DWF Group PLC DWF ENHANCES LIQUIDITY POSITION (7237K)
April 24 2020 - 2:00AM
UK Regulatory
TIDMDWF
RNS Number : 7237K
DWF Group PLC
24 April 2020
DWF Group plc
("DWF" or "the Company")
LEI: 213800O9QREOHTOGQ266
24 April 2020
This announcement contains inside information.
DWF ENHANCES LIQUIDITY POSITION
Further to the statement of 27 March 2020, DWF Group plc ("DWF"
and, together with its subsidiaries and subsidiary undertakings,
the "Group"), a global legal business, is pleased to announce that
it has secured an in principle agreement to increase its committed
Revolving Credit Facilities ("RCF") and a relaxation of certain
covenants with its lenders.
This agreement will result in a secondary RCF of GBP15m, in
addition to the Group's existing RCF of GBP80m. The secondary
facility, which will operate under the same terms as the Group's
existing RCF, will remain in place for up to 18 months. While the
Group does not anticipate an immediate need to use this additional
facility, it will provide greater liquidity at a time when the
normally high level of seasonal cash collections could be impacted
by COVID-19.
As a result of this additional facility, the Group will have
access to working capital facilities of GBP122m, including the
benefits of all of its funding arrangements.
The agreement will also result in a relaxation of the Group's
1.5x leverage covenants for the next four testing dates. The
relaxation will allow for leverage of 2x EBITDA in April and July
2020 and 1.75x EBITDA in October 2020 and January 2021. This will
provide the Group with the appropriate headroom to deal with any
COVID-19 headwinds throughout the coming year.
The combination of the additional financing together with the
operating cost mitigation measures is expected to give the Group
significant liquidity to see it through an extended lock-down. The
Board is confident that the Group can navigate the COVID-19 crisis
and deliver its strategy over the longer term as the trading
environment normalises.
Andrew Leaitherland, Group CEO at DWF, said:
"Today's announcement demonstrates DWF's strong relationship
with its lenders and we are pleased with their continued support.
These actions will help to ensure we retain strong liquidity to
navigate the challenges presented by COVID-19.
"We are well placed to deal with the current economic pressures
through our resilient, counter-cyclical business model. While
activity levels in some areas of our business have reduced due to
COVID-19, we are beginning to see an increase in activity and
revenue opportunities in other areas, including insurance. We
continue to win new appointments, including to BT's new legal
panel, which will provide access to more complex work in addition
to our Managed Services contract. We are also seeing a growing
interest in our Managed Services offering, as clients take cost out
of their business at this critical time. In addition, we have
implemented our cost saving programmes which are anticipated to
deliver a material benefit in FY21."
DWF intends to release a trading update in the second half of
May for its financial year ending 30 April 2020.
For further information
DWF Group plc
James Igoe - Head of Communications +44 (0)20 7280 8929
Finsbury (PR advisers to DWF)
Ed Simpkins +44 (0)20 7251 3801
Charles O'Brien
The person responsible for arranging for the release of this
announcement on behalf of the Company is Chris Stefani, Group Chief
Financial Officer.
About DWF
DWF is a global legal business providing Complex, Managed and
Connected Services, operating from 33 key locations with
approximately 4,200 people. The Company became the first Main
Market Premium Listed legal business on the London Stock Exchange
in March 2019. DWF recorded revenue of GBP272.4 million in the year
ended
30 April 2019. For more information visit: www.dwf.law
Forward-looking statements
This announcement contains certain forward-looking statements
with respect to the Group's current targets, expectations and
projections about future performance, anticipated events or trends
and other matters that are not historical facts. These
forward-looking statements, which sometimes use words such as
"aim", "anticipate", "believe", "intend", "plan" "estimate",
"expect" and words of similar meaning, include all matters that are
not historical facts and reflect the directors' beliefs and
expectations and involve a number of risks, uncertainties and
assumptions that could cause actual results and performance to
differ materially from any expected future results or performance
expressed or implied by the forward-looking statement. The Company
does not assume any obligation to update or correct information
contained in this announcement (whether as a result of new
information, future events or otherwise), except as required by
applicable law.
This information is provided by RNS, the news service of the
London Stock Exchange. RNS is approved by the Financial Conduct
Authority to act as a Primary Information Provider in the United
Kingdom. Terms and conditions relating to the use and distribution
of this information may apply. For further information, please
contact rns@lseg.com or visit www.rns.com.
END
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April 24, 2020 02:00 ET (06:00 GMT)
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