Hotel Chocolat Group PLC (LON:HOTC) said it has expanded an existing loan to cope with market disruption brought on by the coronavirus pandemic.
The chocolatier said it has agreed with Lloyds Bank to replace an existing £10mln overdraft facility with a new £35mln revolving credit facility.
With the £22mln raised through a share placing in March, the AIM-listed company said it now had enough cash to carry on for the whole of 2020.
It noted that online Easter sales could not make up for losses made by shop closures, however, the retailer said the results were still encouraging.
“Every day at Easter the online demand exceeded the quantity of orders we could accept, due to the requirements to ensure safe working, combined with the short adjustment period,” Hotel Chocolat's co-founder and chief executive Angus Thirlwell said in a statement.
“With the plans we are putting in place over the next months, we aim to be able to switch the vast majority of demand to online should the need arise in the future.”
Back to 'buy'
Analysts at house broker Liberum reinstated the 'buy' recommendation rom 'under review' commenting that the spike on Easter sales "demonstrates the brand’s strength and operational agility".
Liberum expect a £17mln on second-half sales, bringing estimates for the year to June to £135mln revenue.
Shares were flat at 330p on Monday at the opening bell.
--Adds analyst's comment, shares--