Moody's: Home Depot positive

Moody's Investors Service said it changed Home Depot, Inc.'s outlook to positive from stable and affirmed its Baa1 senior rating and P-2 commercial paper rating.

The change in outlook to positive acknowledges Home Depot's solid growth in EBIT and its clear commitment to maintaining its targeted leverage ratio, the agency said. For the fiscal year ended Jan. 30, EBIT improved to $7.4 billion from $6.5 billion in the prior fiscal year as a result of an improvement in the broader economic environment and Home Depot's strong execution.

The positive outlook also reflects the expectation that the size of Home Depot's remaining share authorization will shrink over the near term to a level that is more in line with its cash flow, the agency added.

The ratings on Home Depot reflect its solid credit metrics, very good liquidity, its considerable scale and its market position as the largest dedicated home improvement retailer in the United States, Moody's said.

The ratings consider the significant progress that Home Depot has made in improving its in store shopping experience, website and supply chain, the agency added.

© 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.