SANTA BARBARA, Calif./PRNewswire/ — CKE Restaurants, Inc. (“CKE” or the “Company”) (NYSE: CKR – news) today announced it has received loan commitments for an amended $100 million senior secured revolving credit facility to replace the Company’s $120 million revolving facility which matures on February 1, 2002. The participants are the agent banks in the present facility and include BNP Paribas as Agent, FirstBank and Trust, Wells Fargo Bank, Fleet National Bank and U.S. Bank. The amended facility, expected to close this month, is for a two-year term, and is extendable to five years under certain circumstances.
Dennis Lacey, CKE’s Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, stated: “We are very pleased that our core lenders have taken the time and interest to understand our business and the turnaround that management of the Company is undertaking. This financing is a critical piece of our strategic plan which provides for growing our principal brands, Carls’ Jr. and Hardees.”
Andrew Puzder, CKE’s President and Chief Executive Officer, went on to say: “This new financing is particularly gratifying for me. When I assumed the CEO position at CKE about one year ago, the bank situation was our most critical business issue because we owed our lenders approximately $250 million. We have repaid our lenders and continue to make steady progress in returning the Company to profitability. This financing is a major milestone in that journey.”
About The Company
CKE Restuarants, Inc. owns, operates and franchises approximately 3,400 quick-service restaurants, primarily under the Carls’ Jr. and Hardees brand names.
