What kind of restrictions may debt holders enforce on stockholders?

Debt holders often require certain restrictions to protect their investments and ensure that the company remains financially stable enough to meet its obligations. One of the primary restrictions they can impose on stockholders revolves around limitations on dividends.

When a company takes on debt, lenders want to ensure that the cash flow generated by the business is primarily used to service the debt (i.e., pay interest and principal repayments) rather than being distributed to shareholders. By limiting dividends, debt holders can prevent the company from over-distributing profits, thereby maintaining sufficient liquidity to fulfill its debt obligations. This restriction serves as a safeguard for creditors, as it helps ensure that there are adequate resources available to meet financial commitments.

Limitations on share sales, restrictions on company expansion, and restrictions on cash distributions may be concerns for shareholders and could be part of broader covenants, but they are not as directly tied to the immediate financial interests of debt holders as dividend limitations are. These restrictions are aimed at protecting the priority of cash flows towards creditors and maintaining the financial health of the company.