Lithuanian retail chain Maxima Grupė has received a BB+ credit rating with a stable perspective from Standard & Poor’s (S&P). It is the highest speculative grade available to market participants.
Maxima Grupė is the first private company in the Baltic region to receive such a rating, and it is the highest-rated retailer among others in Europe of similar size, with an annual revenue of approximately €4 billion.
Gaining Momentum
The rating is significant for a business focused on a relatively small Baltic market, according to the company.
The group’s growing market share in Poland and sustainable business practices are among the reasons cited for the high evaluation. Maxima Grupė has also recently created a committee responsible for auditing all financial statements in an effort to 'strengthen Maxima Grupė’s corporate governance,' while emphasising transparency and effectiveness.
Additionally, in May, the group announced that it had a turnover of €2.8 billion for full-year 2017 – an increase of 4.2% from the previous year. The group netted €75 million, and it invested nearly all of the consolidated profit – €70 million – back into its store portfolio.
Heading Towards Further Expansion
Maxima Grupė applied for a credit rating in order to open up the possibility for bond issuance.
According to the chairman of the board and CEO of Maxima Grupė, Dalius Misiūnas, “Credit rating is only one of many factors in our considerations. Of course, after the positive evaluation, bond issuance remains an attractive option for further business development in foreign markets."
Additionally, the company has begun considering all possibilities for financing its business development.
"It is important to take into account all other criteria. For us, [the credit rating] opens up new opportunities in international capital markets and serves as proof that the group has reached [a] level of business maturity, giving us access to the same financial instruments as large European retailers," Misiūnas said.
© 2018 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Padideh Aghanoury. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: European Supermarket Magazine.
