NEW YORK (Standard&Poor's) June 21, 2005--Standard&Poor's Ratings Services affirmed its 'BB' corporate credit rating and other ratings on alcoholic beverage producer and distributor Constellation Brands Inc. At the same time, ratings were removed from CreditWatch where they were placed with negative implications on April 28, 2005. The CreditWatch listings followed the company's confirmation that it was part of a consortium considering a potential takeover of Allied Domecq PLC (BBB+/Watch Neg/A-2). The ratings affirmation and removal from CreditWatch follows Constellation's recent announcement that it is no longer planning to pursue an offer for Allied Domecq. The outlook is negative. At Feb. 28, 2005, Fairport, N.Y.-based Constellation had about $3.29 billion of total debt outstanding.
