S&P assigns Kroger notes BBB

Standard & Poor's said it assigned its BBB issue-level rating to Kroger Co.'s $500 million senior unsecured notes due 2021.

The company will issue the notes under its shelf registration and will use net proceeds to repurchase some of Kroger's outstanding commercial paper and for general corporate purposes.

The agency doesn’t think the transaction will have an impact on forecast leverage measures, which it expects to be in the low-3 times area.

S&P said the ratings reflect Kroger's leading position in the food retailing industry, its strong relative operating performance trends compared with most industry peers, meaningful excess cash flow and leverage anticipated to be in the low-3 times area. The agency believes the company's financial policy supports the investment-grade credit rating.

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