WeightWatchers said on Tuesday it is filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection to eliminate $1.15bn (€1bn) in debt and focus on its transition into a telehealth services provider.
Parent WW International Inc. said it has the support of nearly three-quarters of its debt holders. It expects to emerge from bankruptcy within 45 days, if not sooner.
WeightWatchers, which was founded more than 60 years ago, has seen its revenue decline in recent quarters.
In 2023, the company moved into the prescription drug weight loss business — particularly with the $106 million (€93.3 million) acquisition of Sequence, now WeightWatchers Clinic, a telehealth service that helps users get prescriptions for drugs like Ozempic, Wegovy and Trulicity.
Credit ratings firm S&P Global Ratings downgraded WeightWatchers in February, saying its subscriber base has aged and the brand is not popular among the younger generations.
WeightWatchers has more than $1.4bn (€1.23bn) of loans and bonds that come due in 2028 and 2029, reported the Wall Street Journal at the beginning of April. The newspaper broke the news first that the health and wellness company is preparing to file for bankruptcy in the coming months.
WeightWatchers’ latest earnings report on Tuesday showed that first-quarter revenue declined by 10% while its loss on an adjusted basis totalled 47 cents per share. However, clinical subscription revenue — or weight-loss medications — jumped 57% year over year to $29.5 million (€25.97 million).
In September, WW International CEO Sima Sistani resigned, and the New York company named Tara Comonte, a WeightWatchers board member and former Shake Shack executive, interim chief executive.
Comonte, now CEO, said in a statement on Tuesday: “As the conversation around weight shifts toward long-term health, our commitment to delivering the most trusted, science-backed, and holistic solutions —grounded in community support and lasting results — has never been stronger, or more important.”
Shares of the company have traded at under $1 since early February. In after-hours trading in the US, the stock plunged by half to 39 cents.
The bankruptcy filing was made in the US Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware.