...NEW YORK (Standard & Poor's) June 1, 2015--Standard & Poor's Ratings Services today assigned its 'A-' issue-level rating to Starbucks Corp.'s proposed $750 million senior unsecured notes. The company will issue the notes in two tranches due 2022 and 2045. Starbucks plans to use a portion of the proceeds to redeem its $550 million 6.25% senior notes due 2017. It also plans to use the remaining proceeds for general corporate purposes which may include repurchase of its shares, payment of a dividend or a possible acquisition. Pro forma for the proposed debt issuance, total debt to EBITDA will increase to 1.1x at March 29, 2015, from 1.0x before the addition of this debt. We expect Starbucks will continue to deliver solid performance gains as it grows its store footprint, mainly in international markets, and remains focused on product innovation. We believe the company could pursue more aggressive capital allocation practices, but its financial policies will keep credit protection measures...
