Moody's cuts Whitney outlook to negative

Moody's Investors Service said it changed the outlook on Whitney Holding Co. (senior at A3) and its subsidiaries, including its lead bank, Whitney National Bank (bank financial strength at C+ and long-term deposits at A2) to negative from stable.

Moody's noted the negative outlook reflects the company's aggressive capital management, as evidenced by maintenance of a dividend in excess of earnings for the past two quarters, as well as by Whitney's financing of its acquisition of Parish National Corp., which is scheduled to close in the fourth quarter of 2008, and will result in increased leverage.

Moody's further noted the potential that in the near to intermediate term, Whitney could face sizable credit charges that would further strain its capital position.

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