanding face amount of any letters of credit issued and by the outstanding borrowings under our Revolver. At December 31, 2024, there were $286.5 million of outstanding CP notes. We have disclosed the net short-term borrowing activity for the year ended December 31, 2024 in the Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows. There were no CP borrowings or payments with a maturity date greater than 90 days and less than 365 days for the twelve months ended December 31, 2024 and 2023.

3.25% Senior Notes.  On May 12, 2016, we issued $275.0 million principal amount of 3.25% ten-year senior notes in an underwritten public offering. Interest is payable semi-annually in arrears on June 1 and December 1 of each year. The net proceeds of the sale of the notes were used to repay borrowings under our prior revolving credit facility and a portion of the borrowings under our CP incurred to finance the acquisition of Veda. We must comply with various non-financial covenants, including certain limitations on mortgages, liens and sale-leaseback transactions, as well as mergers and sales of substantially all of our assets. The senior notes are unsecured and rank equally with all of our other unsecured and unsubordinated indebtedness.

7.0% Senior Notes.  On June 28, 2007, we issued $250.0 million principal amount of 7.0% thirty-year senior notes in underwritten public offerings. Interest is payable semi-annually in arrears on January 1 and July 1 of each year. The net proceeds of the financing were used to repay short-term indebtedness, a substantial portion of which was incurred in connection with an acquisition. We must comply with various non-financial covenants, including certain limitations on liens, additional debt and mortgages, mergers, asset dispositions and sale-leaseback arrangements. The senior notes are unsecured and rank equally with all of our other unsecured and unsubordinated indebtedness.
 
6.9% Debentures.  We have $125.0 million of debentures outstanding with a maturity date of 2028. The debentures are unsecured and rank equally with all of our other unsecured and unsubordinated indebtedness.  
 
Cash paid for interest was $214.9 million, $231.5 million and $161.7 million during the twelve months ended December 31, 2024, 2023 and 2022, respectively.