Independent News & Media delays annual results announcement
Independent News & Media has postponed publishing its annual results for a second time while debt talks continue.
INM was due to release its 2008 figures this Friday but the company’s management will continue to hold talks about reducing its £1.3 billion debt until it announces its results next Thursday.
Reports suggest that the company was hoping to have struck a deal to reduce its debt by the time it updates the City late next week.
Investors in the Irish company, which owns the Independent and Independent on Sunday, have seen its share price slump to just under 20p – shares in the company have lost 90% of their value in the last year.
If INM was able to secure a debt restructuring deal before Thursday April 30, it would reassure investors and enable incoming chief executive Gavin O’Reilly to claim the group is now more financially stable.
INM is currently in talks with bondholders about extending its debt facility, which is due to expire on May 18, after cancelling a bond issue earlier this year.
Yesterday, UK-listed shares in INM were up over 20% amid claims that the new board was considering offloading its loss-making Independent and Independent on Sunday titles (see Independent share price up amid sale hopes).
A number of prelimary offers are thought to have been received for the UK Independent titles, though potential bidders still remain unnamed.
Daily Mail & General Trust, which is already set to share its London offices with the Independent‘s staff, had been mooted as a possible buyer.
However, in March, O’Reilly rebuffed claims that the struggling Independent titles were up for sale or due to be closed (see New INM chief says Independent is not for sale).
Other reports this weekend suggest that INM could save money by selling its 21% stake in Indian publisher Jagran Prakashan, which it bought for £22.5 million in 2004.
In the latest ABC release, the Independent suffered the largest decline in the Quality Daily market, shedding over 41,000 from its circulation year on year, leaving it with a total of around 205,000 copies (see ABC National Newspaper Round-Up: March 2009).
The Independent on Sunday was also hit hard in March, falling by 24.3% – or almost 54,000 copies – to leave its total circulation at around 168,000.