PARIS (Agefi-Dow Jones)–An equity investment by Caisse des Dépôts in the capital of the manager, the operator of retirement homes Orpea “is not on the agenda”, the financial institution said on Friday. public to the Agefi-Dow Jones agency.
Faced with a colossal debt of 9.5 billion euros as well as the need to find fresh money by the end of the first quarter of 2023, Orpea would have surveyed “very discreetly” French institutional investors, including the Caisse deposits, to come to his aid, Challenges reported Thursday shortly before the close of equity markets.
“The Bercy crisis cell, the Interministerial Committee for Industrial Restructuring, is not officially involved for the moment,” said the weekly.
Challenges also reported that Orpea’s advisory bank, Rothschild & Co, would explore solutions on the side of hedge funds by offering them to convert bond debt into capital.
Contacted by Agefi-Dow Jones, a spokesperson for Orpea declined to comment on this information.
Following the downward trend in its financial performance in the first half, a movement which could be amplified in the second half of the year, Orpea warned in September that the situation could require the group to “get closer to the creditors concerned to renegotiate the financial covenants impacted”.
“Such an approach would only be undertaken in the event of a proven risk of non-compliance with the ratio, in order to preserve the group’s financial structure”, added Orpea.
Around 4 p.m., Orpea shares fell 0.3% to 14.95 euros. Since the beginning of the year, the title has fallen by more than 80% in the wake of the publication of the book-investigation “Les Fossoyeurs” questioning the practices of Orpea in the management of its establishments.
-Vincent Alsuar, Agefi-Dow Jones, and Laurence Pochard, Institute Invest; +33 (0)1 41 27 47 39; [email protected] ed: VLV – ECH
Website: https://www.challenges.fr/entreprise/scandale-des-ehpad-la-caisse-des-depots-appelee-au-secours-dorpea_832262
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October 21, 2022 10:05 ET (14:05 GMT)