U.S. specialty apparel retailer Gap Inc. has experienced weak operating results at all of its major brands, (Gap, Old Navy, and Banana Republic) in recent quarters, a trend that we don't expect to improve meaningfully in the near-term. We are lowering the ratings, including the corporate credit rating to 'BB+' from 'BBB-', reflecting our view of the company's weakened competitive position in the challenging apparel retail space. The stable outlook reflects our expectation that although operating performance will remain weak in at least the next twelve months, the company will use its still good free operating cash flow and meaningful cash balances to maintain credit metrics around current levels, including debt to EBITDA in the low- to mid-2x range. On
