TIDMVCP
RNS Number : 9634P
Victoria PLC
23 February 2021
NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION TO ANY PERSON LOCATED OR RESIDENT IN ANY
JURISDICTION WHERE IT IS UNLAWFUL TO DISTRIBUTE THIS ANNOUNCEMENT.
NOT FOR PUBLICATION IN THE UNITED STATES. THIS ANNOUNCEMENT IS FOR
INFORMATION PURPOSES ONLY AND IS NOT AN OFFER TO PURCHASE OR A
SOLICITATION OF AN OFFER TO SELL ANY NOTES.
23 February 2021
THIS RELEASE CONTAINS INSIDE INFORMATION
Victoria PLC
("Victoria", the "Company", or the "Group")
Proposed offering of Senior Secured Notes and Current Trading
Update
Leverage neutral bond issue
The Board of Victoria PLC (LSE:VCP) is pleased to announce that,
following continued strong operating performance (see current
trading update below) and favourable market conditions, it intends
to offer EUR350 million in aggregate principal amount of Senior
Secured Notes due 2026 (the "Notes"). Net proceeds will be used for
general corporate purposes, in particular acquisitions, and the
partial refinancing of existing 2024 senior secured notes to
further improve the maturity profile of the Group's debt.
The Board wishes to highlight the following key items:
-- Leverage neutral transaction. The new bonds will not increase
net debt (subject to transaction fees and expenses), with pro-forma
senior net leverage of c. 2.8x and pro-forma total net leverage of
c. 3.1x(1) . Other than amounts used for the partial refinancing,
the cash raised will remain on balance sheet until invested into
earnings-accretive acquisitions, which the Board believe will
happen in the short term.
-- Consistent Financial Policy. The Board stresses that
Victoria's prudent financial policy remains unchanged. The Group is
committed to its financial policy of c. 3x senior net leverage
post-completion of acquisitions, falling to 2x when in 'steady
state'.
-- Existing Strong Liquidity. Even prior to Koch Equity
Development's commitment of GBP175 million of perpetual preferred
equity in November 2020, Victoria had GBP200 million of cash and
undrawn credit-lines as of September 2020. Hence the additional
capital from the proposed bond issue is solely intended to be
deployed on high-quality, near-term acquisitions.
Current trading
As announced on 13 January, the Group achieved record revenues
and operating profits for the 3rd quarter to December 2020 -
despite the existence of lockdowns and other Covid-related
challenges in various markets. Trading for the quarter delivered
revenues of c. GBP184 million, an increase of c. 16% at
constant-currency on the equivalent period in the prior year. This
comprises a c. 11% increase in the UK & Europe Soft Flooring
division, driven by organic growth; a c. 26% increase in UK &
Europe Ceramic Tiles, driven by a combination of organic growth and
the acquisition of Ceramiche Ascot in March 2020; and a c. 9%
increase in Australia, driven by organic growth.
As reported in our interim results, the Group's EBITDA margin
post initial lockdown increased on a like-for-like basis by more
than 300bps versus the prior year, driven by investments in
manufacturing and distribution and 'bottom slicing' of
margin-dilutive products that have produced a sustainable
competitive advantage. The positive trend in margin continued
further in Q3.
As a result, EBITDA for the 12 months ended December 2020 was
GBP120.0 million - above that for the last financial year to March
2020, despite the inclusion of the April to June Covid-19
lockdowns.
Further information
In relation to the above-mentioned refinancing, the Company
intends later today to announce a simultaneous tender offer for
certain of its existing notes and to distribute a conditional
redemption notice in respect of certain existing notes. These
announcements will follow in due course.
The Notes will be the general, senior obligations of the Company
and will be guaranteed by certain of the Company's subsidiaries.
Interest on the Notes will be payable semi-annually in arrears. The
interest rate and offering price will be determined at the time of
pricing of the offering, subject to market conditions.
An update will follow in due course.
Note:
(1) Leverage consistent with the methodology used by our lending
banks, pre-IFRS 16 and - for the avoidance of doubt - excluding the
KED perpetual preferred equity .
