Adam Aron, CEO of AMC Entertainment, said the nation’s largest cinema chain has raised $204 million of the at least $750 million needs to get to the other side of a global pandemic that has crippled moviegoing.
AMC raised cash from stock and bonds sales in rounds in April, June, October and most recently in December as Covid-19 dragged on, Aron noted Tuesday in an interview with CNBC.
But, “We’re not there yet… We are off to a very god start. But we will need to raise more capital to make it to the other side,” he said.
Asked about potential “strategic partnerships” if the funds don’t materialize, Aron said, “That’s not in the cards. At least for now. I mean, you never say never to anything.”
He also said he’s not expecting any help from Covid-19 relief funds in the latest aid package coming from Washington, D.C.
“Our Congress has certainly done no favors for AMC Entertainment … I think there’s a bias in Washington towards helping small business and assuming that big business will rely on self-help.”
That what AMC has been doing, he said, “since theaters closed and our revenue went to zero overnight.”
AMC, the biggest global chain, was also one of the most indebted as the coronavirus hit, leaving in a dicey situation. Its stock has plunged since March, closing down 1.5%Tuesday at $1.98. A group of bondholders have been nudging it to file for Chapter 11 and restructure, which it ultimately may have to do. But Aron is clearly really hoping to avoid that.
AMC is majority owned by Wanda Group of China, which would see its holdings wiped out in a bankruptcy along with other shareholders.