Fitch Rates Montclair State University's (New Jersey) Series 2008 J Revs 'A'; Outlook Stable.NEW YORK New York, state, United States New York, Middle Atlantic state of the United States. It is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of -- Fitch Ratings Fitch Ratings An international rating agency for financial institutions, insurance companies, and corporate, sovereign, and municipal debt. Fitch Ratings has headquarters in New York and London and is wholly owned by FIMALAC of Paris. assigns an 'A' rating to the approximately $30,000,000 of New Jersey Educational Facilities Authority, revenue bonds (Montclair State University History Montclair State was established in 1908 as "Montclair Normal School" in response to a growing need for teachers. It was renamed "Montclair State Teachers College" in 1927, when it developed a program of educating secondary school teachers through a Bachelor of Arts Issue), series 2008 J. The bonds are scheduled to sell via negotiation in late December 2008 or early January 2009. Fitch also affirms the 'A' rating on Montclair State University's (the university's) approximately $340.4 million of outstanding revenue bonds. The series 2008 J bonds, which rank on parity with outstanding revenue bonds, are a general obligation of the university, payable from all legally available funds. The Rating Outlook is Stable. The 'A' rating primarily reflects the university's stable student demand and steady enrollment growth; consistently positive operations; and pricing flexibility afforded by low tuition rates. Credit concerns include the university's limited, though improving, liquidity; moderately high debt burden, coupled with additional capital needs; and fluctuating state appropriations, which are expected to be further strained over the near term due to current fiscal pressures at the state level (State of New Jersey general obligation debt rated 'AA-' by Fitch). The Stable Rating Outlook reflects Fitch's expectation that the university will maintain stable demand trends and continue to generate positive operating margins. While the university's consistent operating performance and dramatic improvement in liquidity over the past few years would potentially suggest a rating level higher than 'A', the university expects to debt finance additional capital needs over the near term to account for expected enrollment growth. Prudent implementation of the university's multi-year capital plan while maintaining operations and liquidity at or near current levels may potentially lead to positive rating action. Full-time equivalent Full-time equivalent (FTE) is a way to measure a worker's involvement in a project, or a student's enrollment at an educational institution. An FTE of 1.0 means that the person is equivalent to a full-time worker, while an FTE of 0.5 signals that the worker is only half-time. (FTE FTE Full-Time Equivalent FTE Full-Time Employee FTE Full-Time Equivalency FTE Full Time Employment FTE Foundation for Teaching Economics FTE Full Time Enrollment FTE For the Enterprise (SQL) FTE Fund for Theological Education ) enrollment increased 25.5% from fall 2004 to fall 2008. Fall 2008 FTE's were 14,388, up 5.7% from 13,616 in fall 2007. While 93% of students are New Jersey residents, the university is extending its reach across the state, receiving applications from an increasing number of counties. Applications received increased a significant 20% for fall 2008 to 12,012. The university's tuition rates are in the mid to lower range among New Jersey public colleges and universities, providing pricing flexibility. While it maintains a mission of affordability, tuition rates are not capped by the state legislature A state legislature may refer to a legislative branch or body of a political subdivision in a federal system. The following legislatures exist in the following political subdivisions: The university has maintained consistently positive operations, with an average operating margin of 7.8% over the past five fiscal years; 8.2% in fiscal 2008. Positive operations have been driven in part by enrollment growth and annual tuition increases. Tuition and auxiliary revenues represent the university's largest funding source and accounted for 55.3% of revenues in fiscal 2008. State appropriations represent the second largest funding source and accounted for 27.6% of revenues. Due to the volatile state funding environment in New Jersey, appropriations have accounted for an increasingly lesser percentage of revenues over the past few years. Total appropriations were $79.1 million in fiscal 2008, a 5.0% increase from fiscal 2007. However, general appropriations are expected to decline by approximately 6.5% for fiscal 2009. Fitch believes appropriation risk is partially mitigated by the university's experienced and proactive management team. While the university's liquidity is limited, available funds increased to $108.1 million in fiscal 2008 from $84.8 million in fiscal 2007. For fiscal 2008, available funds represented a solid 41.1% of operating expenses Operating expenses The amount paid for asset maintenance or the cost of doing business, excluding depreciation. Earnings are distributed after operating expenses are deducted. , but a low 28.1% of pro forma As a matter of form or for the sake of form. Used to describe accounting, financial, and other statements or conclusions based upon assumed or anticipated facts. The phrase pro forma debt, although this is not atypical for public colleges and universities in New Jersey The following is a list of colleges and universities in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Public and Private liberal arts colleges
Montclair State University is a four-year public university originally founded in 1908. Proceeds of the series 2008J bonds will be used to finance the construction of a new student housing facility on the university's Montclair, New Jersey campus, fund a capitalized interest Capitalized interest Interest that is not immediately expensed, but rather is considered as an asset and is then amortized through the income statement over time. In the context of project financing, interest that is paid by additional borrowing. fund, and to pay various costs of issuance. Fitch's rating definitions and the terms of use Terms of Use are rules set up by the owner of an intellectual property or service to govern how they may be legally used. In many cases, terms of service are used as a contractual agreement between a company and users of a service they provide. of such ratings are available on the agency's public site, www.fitchratings.com. Published ratings, criteria and methodologies are available from this site, at all times. Fitch's code of conduct, confidentiality, conflicts of interest, affiliate firewall, compliance and other relevant policies and procedures Policies and Procedures are a set of documents that describe an organization's policies for operation and the procedures necessary to fulfill the policies. They are often initiated because of some external requirement, such as environmental compliance or other governmental are also available from the 'Code of Conduct' section of this site. |
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