J. C. Penney Company Inc. is preparing to hold talks with its lenders to ease its debt as it gears up for the upcoming holiday season, Bloomberg News reported Sept. 19, citing people with knowledge of the matter.
J.C. Penney's advisers and some of the department store chain's bondholders are reportedly scheduled to sign nondisclosure agreements by September-end. The deals would allow advisers for groups of first-lien, second-lien and unsecured bondholders access to confidential company information, the sources told the news outlet.
In August, Bloomberg reported that J.C. Penney's noteholders are pushing for the company to undergo a possible debt swap or extension on some of its $4 billion of debt ahead of the maturities.
The company said in July that it has "no significant debt maturities coming due in the near term, and we continue to maintain a strong liquidity position." At the time, it denied hiring advisors to prepare for an in-court restructuring or bankruptcy.
Most recently, Bloomberg's sources reportedly said a bankruptcy filing is not a focus of the anticipated debt talks.
Sarah Holland, a spokeswoman for J.C. Penney, told the news outlet that "as a matter of policy, we do not comment on discussions with creditors and other partners."
Bloomberg said representatives for the advisory firms either declined to comment or did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Shares of J.C. Penney closed down 3.74% to 81 cents on Sept. 19 but surged 15.9% to 94 cents in daytime trading on Sept. 20.
On Aug. 8, the company received a delisting warning from the NYSE after trading under $1.00 for 30 consecutive trading days.
