...NEW YORK (Standard & Poor's) July 20, 2015--Standard & Poor's Ratings Services said today that it assigned its 'A+' senior unsecured debt rating to UnitedHealth Group Inc.'s (NYSE:UNH) planned debt issuance, which we expect to consist of a mix of short- and long-dated maturities. We expect UNH to use the proceeds to fund its acquisition of Catamaran Corp., which will likely close within the next few weeks. We expect the additional debt to increase the company's financial leverage to about 48% by year-end 2015. We also expect UNH to reduce leverage to historical levels of less than 40% via a combination of reduced share repurchases and debt repayment during the next few years. We expect adjusted EBITDA fixed-charge coverage (which includes imputed interest on operating leases) to remain well above 10x during this time. We believe the acquisition makes strategic sense for UNH, expanding the company's pharmacy benefits-management presence as the combination of Catamaran with UNH's Optum Rx...
