Marston’s PLC (LON:MARS) said it has secured a waiver to avoid a breach of its loan repayments as “a precautionary measure” during the coronavirus pandemic.
The FTSE 250 publican, which has seen its entire estate closed down due to the UK government’s lockdown, said the waiver on its cessation covenant (a breach that might arise under a 30-day business suspension) has been granted until 29 May with an automatic extension to 15 June in certain circumstances.
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Marston’s also said it is reviewing whether or not to consult with its bondholders about “further possible covenant waivers” under its secured funding platform as a result of the lockdown measures.
The extension is in addition to a number of measures the company has taken to preserve cash as the pandemic effectively stops all of its business activity, including cutting capital expenditure and cutting back on overheads.
“We continue to take an extremely prudent approach in our management of the business during this period of unprecedented uncertainty, the timescale of which remains unclear pending further guidance from the UK Government as to how, and when, the current state of much reduced social activity can be relaxed and pubs allowed to re-open”, the company said.
Shares in Marston’s were 0.3% higher at 40.4p in mid-morning trading on Monday.