Atlanta-based Home Depot's financial policy has become more conservative based on its announcement that it is revising its internal target leverage metric to 2x from 2.5x. We are raising all of the home improvement retailer's long-term ratings, including the corporate credit rating, to 'A-' from 'BBB+'. The stable outlook reflects our belief that Home Depot should be able to sustain profitability and credit measures, despite our forecast for weak economic conditions. CHICAGO (Standard&Poor's) Nov. 16, 2011--Standard&Poor's Ratings Services said today that it raised all of the long-term ratings on Home Depot Inc., including the corporate credit rating, to 'A-' from 'BBB+'. The outlook is stable. As of Oct. 30, 2011, Home Depot had about $10.8 billion
