Westlake Automobile Receivables Trust 2019-3: Presale Report

DBRS, Inc. (DBRS Morningstar) assigned provisional ratings to Westlake Automobile Receivables Trust 2019-3 (Westlake 2019-3). The originator is Westlake Services, LLC (Westlake or the Company), a privately held company established in 1978. Westlake is primarily owned by Don Hankey (66%) and Marubeni Corporation (24%). Mr. Hankey is the owner of the Hankey Group of Companies and has been in the automotive industry since 1967. This is the twentieth asset-backed securities (ABS) transaction that Westlake has issued since 2010. The collateral securing the notes consists entirely of a pool of retail automobile contracts secured by predominantly used vehicles that typically have high mileage. The loans are primarily made to obligors who are categorized as subprime, largely because of their credit history and Credit Scores.