Yahoo Finance Grifols Plans First Bond Sale Since Short Seller Attack
(Bloomberg) -- Grifols SA is seeking to issue a new bond, in what would be its first debt deal since coming under attack from a short seller in January.
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The Barcelona-based maker of blood product derivatives is planning to sell senior secured notes with the funds earmarked for refinancing unsecured notes due 2025, it said in a statement Wednesday. A deal to sell a stake in Shanghai Raas to Haier Group is advancing and is expected to close by June 30 as planned, the company.
The planned issuance is the first major financial announcement since Nacho Abia took over as Grifols chief executive officer on April 1. Abia was named as part of an attempt by the firm to calm investors in the wake of a report in early January by short seller Gotham City Research that questioned the company’s accounts and governance.
Since the attack by Gotham, the company has also faced additional questions from investors, notably around its ability to generate cash. Net financial debt stood at €9.4 billion ($10.2 billion) at the end of 2023, according to the company’s latest financial report.
Grifols €1.4 billion bond due October 2028 has risen steadily in recent weeks, hitting just over 81 cents on the euro on Wednesday morning, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Its notes due May 2025 were up around 1.3 cents on Wednesday.
Last month, Moody’s Investors Service placed Grifols’ ratings on review for downgrade, following the publication of full-year results. The decision was driven, in part, by concerns over free cash flow estimates and bond maturities in 2025.
--With assistance from Bruce Douglas.
(Updates with Moody’s review in last paragraph. An earlier version corrected the day of statement in second paragraph.)
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