Fitch affirms Focus Wickes ratings

Fitch Ratings said it has affirmed Focus Wickes (Investments) Ltd.'s senior unsecured and senior secured ratings of B+ and BB, respectively. The agency has also affirmed the rating on Focus Wickes (Finance) plc's £260 million mezzanine notes due 2011 at B.

The outlook remains stable.

Fitch said the ratings reflect the Focus Wickes group's strong position as an established player behind Kingfisher-owned B&Q in the high-growth and cash generative, albeit highly competitive, do-it-yourself market in the United Kingdom.

Nevertheless, Fitch notes the lower operational and financial flexibility of Focus Wickes relative to other players such as B&Q with larger geographic diversification of sales and profits.

© 2015 Prospect News.
All content on this website is protected by copyright law in the U.S. and elsewhere. For the use of the person downloading only.
Redistribution and copying are prohibited by law without written permission in advance from Prospect News.
Redistribution or copying includes e-mailing, printing multiple copies or any other form of reproduction.