Hollywood
Covid2019 pushes PVR to take one-time write off of perishable inventory worth Rs 183 lakh
MUMBAI: PVR Ltd, on Monday, announced its audited standalone and consolidated financial results for the fourth quarter. Consolidated revenues for the quarter stood at Rs 662 crore witnessing a 22 per cent drop compared to corresponding period of last year due to outbreak of Covid2019 in the last month of the quarter.
“Since all the cinemas are shut, company is not generating any revenue from operations while we continue to incur committed cash outflows, including employee salary pay-outs, overheads as well as payments for older working capital. This has had and will continue to have significant negative impact on profitability and liquidity during lockdown and even thereafter till business comes to normalcy,” it said in an investor presentation.
While PVR started closing its screens beginning 11 March, its revenue and cash flow generation may be impeded further once operations are allowed to reopen as cinemas may not be able to operate at normal capacity utilisation due implementation of social distancing measures as well as health concerns that the patrons may have. Talking about financial impact, it mentioned that it has taken one-time write off of perishable inventory of Rs 183 lakh in March, on account of spoilage due to closure of cinemas pursuant to Covid2019.
The company is taking decisive actions to mitigate the adverse impact of Covid2019 by implementing cost reduction strategies, enhancing liquidity and cash-flows management. It has stated that it has cut salary across various levels and laid off employees.
“As on 31 March 2020, company had almost Rs 316 crore in liquid assets. Further, company is considering steps to further augment its liquidity position through fresh borrowings and equity issuance. With respect of the same, the board of directors of the company has given an in-principle approval for a rights issue for an amount of upto Rs 300 crore as “confidence capital” to shore up capital base,” it added in a statement.
It reported a consolidated net loss of Rs 74.61 crore for the fourth quarter while it had posted a net profit of Rs 46.75 crore in the January-March quarter a year ago.
Hollywood
Paramount Skydance secures financing for Warner Bros Discovery deal
Debt syndication and new loans push $111 billion merger closer to close
WASHINGTON: Paramount Skydance has taken a major step towards its planned acquisition of Warner Bros Discovery, securing fresh financing and completing the syndication of its bridge loan facility.
In a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, the company confirmed that the bridge facility has now been distributed among a group of 18 banks, reducing total commitments to $49 billion from an earlier $54 billion. The move spreads risk across lenders and signals growing confidence in one of the year’s largest media deals.
Alongside this, the company has finalised permanent financing arrangements, including $5 billion in senior term loans and a $5 billion revolving credit facility. A previously planned $3.5 billion credit line has been dropped as part of the restructuring.
The loans are secured against key assets, including Paramount Global, Skydance Media and Warner Bros post-merger, underlining the scale and complexity of the transaction.
The financing push follows a competitive bidding process earlier this year, which saw interest from players such as Netflix before Paramount Skydance emerged as the frontrunner. The deal, valued at $111 billion, is expected to close in the third quarter, subject to regulatory approvals.
Adding to the momentum, the company has also secured significant equity backing, including investments from Middle Eastern funds, with support from billionaire Larry Ellison, who has guaranteed the equity portion of the transaction.
Commenting on the development, Paramount Skydance chief strategy officer Andy Gordon said, “Our successful debt syndication and new debt facilities represent another important milestone towards the completion of our acquisition of Warner Bros Discovery.”
Once completed, the combined entity is expected to carry net debt of just under $80 billion, reflecting the sheer scale of the merger.
As Hollywood continues to consolidate in the streaming era, this deal could reshape the competitive landscape, with Paramount Skydance betting big on scale, content and financial muscle to take on global rivals.
