Moody's rates MSCI loan Ba2; outlook positive

Moody's Investors Service said it assigned a Ba2 to a proposed $1.375 billion credit facility of MSCI, Inc., affirmed the Ba2 corporate family rating and changed the outlook to positive from developing.

Under a definitive merger agreement, MSCI agreed to acquire RiskMetrics Group, Inc.'s outstanding common equity in a cash and stock transaction for total consideration of about $1.6 billion, the agency said.

The existing secured debt of both MSCI and RiskMetrics is expected to be repaid in connection with the acquisition, Moody's noted, stating that the transaction is expected to be funded with existing cash of MSCI and RiskMetrics, newly issued common stock of MSCI and a new $1.275 billion secured term loan facility.

"The RiskMetrics business is a solid strategic fit for MSCI and substantially increases its scale and product line diversification. RiskMetrics' multi-asset class analytic products are market leaders with significant growth potential and will nicely complement MSCI's equity index, equity analytic, and multi-asset class product lines," stated Lenny Ajzenman, senior vice president.

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