S&P downgrades A&P

Standard & Poor's said it lowered the Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea Co.'s (A&P) corporate credit rating to CCC from B-.

The outlook is negative.

The downgrades reflect the company's weaker-than-expected sales and operating performance over the past year, S&P said.

The company has used more liquidity sources than forecast, the agency said, as it has funded required capital spending.

There was some improvement in operating trends in the company's third quarter of fiscal 2012, but even if those trends are annualized, S&P said it still expects the company to be cash flow negative given cash interest costs and necessary capital spending.

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