Moody’s drops Duke Energy, Progress Energy

Moody's Investors Service said it downgraded Duke Energy Corp.’s (Duke) senior unsecured long-term ratings to Baa1 from A3, Progress Energy, Inc.’s senior unsecured long-term ratings to Baa2 from Baa1 and Duke Energy Progress, LLC’s issuer rating to A2 from A1.

Duke’s outlook is negative. The outlooks on Progress and Duke Energy Progress are stable.

The agency affirmed Duke's Prime-2 short-term rating for commercial paper and affirmed the ratings of subsidiaries Duke Energy Carolinas, LLC (A1 senior unsecured), Duke Energy Florida, Inc. (A3 senior unsecured), Duke Energy Indiana, Inc. (A2 senior unsecured), Duke Energy Ohio, Inc. (Baa1 senior unsecured), and Duke Energy Kentucky, Inc. (Baa1 senior unsecured) with stable outlooks.

"The downgrade of Duke is prompted by weak consolidated financial metrics, a high level of debt at the Duke holding company, and the pending acquisition of Piedmont Natural Gas Co., Inc. (A2 stable), which will worsen these credit factors," Moody’s associate managing director Michael G. Haggarty said in a news release.

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