LOS ANGELES — A recent motion filed in court by Oaktree Capital Management indicates Quiksilver’s business continues to be weighed down by struggles impacting others operating in the same space.
Oaktree agreed to provide as much as $115 million in debtor-in-possession financing to the Huntington Beach-based multibrand apparel company and retailer after Quiksilver filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in October. Oaktree is now asking a bankruptcy court judge to rule on how much secured note holders’ collateral has fallen since Quiksilver sought bankruptcy protection. The Los Angeles-based investment firm argued in its motion that it’s at least $68.5 million.
Oaktree cited a report from Houlihan Lokey Capital Inc. as the basis for its argument, saying Quiksilver’s enterprise value and performance trends show a decline in the company’s enterprise value since the Chapter 11 filing.
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The enterprise value of the reorganized company was earlier estimated to be between $499 million and $602 million, with a midpoint of $546 million, according to research done by Peter J. Solomon Co. The creditors committee criticized the figure, arguing it was far lower than the $735 million minimum set for any potential bids coming in for the company, which, based on the latest filing from Oaktree, have yet to materialize.
“The unsecured noteholders who comprise a majority of the [creditors’] committee have had every opportunity to put their money where their mouth is, but have declined to do so,” the Oaktree motion said. “Furthermore, the retail space is competitive, and if the deal under the plan for the debtors’ pre-petition secured parties was too good, one would expect that any number of the many third parties the debtors contacted during the marketing process would have made a bid, but that has not happened either.”
The Houlihan report went on to suggest investor appetite for the broader industry Quiksilver swims in has been tepid with valuations, trading multiples and operating performance of the company’s peers on the decline since the bankruptcy filing.
Action sports and streetwear brands have faced a particularly tumultuous last few years due to the rise of fast-fashion chains and a shift away from logo-based designs.
A hearing on Quiksilver’s reorganization plan has been scheduled for Jan. 27.