Moody's lifts AstraZeneca view to stable

Moody's Investors Service said it affirmed AstraZeneca plc's A3 senior unsecured rating, its provisional A3 senior unsecured medium-term note program rating, provisional A3 senior unsecured shelf rating and the short-term rating commercial paper at P-2.

Moody's also said it affirmed Zeneca Wilmington Inc.'s A3 senior unsecured rating.

The outlook for both entities was revised to stable from negative.

The outlook revision follows news that AstraZeneca has funded the asset collaboration of Daiichi Sankyo's trastuzumab deruxtecan (DS-8201) by issuing $3.5 billion of equity, which is in excess of anticipated outflows related to the transaction over the next two years, Moody's said.

The proceeds will be used to reimburse debt, the agency said.

The stable outlook considers expectations that strong organic growth will lead to a reduction of the company's leverage toward 3.5x by 2020, Moody's said.

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