Rite Aid to close 53 more stores amid bankruptcy proceedings
Rite Aid is shuttering 53 additional stores in nine states across the U.S. as part of the company's bankruptcy proceedings, according to recent court filings.
Stores are closing in California, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Virginia.
According to Reuters, Rite Aid received permission from a bankruptcy judge on March 28 to begin voting on a bankruptcy restructuring plan that would turn over most of the company's equity to its bondholders while still leaving open the possibility of a sale.
The company filed for bankruptcy in October in an attempt to address high debt. The filing aimed at shutting down poor performing locations and selling off "non-core business units," Reuters reported.
The initial list of store closures stood at 154 and has continued to grow throughout the bankruptcy proceedings.
Rite Aid has denied any wrongdoing, but is also still finalizing some settlements considered key to the restructuring process, including an agreement related to a Justice Department probe of the pharmacy's opioid sales, according to Reuters.
But lawyers for the company said it is ready to solicit votes from bondholders, who are the critical voting class in its bankruptcy.
No other group will be entitled to vote in Rite Aid's bankruptcy, and the bondholders' votes are due Monday.
A Rite Aid spokesperson said via email to FOX Business the company does not provide the media with a list of stores slated to close, but "we notified the court of certain underperforming stores we are closing to further reduce rent expense and strengthen overall financial performance."
The court filings did not give a timetable for the closures, according to WJW-TV.
Rite Aid expects to seek final court approval of its restructuring on April 22. It received bankruptcy court approval to sell its pharmacy benefit company, Elixir, in January.
Rite Aid's first full-service pharmacy opened in 1962 in Scranton, Pennsylvania, according to the company's website. It now operates roughly 1,700 retail pharmacy locations in 16 states with a workforce of 45,000.
Reuters contributed to this report.
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