London, July 25 - British pubs operator Mitchells & Butlers reported a small pick-up in trade over the early summer, driven by food, and announced a new three-year facility to cover its short-term borrowing, boosting its shares.
The owner of the Harvester and All Bar One chains said that on the basis of trading in its first 42 weeks, full-year earnings before exceptional items should meet its expectations.
M&B shares, which had fallen over 80 percent from their peak at 909 pence in May 2007, rose 3.5 percent to a seven-week high at 271.75 pence by 0830 GMT on Friday.
Cazenove analyst Tim Barrett said while the extension of M&B's short-term credit facility was more important, "the stability in like-for-like sales is also notable".
M&B, which now gets two thirds of its business from diners, said like-for-like sales rose 1.1 percent in the 10 weeks to July 19, up from 0.8 percent growth in the prior 32 weeks.
"Market conditions continue to be characterised by robust demand for good value pub food and associated sales of drinks while on-trade beer market volumes have continued to fall by about 10 percent over the past quarter," the company said.
Latest retail sales data showed May's big rise was reversed in June, to leave growth in the latest three months just 0.6 percent higher year-on-year, pleasing economists who were worried official data was out of kilter with anecdotal evidence.
M&B's latest increase was driven by a 5.1 percent rise in food sales, with drinks down 0.2 percent.
Growth at its neighbourhood pubs, or locals, which account for three quarters of group turnover, rose 2.0 percent.
Town centre pub sales fell 0.2 percent, although central London bucked that trend with good growth, providing more evidence euro-based tourists are spending heavily.
REIT ON TRACK
M&B said the overall interest rate on its new bank loan will increase slightly to 6.1 percent but meant it had an appropriate level of financing headroom for its development plans.
Cazenove's Barrett said M&B now had "a more stable balance sheet and more than three years to reduce debt through internal cash generation. Given market nervousness on the gearing in pubcos (pub companies), this facility could be key to an eventual rerating of the company".
M&B said it was still talking to advisers and the government to review the feasibility, costs and benefits of converting into a low-tax real estate investment trust (REIT), a plan it announced on May 20.
The government said earlier in May that Enterprise Inns, Britain's second biggest pubs group, could convert into a REIT, prompting others in the sector to look to follow suit.
M&B hopes to separate its property from its operating business, and use the REIT structure to slash its tax bill.
M&B's strategic review was prompted after it lost nearly 400 million pounds in an abandoned property deal with entrepreneur Robert Tchenguiz, who has a 27 percent stake in M&B.