Northgate unveils fund raising

10th Jul 2009 16:46

Van and car rental business Northgate has finalised the details of the fund raising that was a condition of the renegotiation of its banking facilities.The company is to raise £30m through the issue of 50m shares at 60p per share, and £84.4m through a 10 for 1 fully underwritten rights issue of 1,205m shares at 7p.The rights issue price is a 41% discount to the theoretical ex-rights price when calculated by reference to the placing price of 60 pence per share.The group has agreed new lending facilities of around £880m with its banks and US loan note holders. The group said it made a pre-tax loss of £195.6m in the year to 30 April 2009 after taking an exceptional charge of £217.9m. Profit before tax, excluding exceptional items, was £22.3m, compared to £79.5m the year before. Revenue rose to £609.6m from £578.5m, but was down 1.4% on a constant currency basis.The company has ditched its final dividend. Last year it paid a final dividend of 16.5p."Trading in the early part of the current financial year is broadly in line with the group's internal expectations, with utilisation in the UK and Spain currently at 91% and 86% respectively," said Philip Rogerson, Northgate's chairman.The company remains cautious about the outlook for the year and will continue to focus on maximising fleet utilisation, cash managing and improving operational efficiency.