FQM shares jump on refinancing measures
First Quantum Minerals (TSE: FM) shares surged as much as 11% after it agreed to sell $1 billion in stock and raise $1.6 billion from a notes offering to strengthen its balance sheet after Panama closed the company’s flagship copper mine.
The Vancouver-based metals producer has been under growing pressure to provide answers on how it will continue to meet obligations, with billions of dollars maturing in the coming years while its biggest profit driver remained indefinitely closed.
In an announcement on Wednesday, First Quantum said it also agreed with its banks to amend some terms of its loan facilities.
First Quantum shares touched C$13.27 in Toronto, the highest intraday price since mid-January, before paring some gains. The stock has lost more than half of its value since protests erupted last year against the Cobre Panama mine, which accounted for 78% of First Quantum’s operating profit in the first nine months of last year.
Analysts said the financing plans will lift pressure on the company’s balance sheet for at least the next year, although the shutdown of Cobre Panama means it is only buying time.
“While issuing equity after the share price has already collapsed is obviously not ideal, we believe these deleveraging steps are significant positives for First Quantum,” wrote Christopher LaFemina in a Jefferies Financial Group Inc. analyst note Wednesday.
“The Cobre Panama mine shut down is still a problem, but the balance sheet problem has been addressed for now (we believe these measures provide 18-24 months of additional financial headroom).”
First Quantum said late Wednesday it agreed to sell 121.7 million shares at C$11.10 apiece to a group of banks led by Royal Bank of Canada, Bank of Montreal and Goldman Sachs Group as part of a bought deal.
The $1.6 billion sale of senior secured second lien notes due 2029 are in a private offering, subject to market conditions, the company said.
The company is offering a yield of about 10% on the $1.6 billion junk-bond sale that may price as soon as Thursday, according to a person with knowledge of the matter.
Terms of its $2.2 billion corporate bank facilities have also been adjusted, extending their maturity to April 2027, and providing more room on a key covenant.
The measures came a day after First Quantum said it struck a three-year deal to sell $500 million in copper shipments to its second-biggest shareholder, Jiangxi Copper Co.
First Quantum will continue to advance additional initiatives, including asset and stake sales, in “a disciplined manner,” the company said.
SOURCE:mining.com
