Fitch rates Yum! notes BBB-

Fitch Ratings said it assigned a BBB- rating to Yum! Brands, Inc.'s new $1.2 billion senior unsecured note offering to be issued in two tranches.

Fitch also rates the company at BBB- for its long-term issuer default rating, senior unsecured notes, unsecured revolving credit facility and international credit facility.

The outlook is stable.

Proceeds will be used to repay $400 million in debt under its revolving credit facility and for general corporate purposes, including stock repurchases.

The ratings reflect the company's healthy cash flow generation, the scale and reach of its multiple diverse restaurant concepts and the growth provided by international expansion, Fitch said.

The ratings also consider the company's weak same-store sales in the United States and the expectation that leverage will increase in the near term due to debt-financed share repurchases, the agency said.

© 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.