S&P lifts Neuberger Berman

S&P said it raised its issuer credit rating on Neuberger Berman Group LLC to BBB+ from BBB and raised the issue rating on its senior unsecured notes to BBB+ from BBB.

The outlook is stable.

“The upgrade reflects Neuberger's solid operating performance in the year-to-date period. We now expect for leverage to be at the low end of our previous expectations (1.5x-2.0x) for full-year 2017,” the agency said in a news release.

S&P elevates Morgan Stanley

S&P said it raised Morgan Stanley’s subordinated debt rating to BBB and the preferred stock rating to BB+.

The agency also affirmed the long-term issuer credit ratings of BBB+ on Morgan Stanley and A+ on its core subsidiaries.

The outlook remains stable.

"Morgan Stanley has made major strides over several years in strengthening its business and financial profiles, bolstering its capital and liquidity, franchise strength and earnings, and its risk governance," S&P credit analyst Brendan Browne said in a news release.

S&P changes Caterpillar view

S&P said it revised its outlook on Caterpillar Inc. and Caterpillar Financial Services Corp. to stable from negative.

The agency also affirmed all of the ratings on the company and its subsidiaries.

“The outlook revision reflects our view that Caterpillar's end-markets have largely stabilized and will continue to gradually recover over the next two years,” S&P said in a news release.

“We expect the company will improve its profitability through 2018 on volume growth, benefits from prior restructuring activities, and cost discipline.”

Fitch to rate Discover Financial preferreds BB-

Fitch Ratings said it expects to rate Discover Financial Services' (DFS) $570 million perpetual preferred stock BB-(EXP).

The preferred shares are expected to be subordinated to existing subordinated debt but senior to common shares.

Proceeds are expected to be used for general corporate purposes, which may include advances to subsidiaries to finance their activities, repayment of outstanding debt, share repurchases, and/or the redemption of the series B preferred stock, which is eligible for redemption beginning on Dec. 1, 2017.

The preferred stock ratings are rated five notches below Discover Financial’s viability rating of bbb+ in accordance with Fitch's assessment of each instrument's respective non-performance and relative loss severity risk profile, the agency explained.

The preferred stock ratings include two notches for loss severity given these securities' deep subordination in the capital structure, and three notches for non-performance given that the dividends are non-cumulative and fully discretionary.

S&P rates Texas Instruments notes A+

S&P said it assigned an A+ issue-level rating to Texas Instruments Inc.'s proposed $500 million senior unsecured notes due 2027.

The A+ corporate credit rating is unchanged and the outlook remains stable.

“TI's minimal financial risk profile reflects its minimal leverage, at about 0.1x as of Sept. 30, pro forma for the new debt issuance and surplus cash adjustment, and our expectation for leverage to remain near this level over the intermediate term despite aggressive shareholder returns,” the agency said in a news release.

Moody’s rates Texas Instruments notes A1

Moody's Investors Service said it assigned an A1 rating to the proposed senior unsecured notes of Texas Instruments, Inc.

Proceeds are for general corporate purposes.

The outlook is stable.

Moody’s said the A1 senior unsecured and Prime-1 short-term rating reflect the company's solid and defensible positions in a range of analog and mixed signal processing markets, strong liquidity profile, and very low leverage (0.6 times projected adjusted gross debt to EBITDA).

“Moody's expects TI to sustain its strong credit profile and cash flow generation driven by its ability to maintain solid market positions throughout its portfolio, diverse end markets, long life cycle products, stable pricing, and low capital investment requirements,” the agency said in a news release.

“TI is strongly positioned in the A1 rating category, which provides the company with flexibility to increase leverage should it choose to pursue a large strategic acquisition.”

Moody’s gives Baa2 to IPG revolver

Moody's Investors Service said it assigned a Baa2 rating to Interpublic Group of Cos., Inc.'s (IPG) new $1.5 billion revolving credit facility and withdrew the Baa2 rating on the old $1 billion revolver.

The company's Baa2 senior unsecured rating, Prime-2 commercial paper rating and stable outlook are unchanged.

IPG amended its existing credit agreement to increase the size of its revolver to $1.5 billion from $1 billion and extend the maturity to October 2022 from October 2020. Other than these changes, the credit agreement retains the same terms, conditions and covenants as before, Moody’s said.

S&P affirms BlackRock Capital

S&P said it affirmed the BBB- issuer credit rating on BlackRock Capital Investment Corp.

The outlook is negative.

The agency said the affirmation reflects the company’s low leverage and its ability to access the broader BlackRock platform.

“Moreover, as BlackRock Investments builds out its middle-market lending platform, we believe that BKCC will have a greater access to deals not previously afforded.”

S&P affirms Darling Ingredients

S&P said it affirmed its BB+ corporate credit rating on Darling Ingredients Inc. and affirmed the BBB- issue ratings on the company's secured credit facilities.

The recovery rating is 1, indicating expectations for very high recovery (90% to 100%; rounded estimate: 90%) in the event of a payment default.

In addition, the agency affirmed the BB+ rating on Darling's senior unsecured notes with a 4 recovery rating, indicating expectations for meaningful (30% to 50%; rounded estimate: 30%) recovery.

The outlook is stable.

“The ratings largely reflect our belief that the company will continue to prioritize debt repayment and reduce leverage, including debt to EBITDA approaching low-3x area over the next 12 months,” S&P said in a news release.

S&P affirms FLNG notes

S&P said it affirmed its BBB issue-level rating on FLNG Liquefaction 2 LLC's three series of $2.3 billion of senior secured notes due 2038.

The outlook is stable.

The agency said it views FLNG’s credit risk to be greater in the construction phase than the operational phase, so the rating reflects the stand-alone credit profile of the construction phase, which is bbb.

“The full impact of Hurricane Harvey on construction progress has yet to be determined, and we understand that the EPC contractor will be providing an updated construction schedule early in 2018,” S&P said in a news release.

S&P affirms Goldman Sachs

S&P said it affirmed its BBB+/A-2 issuer credit ratings on Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and its A+/A-1 issuer credit ratings on its core operating subsidiaries.

The outlook is stable.

At the same time, the agency affirmed the ratings on Goldman's hybrid securities, including nondeferrable subordinated debt.

S&P said the affirmation reflects the strides the company has made to strengthen its balance sheet to better withstand a stressed environment.

S&P affirms REN

S&P said it affirmed the BBB- long-term and A-3 short-term corporate credit ratings on REN-Redes Energeticas Nacionais, SGPS SA and REN Finance BV.

The outlook is positive.

The agency said the affirmation follows its review of Portugal's new tariffs, prices and parameters for the January 2018 through December 2020 regulatory period, and the impact of REN's recent acquisitions of a 42.5% stake in Electrogas for €169.3 million and in EDP Gas Distribuicao for €532 million.

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