:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc()/GettyImages-2172439643-25571f0fc05648339fa61f888167481f.jpg "Spirit Airlines Stock Flies After Carrier Extends Debt Refinancing Deadline")
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Key Takeaways
- Spirit Airlines shares surged higher Monday morning as the carrier said it extended a deadline for debt refinancing with Visa and Mastercard.
- The discount airline also said it has used all of a $300 million revolving credit line, and expects to have about $1 billion of liquidity by the end of 2024.
- Shares were up nearly 40% in premarket trading, but already lost nearly 90% of their value since the start of the year.
Spirit Airlines (SAVE) shares jumped nearly 40% in premarket trading Monday as markets reacted to a late-Friday filing that saw the discount carrier say it has extended the deadline on a debt refinancing plan with credit card processors Visa (V) and Mastercard (MA).
The deadline for the refinancing originally was extended from September to Monday, but Spirit said in the filing that the deadline has been extended again to Dec. 23. The company said it “remains in active and constructive discussions with holders of its senior secured notes due 2025 and convertible senior notes due 2026 with respect to their respective maturities.”
Spirit also said it has borrowed the entire $300 million available from a revolving credit line, and expects to end the year with at least $1 billion in liquidity.
Spirit Stock Has Plunged Since Abandoned Merger With JetBlue
Shares of the discount airline were up 37% at $2.01 an hour before the opening bell Monday, but have lost nearly 90% of their value since the start of the year.
Legal challenges that eventually led Spirit and JetBlue Airways (JBLU) to abandon their attempted merger; cost-cutting maneuvers like delaying jet deliveries and furloughing pilots amid warnings of lower revenue; and a recent report that Spirit is considering filing for bankruptcy have sent the stock plummeting this year.