NEW YORK (Standard&Poor's CreditWire) Oct. 3, 2000--Standard&Poor's today assigned its preliminary single-'A'-plus senior debt rating to St. Paul Cos. Inc.'s (St. Paul's) $1 billion shelf registration. In effect, these debt securities will rank pari passu with St. Paul's existing senior note obligations. This rating action assumes that the use of proceeds from any future draw-down will not materially increase St. Paul's financial leverage beyond current levels. Currently, St. Paul's debt-to-capital ratio is about 18%, which is very conservative for the rating. Similarly, profitability and capitalization at St. Paul's insurance operating companies should remain in line with expectations, Standard&Poor's said. -- CreditWire
