Moody's: WellPoint debt Baa1

Moody's Investors Service said it assigned a Baa1 senior debt rating to WellPoint, Inc.'s issuance of $1.1 billion of new long-term debt.

The outlook is stable.

The debt issuance is a draw on the company's shelf registration, which it filed in December 2008. WellPoint expects to use the net proceeds to fund the acquisition of CareMore Health Group, for partial repayment of senior notes maturing in 2012 and other general corporate purposes including repayment of commercial paper.

The rating considers the company's strong business profile driven by its national presence, the Blue Cross and Blue Shield brand name and its leading market position in most of the states in which it operates, the agency said.

The rating is also supported by a solid financial profile characterized by its consistent earnings performance, good level of capitalization and moderate financial leverage, offset somewhat by the large amount of goodwill and intangible assets on the balance sheet, 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.