Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services said it put Alltel Corp.’s credit rating on CreditWatch with “negative implications.” The move follows comments from Alltel executives about the company considering various “strategic alternatives,” financial language that usually means the company is actively seeking buyers.
“Given that Alltel is very conservatively leveraged at around 1x, potential strategic alternatives could materially increase leverage,” said Standard & Poor’s credit analyst Catherine Cosentino.
Alltel this week announced strong fourth-quarter results, and comments from the company’s management served to spark a flurry of interest in Alltel on Wall Street. The company’s stock leapt on the news, and its shares have retained those gains over the past several days. Alltel’s stock remained at around $63.48 per share following S&P’s report.
Various media outlets have reported that Alltel is shopping itself out to entities including Verizon Wireless and private equity firms.
S&P worries over Alltel’s ‘strategic alternatives’
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