wynn macau ltd shares fell friday after the company announced plans to issue convertible bonds a move that analysts say is an effort to strengthen its balance sheet the casino operators shares fell as much as 72 to 800 hong kong dollars us102 and were last 51 lower at hk767 wynn macau said friday that it plans to raise us600 million via the issuance of 450 convertible bonds due in 2029 the casino operator said the bonds conversion price is hk1024 a share a 27 premium over wynn macaus thursday closing price of hk808 net proceeds from the bond issuance are expected at us586 million and will be used to boost liquidity and for general corporate purposes wynn macau added in a note citi analysts george choi and ryan cheung said they expect the proceeds to be used to partially repay a us15 billion loan which was fully drawn down at the end of last year when the weighted average interest rate was around 730 the corporate bond issuance is an opportunistic move for wynn macau to improve its balance sheet citi said the analysts estimated that the casino operators end2024 debttoebitda ratio will fall to 70x from 77x if the casino operator fully converts the bonds meanwhile jpmorgan analysts ds kim and mufan shi said in a note that they think the timing of the issuance is disappointing but its not thesischanging and we stay bullish on the sector while the jpmorgan analysts said they were caught offguard by the timing they noted that wynn macau has a us600 million bond due 2024 which coupled with a higher capital expenditure requirement with its new license could be why the company is trying to beef up its balance sheet