The Propel Funeral Partners Ltd (ASX: PFP) share price won't be going anywhere on Monday after the company requested a trading halt this morning.
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What's the trading halt for?
The Propel Funeral share price is halted pending an announcement regarding an institutional placement and a follow-on share purchase plan.
The company advised that the trading halt will remain in place until Wednesday 20 October or when an announcement is made to the market in relation to the outcome of the placement.
According to the company's FY21 results, it had $7.5 million of cash and $79 million of net debt as at 30 June 2021.
Growth via acquisitions
Propel Funeral has spent almost $150 million on acquisitions since its ASX debut in late 2017.
More recently, the company committed $15.4 million on three acquisitions to drive its presence in the South Australian and New Zealand markets.
According to its FY21 full-year results, the company said that it "remains focused on its core investment strategy to acquire assets and social infrastructure which operate in the death care industry in Australia and New Zealand".
What's next for Propel Funeral?
The Propel Funeral share price is sitting around all-time highs following resilient operating and financial performance so far in FY21-22.
The company recently provided a trading update for the first quarter of FY22, citing modest revenue growth of 13% against the prior corresponding period whilst performing a record number of funerals in the first quarter.
Despite COVID-19 impacts, management said that "hopefully extended lockdowns, strict funeral attendee limits and travel restrictions will soon be behind us, enabling bereaved client families to grieve in a manner that they ordinarily would, surrounded by family and friends."
Encouragingly, Victoria announced last week the easing of restrictions from midnight, Thursday 21 October. This will allow 20 fully vaccinated people to attend indoor funerals and weddings or 50 outdoors.
Propel Funeral share price snapshot
The Propel Funeral share price is up 55% year-to-date, closing at record highs of $4.42 last Friday.
