Woolworths and its home improvement partner Lowe’s Companies have injected another AUD90 million (USD63.7m) into their loss-making joint venture – the fourth capital injection this year – even though Woolworths has cut back spending on Masters stores.
Documents lodged with the Australian Securities and Investments Commission this week show that the Hydrox Holdings joint venture issued 90 million new shares at AUD1 each – 60 million to Woolworths and 30 million to Lowe’s – on August 28, the same day that Woolworths revealed that losses from home improvement jumped 33 percent to AUD224.7 million in 2015.
Losses at Masters blew out from AUD176 million to AUD245 million, while profits at Home Timber and Hardware rebounded 198 percent to AUD20.9 million, boosted by recent acquisitions.
(Source: The Sydney Morning Herald Online )