This announcement does not constitute an offer to sell or the
solicitation of an offer to buy the Notes or any other security and
shall not constitute an offer, solicitation or sale in the United
States or in any jurisdiction in which, or to any persons to whom,
such offering, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to
registration or qualification under the securities laws of any
jurisdiction.
The Notes and the related guarantees have not been, and will not
be, registered under the U.S. Securities Act of 1933, as amended
(the "Securities Act") and may not be offered or sold within the
United States or to, or for the account or benefit of, U.S. persons
except pursuant to an exemption from, or in a transaction not
subject to, the registration requirements of the Securities
Act.
This announcement may include projections and other
"forward-looking" statements within the meaning of applicable
securities laws. Any such projections or statements reflect the
current views of the Company about future events and financial
performance. The use of any of the words "expect," "anticipate,"
"continue," "will," "project," "should," "believe," "plans,"
"intends" and similar expressions are intended to identify
forward-looking information or statements. Although the Company
believes that the expectations and assumptions on which such
forward-looking statements and information are reasonable, undue
reliance should not be placed on the forward-looking statements and
information because the Company can give no assurance that such
statements and information will prove to be correct. Since
forward-looking statements and information address future events
and conditions, by their very nature they involve inherent risks
and uncertainties.
The forward-looking statements and information contained in this
announcement are made as of the date hereof and the Company
undertakes no obligation to update publicly or revise any
forward-looking statements or information, whether as a result of
new information future events or otherwise, unless so required by
applicable securities laws. Within the United Kingdom, this
announcement is directed only at persons having professional
experience in matters relating to investments who fall within the
definition of "investment professionals" in Article 19(5) of the
Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (Financial Promotion) Order
2005 ("relevant persons"). The investment or investment activity to
which this announcement relates is only available to and will only
be engaged in with relevant persons and persons who receive this
announcement who are not relevant persons should not rely or act
upon it.
Manufacturer target market (MIFID II product governance; UK
MiFIR product governance) is eligible counterparties and
professional clients only (all distribution channels). No PRIIPs or
UK PRIIPs key information document (KID) has been prepared as not
available to retail investors in EEA or the United Kingdom,
respectively.
This announcement contains inside information within the meaning
of Regulation (EU) No 596/2014 of 16 April 2014 on market abuse.
The person responsible for arranging the release of this
announcement on behalf of the Company is Michael Scott, Group
Finance Director.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Victoria PLC N+1 Singer (Nominated Adviser and
(+44 (0) 1562 749 610) Joint Broker)
Geoff Wilding (+44 (0) 207 496 3095)
Philippe Hamers Rick Thompson
Michael Scott Phil Davies
Alex Bond
Berenberg (Joint Broker) Peel Hunt (Joint Broker)
(+44 (0) 203 207 7800) (+44 (0) 207 418 8900)
Ben Wright Adrian Trimmings
Mark Whitmore Andrew Clark
Tejas Padalkar
----------------------------------
Buchanan Communications (Financial
PR)
(+44 (0) 207 466 5000)
Charles Ryland
Chris Lane
Tilly Abraham
----------------------------------
This information is provided by RNS, the news service of the
London Stock Exchange. RNS is approved by the Financial Conduct
Authority to act as a Primary Information Provider in the United
Kingdom. Terms and conditions relating to the use and distribution
of this information may apply. For further information, please
contact rns@lseg.com or visit www.rns.com.
RNS may use your IP address to confirm compliance with the terms
and conditions, to analyse how you engage with the information
contained in this communication, and to share such analysis on an
anonymised basis with others as part of our commercial services.
For further information about how RNS and the London Stock Exchange
use the personal data you provide us, please see our Privacy
Policy.
END
MSCPPURAPUPGPGP
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
February 23, 2021 02:00 ET (07:00 GMT)
Victoria (LSE:VCP)
Gráfico Histórico do Ativo
De Set 2024 até Out 2024
Victoria (LSE:VCP)
Gráfico Histórico do Ativo
De Out 2023 até Out 2024