December 3 (SeeNews) - Croatian shipping company Uljanik Plovidba [ZSE:ULPL] has invited investors to subscribe for a capital hike of up to 25 million kuna ($3.8 million/3.4 million euro) through the issue of preference shares.
Uljanik Plovidba will issue 250,000 preferred shares with no voting rights and a nominal value of 100 kuna apiece, while investors will be able to subscribe at a price of 120 kuna per share, the company said in a filing with the Zagreb Stock Exchange on Friday.
The capital hike will be used to raise financing necessary to reduce loan exposure and create preconditions for improving liquidity and to strengthen the company's financial stability by maintaining the desired debt and capital ratios, Uljanik Plovidba explained.
The share capital of the company amounts to 232 million kuna and is divided into 580,000 ordinary registered shares of 400 kuna in par value each. After the completion of the share issue, Uljanik Plovidba's share capital will be increased to 257 million kuna.
The preferred shares give shareholders the right for an annual dividend of 5% of the nominal amount of the share, the right to receive the difference up to the full amount of the dividend that the holders of ordinary shares are entitled to for the relative business year, the right to collect accumulated and outstanding dividends over a period of three years, the right of priority at payment of the remaining liquidation or bankruptcy value.
Last month, Uljanik Plovidba said it signed a contract with a foreign creditor for a partial refinancing of an existing loan. The rest of the funds needed for the planned overall refinancing will be secured from alternative sources of financing, which will significantly reduce the debt exposure of the company, it said back in November.
(1 euro = 7.40622 kuna)