Fitch upgrades DASA

Fitch Ratings said it upgraded Diagnosticos da America SA's foreign- and local-currency issuer default rating to BB+ from BB, unsecured notes due 2018 to BB+ from BB, national Scale rating to AA (bra) from A+ (bra) and local debentures due to 2016 to AA (bra) from A+ (bra).

Fitch also assigned a foreign currency issuer default rating of BB+ to DASA Finance Corp.

The outlook is stable.

The upgrades reflect DASA's stronger business and financial profile, which is due to an improvement in its cash flow generation as a result of gains of scale and synergies from past acquisitions, according to the agency.

DASA's ratings are supported by the company's leading position in the Brazilian medical diagnostics industry and a strong and diversified portfolio of services, the agency said.

Ratings also consider the company's conservative financial strategy, historically using a mix of debt and equity to fund growth, the agency noted.

Pro forma, DASA's total debt-to-EBITDA ratio was 2.1 times in June, while its net debt-to-EBITDA ratio was 1.5x.

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