Ballys Corp

9. GOODWILL AND INTANGIBLE ASSETS

The change in intangible assets, net for the nine months ended September 30, 2024 is as follows (in thousands):

The Company’s identifiable intangible assets consist of the following:

(1) Commercial rights intangible asset in connection with the Framework Agreement. Refer to Note 2 “Summary of Significant Accounting Policies” for further information.

(2) See note (1) above.

Amortization of intangible assets was approximately $58.5 million and $57.3 million for the three months ended September 30, 2024 and 2023, respectively, and $177.8 million and $173.4 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2024 and 2023, respectively.

The following table reflects the remaining amortization expense associated with the finite-lived intangible assets as of September 30, 2024:

10. DERIVATIVE INSTRUMENTS

The Company utilizes derivative instruments in order to mitigate interest rate and currency exchange rate risk in accordance with its financial risk and liability management policy.

In 2023, the Company entered into a series of interest rate contracts and cross currency swap derivative transactions with multiple bank counterparties in order to synthetically convert a notional aggregate amount of $500.0 million of the Company’s USD denominated variable rate Term Loan Facility, as disclosed in Note 14 “Long-Term Debt,” into fixed rate debt over five years and $200 million of the Term Loan Facility, to an equivalent GBP denominated floating rate instrument over three years. These contracts mature in October, 2028 and 2026, respectively.

In the third quarter of 2024, the Company settled $500.0 million of notional interest rate collars and received $3.9 million in termination payments, reflecting the fair value on the settlement date. The fair value on the settlement date is recorded as a component of accumulated other comprehensive income (loss), which will be reclassified into “Interest expense, net” in the condensed consolidated statements of operations in the same period in which the hedged interest payments associated with the Company’s borrowings are recorded. Additionally, the Company simultaneously entered into a series of interest rate contracts in a notional aggregate amount of $1.00 billion, to further manage the Company’s exposure to interest rate movements associated with the Company’s variable rate Term Loan Facility through its synthetic conversion to fixed rate debt. The tenor of these contracts were matched with the maturity of the Term Loan Facility tranche maturing on October 1, 2028.

Derivative Instruments Designated as Hedging Instruments

Net Investment Hedges

Cross Currency Swaps - The Company is exposed to fluctuations in foreign exchange rates on investments it holds in its European foreign entities. The Company uses fixed and fixed-cross-currency swaps to hedge its exposure to changes in the foreign exchange rate on its foreign investment in Europe and their exposure to changes in the EUR-GBP exchange rate. Currency forward agreements involve fixing the USD-EUR exchange rate for delivery of a specified amount of foreign currency on a specified date. The currency forward agreements are typically cash settled in USD for their fair value at or close to their settlement date. Cross-currency swaps involve the receipt of functional-currency-fixed-rate amounts from a counterparty in exchange for the Company making foreign-currency-fixed-rate payments over the life of the agreement. These derivative arrangements qualify as net investment hedges under ASC 815, with the gain or loss resulting from changes in the spot value of the derivative reported in other comprehensive income (loss). Amounts are reclassified out of other comprehensive income (loss) into earnings when the hedged net investment is either sold or substantially liquidated. Additionally, the accrual of foreign currency and USD denominated coupons will be recognized in “Interest expense, net” in the condensed consolidated statements of operations. Refer to Note 11 “Fair Value Measurements” and Note 16 “Stockholders’ Equity” for further information.

The following tables summarize the Company’s net investment hedges as of September 30, 2024 and December 31, 2023 (in thousands):

Cash Flow Hedges

Interest Rate Contracts - The Company’s objectives in using interest rate derivatives are to hedge its exposure to variability in cash flows on a portion of its floating-rate debt, to add stability to interest expense and to manage its exposure to interest rate movements. To accomplish these objectives, the Company primarily uses interest rate swaps and collars as part of its financial risk and liability management policy. The Company’s interest rate swaps and collars are designated as cash flow hedges under ASC 815. The changes in the fair value of these instruments are recorded as a component of accumulated other comprehensive income (loss) and reclassified into “Interest expense, net” in the condensed consolidated statements of operations in the same period in which the hedged interest payments associated with the Company’s borrowings are recorded. Refer to Note 11 “Fair Value Measurements” and Note 16 “Stockholders’ Equity” for further information.

The following table summarizes the Company’s cash flow hedges as of September 30, 2024 and December 31, 2023 (in thousands):

(1) Weighted average rate.