Tele-Communications Inc, Englewood, Colorado may be disappointed that it failed to agree revised terms for its acquisition by Bell Atlantic Corp, but the collapse of that agreement has improved its credit quality, Standard & Poor’s Corp reckons. It has affirmed its triple-B-minus rating on the company’s senior unsecured debt and its double-B-plus on the subordinated debt. All ratings are removed from CreditWatch where they were placed on October 13. About $10,000m of total debt is outstanding. The affirmation is a result of the cancellation of the proposed acquisition of Tele-Communications by Bell Atlantic, says Standard & Poor’s. The current ratings and stable outlook anticipate that the company will maintain adequate financial flexibility and pursue a more conservative capital spending plan until the full impact on its cash flow as a result of the Federal Communications Commission action [to mandate a 7% rate cut] can be determined.
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