Research Update: The Goodyear Tire&Rubber Co. Rating Lowered To 'BB-' From 'BB'; Debt Ratings Lowered; Outlook Stable

While The Goodyear Tire&Rubber Co.'s price versus raw materials was positive for the first time in three years and replacement growth was generally strong, global light-vehicle product sales were weak while demand in Europe, in particular, was soft with challenges in its distribution channels. Moreover, we believe the likelihood of a recession in the U.S. has increased. As a result, we no longer believe that Goodyear will be able to generate a weighted FOCF to debt of 10% or more on a sustained basis. We are lowering our issuer credit rating on Goodyear to 'BB-' from 'BB'. In addition, we lowered the issue-level rating on its second-lien secured debt to 'BB+' from 'BBB-' and the rating on its

...- While The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co.'s price versus raw materials was positive for the first time in three years and replacement growth was generally strong, global light-vehicle product sales were weak while demand in Europe, in particular, was soft with challenges in its distribution channels. Moreover, we believe the likelihood of a recession in the U.S. has increased. As a result, we no longer believe that Goodyear will be able to generate a weighted FOCF to debt of 10% or more on a sustained basis. - We are lowering our issuer credit rating on Goodyear to '##-' from '##'. In addition, we lowered the issue-level rating on its second-lien secured debt to '##+' from '###-' and the rating on its senior unsecured notes to '##-' from '##'. - The stable outlook reflects our view that the company will maintain debt to EBITDA below 5x and free operating cash flow (FOCF) to debt above 5% in the next 12 months....

Research Update