Moody's lifts Anheuser-Busch to A2

Moody's Investors Service said it upgraded the long-term senior unsecured rating of Anheuser-Busch InBev SA/NV and its rated subsidiaries to A2 from A3 and its short-term rating to Prime-1 from Prime-2.

The outlook is positive. This action concludes the review that was initiated on Jan. 20.

"The upgrade reflects our expectation that ABI will sustain good business momentum and strong operating margins, and that its robust cash flow will allow it to reduce leverage following the 2013 acquisition of Modelo and the upcoming acquisition of Oriental Brewery," Moody's senior vice president Linda Montag said in a news release.

"The Oriental Brewery acquisition will increase leverage initially and slow the medium-term pace of ABI's deleveraging somewhat. However the near-term leverage increase is modest due to a reasonable 10 times EBITDA purchase multiple. We expect that debt to EBITDA will approach 2.5 times over the next twelve-to-eighteen months."

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