FTSE 100 engine manufacturer Rolls-Royce Holdings (LSE:RR) is having a tough year. The coronavirus pandemic brought airlines screaming to a halt, putting parts and repairs on hold. This immediately affected Rolls-Royce, creating unparalleled challenges for the company. The Rolls-Royce share price is down 13% in the past month and 65% year-to-date. Unfortunately, a further slide seems likely.
Power-by-the-Hour
The Rolls-Royce income model is unusual. Power-by-the-Hour, a Rolls-Royce trademark, was conceived in 1962. It means the company sells its engines at a loss, making its money from aftercare service. This guarantees the buyer a quality service and engines that perform well, while the firm enjoys a steady income based on hours flown. It is a model that worked well for over 50 years, but the pandemic has seen it come crashing to a halt. The business is now haemorrhaging money as the costs to continue far outweigh the money flowing in. Illustrating why the Rolls-Royce share price is suffering so badly.
£1.5bn rights issue
Financial analysts examining the company have warned that it could need to raise a minimum of £6bn to get through the crisis. Ratings agency Moody’s downgraded the Rolls-Royce credit rating to Junk at the end of July, which makes it much more difficult to borrow sizeable sums of money. As a business that requires large amounts of cash to operate, it is resorting to a rights issue to shore up its funds.
A rights issue is basically a share placing, diluting the existing shares, by introducing a batch of new ones. These are offered to existing shareholders, giving them the opportunity to own more of the company at a lower price. In its upcoming rights issue, scheduled for September, it hopes to raise £1.5bn to improve its balance sheet and help recovery from the pandemic-induced aviation crash.
It is also considering putting its Spanish turbines manufacturer, ITP Aero, up for sale. From this, it would hope to raise around £1bn. Prior to this it already cut 9,000 jobs and cancelled its dividend, both of which further hammered the RR share price.
Rolls-Royce share price woes
Although the airline business is struggling, Rolls-Royce is a world-leader in other areas of manufacture. I like that it is heavily involved in Artificial Intelligence, which is a business for the modern age. If it can get its financial worries under control, then I think it still has a lot going for it.
Geopolitical tensions, on heightened alert for years, now appear to be escalating. This benefits the Rolls-Royce defence division, which continues to receive government orders. There is clearly a lot of concern surrounding how it can get back on track, but I will be very surprised if this company goes under.
This may make the shares a tempting bargain at current prices. However, with the rights issue ahead, I imagine they have further to fall. I would wait until later in the year before considering buying any shares.
