Spirit Airlines shares slide after report of possible bankruptcy filing

6:36 pm Thursday, October 03rd, 2024

(Reuters) -Spirit Airlines is in talks with bondholders over the terms of a potential bankruptcy filing in the wake of its failed merger with JetBlue Airways, the Wall Street Journal reported on Thursday, sending its shares down 30% in extended trading.

The airline has also been exploring restructuring its balance sheet through an out-of-court transaction, though recent talks have been more focused on reaching a deal with bondholders and other creditors to support a Chapter 11 filing, the WSJ reported, citing people familiar with the matter.

The timing of such a filing, should it happen, would not be imminent, according to the report.

In response to the WSJ report, Spirit pointed to the company’s second-quarter earnings call where CEO Ted Christie said the company was in talks with the advisers of its bondholders to address the upcoming debt maturities, due in 2025 and 2026.

“Because those conversations are ongoing, we are not going to go into detail or take any questions on this topic or speculate on potential outcomes,” Christie had said, adding it was a priority and the company was focused on securing the “best outcome for the business as quickly as possible.”

The news of the potential bankruptcy comes months after Christie said the airline was not considering a Chapter 11 bankruptcy and is “encouraged” by the plan it had in place after the deal with JetBlue fell through.

JetBlue and Spirit scrapped their $3.8 billion merger agreement in March after a U.S. judge blocked the deal in January on anti-competition concerns.

If the deal had gone through, it would have created the fifth-largest carrier in the United States and given Spirit a chance to survive at a time when it burns through cash while being saddled with debt.

Spirit has warned of a steeper loss in the third quarter mainly due to an “intense competitive battle” for price-sensitive leisure travelers and an oversupply of airline seats in the domestic market.

Spirit has failed to report a profit in the last five out of six quarters, raising doubts about its ability to service debt.

In fiscal 2023, the airline had about $3.06 billion in long-term debt and finance leases, excluding current maturities.

(Reporting by Ananya Mariam Rajesh in Bengaluru; Editing by Shailesh Kuber and Ani D’Silva)