Moody's rates Chesapeake Energy notes Ba3

Moody's Investors Service said it changed Chesapeake Energy Corp.'s outlook to positive from stable and assigned a Ba3 rating to its pending $1.6 billion two-tranche offering of senior unsecured notes due 2018 and 2020. Moody's also said it affirmed the company's Ba2 corporate family rating, its SGL-3 speculative grade liquidity rating and its existing debt ratings. Net proceeds will retire up to $1.5 billion in existing notes under a tender offer launched August 3.

The positive outlook reflects a reasonable expectation that the company's announced deleveraging plan may lead to a one notch upgrade in 12 to 18 months, Moody's said.

The ratings are supported by the company's large and diversified property base, notably large and diversified drilling inventory, drilling capital spending carry from its joint venture partners, sound 2010 hedge coverage and the substantial work already done to improve its leverage profile, the agency said.

The ratings are restrained by still high leverage, heavy capital outlays, reliance on large asset monetizations to supplement operating cash flows, weak natural gas prices and a low level of 2011 hedging, Moody's said.

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