Pub closures means less beer is being drunk,which has hit demand for malt.Credit:Alamy
"Subject to the decisions of each government to ease restrictions in each of our markets,we expect a slow return to pre-COVID-19 volumes. We anticipate that consumers may remain cautious on returning to public venues which may continue to impact on-premise sales,"said the company's chief executive Mark Palmquist.
United Malt,one of the world's largest maltsters,also unveiled plans to cut costs by about $10 million in the second half of this financial year,including a 20 per cent cut in directors'fees and the base salary for the group's senior executives for the rest of the financial year. It will also defer $5 million of capital expenditure.
The company is seeking to sell $140 million in new shares via a fully underwritten placement to fund managers,with the new shares priced at $3.80 apiece,11.4 per cent cheaper than the company's last trading price of $4.29 on Wednesday.
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The stock went into a trading halt for the capital raising on Thursday morning before the market opened,and is expected to remain in a halt until Monday.
In addition to the $140 million placement with institutional investors the maltster will undertake a share purchase plan for retail shareholders that aims to raise up to $25 million. Retail investors will be able to buy up to $30,000 of new shares.