Regal, the second-largest movie theater chain stateside, is taking its next step in its restructuring process.
The Knoxville-based division of exhibitor Cineworld said Tuesday it has secured a $1.9 billion Term B loan in its latest refinancing effort with a maturity date of December 2031. The chain’s move also includes a $350 million revolving credit facility.
The deal, overseen by Barclays, Deutsche Bank, JP Morgan, Wells Fargo, Goldman Sachs and Texas Capital, marks the latest financial rework by the chain.
Regal also disclosed that it saw $1 billion-plus in total revenue and 49 million moviegoers at its locations in its most recent quarter.
In July, Regal said it had secured $250 million to give its theaters an upgrade and refurbish its already existing locations (425 theaters across the country) with luxury recliners and other amenities. The company’s owner, Cineworld, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in September 2022 and emerged from its restructuring process last year.”
“The overwhelmingly positive market reception for this transaction is a signal of the momentum we are seeing in our business,” said Eduardo Acuna, CEO at Regal Cineworld. “In Q3, Regal Cineworld welcomed over 49 million guests to our theatres and generated total revenue of over $1 billion dollars with record-high levels of spend per person on concessions. With the refinancing transaction, we will save $60 million per year in interest expense, which puts our successful restructuring squarely in the past.”
So far in 2024, total domestic box office sits at $7.78 billion through Dec. 1, per Comscore figures. That tally is about 6.3 percent behind the $8.3 billion in grosses that theaters in the U.S. and Canada saw by this time last year.