Moody's affirms Aon

Moody's Investors Service said it affirmed the ratings of Aon Corp. (senior unsecured debt at Baa2) following the announcement that Aon has agreed to acquire Benfield Group Ltd. (not rated) for cash and a modest amount of assumed debt, representing a Benfield enterprise value of £935 million.

Aon plans to use cash on hand to fund the transaction, which is expected to close by the end of 2008, subject to customary approvals and closing conditions, the agency noted.

Moody's said it has changed Aon's outlook to stable from positive, reflecting the integration risk associated with such a sizable acquisition and the expected decline in Aon's cash position.

© 2015 Prospect News.
All content on this website is protected by copyright law in the U.S. and elsewhere. For the use of the person downloading only.
Redistribution and copying are prohibited by law without written permission in advance from Prospect News.
Redistribution or copying includes e-mailing, printing multiple copies or any other form of reproduction.