The ratings on Omaha-based ConAgra Foods Inc. reflect Standard&Poor's Ratings Services' opinion of the company's satisfactory business risk profile which includes a diverse portfolio of well-known brands and participation in the relatively stable packaged food industry (albeit with exposure to volatile raw material costs). ConAgra's limited geographical diversification and uncertain future capital structure due to a possible combination with Ralcorp Holdings Inc remain rating risk factors. Our ratings on ConAgra remain on CreditWatch with negative implications, where they were placed on May 4, 2011, following the company's unsolicited all-cash proposal to acquire Ralcorp for about $4.9 billion, plus the assumption of $2.5 billion of debt. We expect the transaction to be largely debt-financed even though the company announced
