Moravian College, PA, General Revenue Bonds Downgraded To 'BBB+' From 'A-' On Additional Debt Plans

NEW YORK (Standard&Poor's) Nov. 18, 2015--Standard&Poor's Ratings Services has lowered its rating on Northampton County General Purpose Authority, Pa.'s series 2012 and series 2013 college general revenue bonds, issued for Moravian College, to 'BBB+' from 'A-'. At the same time, Standard&Poor's lowered its issuer credit rating (ICR) on Moravian to 'BBB+' from 'A-'. The outlook is stable. "We base the downgrade on Moravian's plans to issue approximately $27 million in additional debt in the next three months," said Standard&Poor's credit analyst Laura Kuffler-Macdonald. "This, along with $6 million in bank debt that the college incurred in fiscal 2016, increases Moravian's debt substantially, making its financial resources more in line with those of

...NEW YORK (Standard & Poor's) Nov. 18, 2015--Standard & Poor's Ratings Services has lowered its rating on Northampton County General Purpose Authority, Pa.'s series 2012 and series 2013 college general revenue bonds, issued for Moravian College, to '###+' from 'A-'. At the same time, Standard & Poor's lowered its issuer credit rating (ICR) on Moravian to '###+' from 'A-'. The outlook is stable. "We base the downgrade on Moravian's plans to issue approximately $27 million in additional debt in the next three months," said Standard & Poor's credit analyst Laura Kuffler-Macdonald. "This, along with $6 million in bank debt that the college incurred in fiscal 2016, increases Moravian's debt substantially, making its financial resources more in line with those of '###+' peers," Ms. Kuffler-Macdonald added. The '###+' rating reflects our view of the college's high reliance on student-generated revenues and high debt burden. Recent improvement to enrollment and positive full accrual operations in...

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