Fitch Rates Target's $1.25B Notes 'A+'; Rating Watch Negative.CHICAGO -- 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. has assigned an 'A+' rating to Target's new 6.5% $1.25 billion notes due 2037. The proceeds from the offering will be used for general corporate purposes. Fitch fitch: see polecat. has also placed Target's new note issue on Rating Watch Negative. The rating reflects Target's successful business strategy of offering high-quality fashionable merchandise at affordable prices, which has attracted customers at different income levels. In addition, the rating considers Target's steady revenue and profit growth as well as high percentage of real estate ownership. This is balanced by the possibility of a more aggressive financial posture posture /pos·ture/ (pos´choor) the attitude of the body.pos´tural pos·ture n. 1. A position of the body or of body parts. 2. , intense competition in the discounter segment and potential pressure on its customers due to high energy costs. Fitch placed Target's ratings on Rating Watch Negative on Sept. 13, following the company's announcement that it will review ownership alternatives for its credit card receivables as well as reevaluate its use of debt in its capital structure and its pace of share repurchases Share Repurchase A program by which a company buys back its own shares from the marketplace, reducing the number of outstanding shares. This is usually an indication that the company's management thinks the shares are undervalued. . Of importance in resolving the Rating Watch Negative will be the amount and application of proceeds from a sale of the credit card receivables portfolio, the terms of any ongoing agreement between Target and the potential acquirer, and the changes in the company's capital structure. Fitch expects to resolve the Rating Watch Negative status as the company completes its reviews, expected for the end of December, as more details are disclosed. 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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