Moody's Investors Service on Monday affirmed the corporate family rating (CFR) of Shift4 Payments, Inc. at Ba3 and assigned a Ba1 rating to the payment processor's proposed Term Loan B. The ratings firm also lowered the rating on the company's senior unsecured notes issued by Shift4 Payments, LLC to B1 from Ba3.
According to Moody's, Shift4 plans to use the net proceeds from the proposed Term Loan B to prefund repayment of convertible notes maturing in August 2027 and for general corporate purposes. The agency said that this use of proceeds should bolster the company's liquidity and provide an additional buffer against geopolitical uncertainty. Separately, Shift4 intends to amend and extend its senior secured first-lien revolving credit facility, which Moody's assigned a Ba1 rating.
Moody's affirmed the Ba3 corporate family rating based on its expectation that the company's debt-to-EBITDA ratio will remain above 4x in 2026 - a level Moody's attributes in part to temporary effects stemming from the Middle East conflict - but that leverage should decline to below 4x in 2027 as those effects abate. The agency highlighted several corporate actions and targets that factor into its view: Shift4 set an explicit net leverage target in 2025; the company eliminated its dual-class voting structure in the first quarter of 2026; and its board authorized a new $1 billion share repurchase program in the fourth quarter of 2025.
Moody's explained that the downgrade of the unsecured instrument ratings reflects the evolving capital structure related to the prospective repayment of the convertible notes. The convertible notes do not carry the subsidiary guarantees that back the existing unsecured notes, a distinction Moody's said justifies the lower rating on the unsecured instrument.
Liquidity metrics remain a strength in Moody's assessment. The agency kept Shift4's Speculative Grade Liquidity Rating at SGL-1, noting continued free cash flow generation and available cash balances totaling more than $470 million as of March 31, 2026.
Moody's also assigned a stable outlook, reflecting its forecast that Shift4 will deliver mid- to high-teens revenue growth alongside a low-20% EBITDA margin. Taken together, those operating assumptions are expected to produce a debt-to-EBITDA ratio around 4x or below over the next 12 to 18 months. The agency further expects Shift4 to generate roughly $550 million in average annual free cash flow, an amount Moody's characterizes as approximately 11% to 12% of the company's debt.
Contextual notes:
- Term Loan B rating: Ba1
- Corporate family rating: Ba3 (affirmed)
- Senior unsecured notes rating: downgraded to B1 from Ba3
- Speculative Grade Liquidity Rating: SGL-1 (maintained)
- Available cash: more than $470 million at March 31, 2026
This assessment highlights Moody's view of near-term leverage pressures tied to geopolitical disruptions and capital structure changes, balanced by solid liquidity and forecasted free cash flow.