Marston’s secures extension of debt facilities

The revised £340m debt facilities are comprised of a £300m revolving credit facility (RCF) with the continued support of all its existing and two new banks, together with a restatement of its current £40m private placement (PP).

The RCF replaces the 1,445-strong pub group’s existing £280m facility. The facility cost is variable, to be determined by the level of leverage or drawings from time to time alongside changes in the SONIA rate.

As previously reported in The Morning Advertiser's sister publication MCA​, £120m of the facility is hedged.

The group has said it continues to make progress on its ‘back to a billion’ strategy and trading remains in line with expectations.

It will announce interim results on 16 May 2023.

Earlier this month, Marston’s announced it is marketing a selection of 61 freehold pubs​ from its estate in England and Wales.

Marston's head of estates Judith Rafique said at the time: “Following a routine review of our estate we have taken the decision to offer to market a varied range of property types. This enables us to focus on our strategic objectives and maximise returns from our core estate.”

The group reported positive sales momentum​ in December, with like-for-like sales up 4.5% for the 16-week period to 21 January 2023 compared to FY2020.

At the time, Marston’s CEO Andrew Andrea said: “We have continued to see positive sales momentum through the festive season and into the new year, with particularly strong demand on the key Christmas and new year trading days.

“While we still have certain cost challenges to navigate in 2023, we are well positioned to continue to progress our strategy and are encouraged by the level of consumer resilience experienced to date.”