U.S.-based diversified industrial and engineered products manufacturer Roper Industries Inc. has demonstrated good results through 2011, leading to strong credit metrics. As a result, we are raising our ratings on Roper, including the corporate credit rating to 'BBB' from 'BBB-'. We are removing all ratings from CreditWatch with positive implications, where we placed them in November 2011, citing our plan to review the company's financial policy. The outlook is stable, reflecting our expectations for. total debt to EBITDA to average 2.0x to 2.5x and funds from operations (FFO) to total debt of about 30% to 35%, incorporating some debt capacity at the higher rating to reflect Roper's potential to do acquisitions. NEW YORK (Standard&Poor's) Feb. 7, 2012--Standard&
