The ratings reflect Iron Mountain Inc. 's relatively high debt leverage, limited debt capacity for large acquisitions, and aggressive financial policies regarding its growth strategies. These factors are only partially offset by Iron Mountain's leading position as the world's largest record management company, and its reasonably stable growth from existing customers and new customer accounts. Iron Mountain enjoys a dominant market position and an established footprint in less-developed European markets. The December 2003 acquisition of the remaining 49.9% in Iron Mountain Europe Inc. (IME) from Mentmore PLC provides Iron Mountain with full access to IME's cash flow and greater decision-making flexibility. The transaction followed the company's acquisition of Hays PLC's information management services in July 2003, which strengthened and expanded
