The Coca-Cola Co.'s Euro 500 Million 20 Year Fixed Rate Notes Assigned 'AA-' Ratings

NEW YORK (S&P Global Ratings) Aug. 30, 2016--S&P Global Ratings today assigned its 'AA-' issue-level rating to Atlanta-based The Coca-Cola Co.'s (Coke's) €500 million senior unsecured 20 year fixed rate notes. The company is drawing these notes under its shelf registration and intends to use the net proceeds for refinancing existing debt, repayment of short-term borrowings, and general corporate purposes. Coke benefits from its very strong position as the world's largest nonalcoholic beverage company, anchored by well-known brands, an above-average EBITDA margin, as well as broad geographic diversification, including an extensive global bottling network. We forecast Coke's leverage will be modestly higher over next several quarters and then improve once it completes refranchising its bottling operations. We estimate debt to

...NEW YORK (S&P Global Ratings) Aug. 30, 2016--S&P Global Ratings today assigned its '##-' issue-level rating to Atlanta-based The Coca-Cola Co.'s (Coke's) 500 million senior unsecured 20 year fixed rate notes. The company is drawing these notes under its shelf registration and intends to use the net proceeds for refinancing existing debt, repayment of short-term borrowings, and general corporate purposes. Coke benefits from its very strong position as the world's largest nonalcoholic beverage company, anchored by well-known brands, an above-average EBITDA margin, as well as broad geographic diversification, including an extensive global bottling network. We forecast Coke's leverage will be modestly higher over next several quarters and then improve once it completes refranchising its bottling operations. We estimate debt to EBITDA was about 2.5x for the 12 months ended March 31, 2016, where we anticipate it will remain for several quarters before declining to near 2x and possibly lower by...

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