S&P downgrades Humana to BBB+

S&P said it lowered its long-term counterparty credit rating on Humana Inc. to BBB+ from A- and its long-term counterparty credit and financial strength ratings on Humana's core subsidiaries to A from A+.

At the same time, the agency removed all entities from CreditWatch Negative, where they were placed on July 21, 2016.

The outlook is stable.

"Our ratings on Humana Health Plans of Puerto Rico, Humana Insurance of Puerto Rico Inc., and Kanawha Insurance Co. are unaffected," S&P credit analyst Joseph N Marinucci said in a news release.

S&P said the downgrades reflect the removal of the anticipated benefit of Humana's meaningful contribution to the planned combined enterprise with Aetna in terms of revenue, earnings, cash flow and capital.

Humana's strong stand-alone business risk profile reflects its strong competitive position, although it is concentrated in the government-sponsored Medicare Advantage and Medicare Part D product segments, the agency explained.

Humana's very strong financial profile reflects S&P’s reassessment of the company's capital and earnings strength.

The overall credit profile assessment reflects the company’s strong financial flexibility, S&P added.

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