...NEW YORK (Standard & Poor's) Jan. 14, 2015--Standard & Poor's Ratings Services said today that its ratings and outlook on U.S.-based flooring and carpet producer Mohawk Industries Inc. (###/Stable/A-2) are not affected by the company's announcement that it is acquiring Belgium-based vinyl tile manufacturer IVC Group for approximately 1 billion (approximately US$1.2 billion). The acquisition will be financed with approximately $130 million of stock and the balance with new debt. Under our baseline scenario for 2015 and assuming the transaction closes in the second quarter of this year, we expect pro forma debt to EBITDA leverage (adjusted for lease and pension obligations) of about 2.5x, still well within our parameters for an "intermediate" financial risk assessment (debt leverage of 2x to 3x). Furthermore, as it has done with past acquisitions, we expect Mohawk to use its substantial cash flow to reduce leverage closer to 2x by the end of 2016. This transaction does not affect our "satisfactory"...
