Moody's affirmed investment bank Greenhill & Co. Inc.'s corporate family, senior secured term loan and revolving credit facility ratings at Ba2.

The outlook on the ratings is stable.

The affirmation came after the company announced that it will be issuing a $360 million first lien term loan due 2024 to refinance its existing $328 million first lien term loan due 2022. Moody's said the $32 million increase in outstanding debt resulting from the refinancing will increase Greenhill's debt leverage to around 4.6x from 4.0x at December 2018, but it could also provide the firm with favorable pricing that could be sufficient to reduce its overall debt servicing expense.

The stable outlook reflects the rating agency's expectation that the company would maintain its well-managed variable cost structure and provide adequate consideration to creditors' interests. Moody's withdrew its outlook on the company's senior secured term loan, revolving credit facility and corporate family ratings for business reasons.