Moody's upgrades ABB to Baa1 from Baa3 as margins rise, debt declines

FRANKFURT (AFX) - Moody's Investors Service has upgraded ABB's senior debt ratings to Baa1 from Baa3 and the company's rating for short-term debt to Prime-2 from Prime-3.

The outlook on the ratings was changed to stable from positive.

'The two-notch upgrade for ABB reflects the stronger than expected improvement of its operating performance, as indicated by EBITA-margins strengthening well into double digits during 2006 from 9.6 pct in 2005, as well as management's de-leveraging of the company. Moody's expects adjusted net debt to decline to below 3.7 bln usd from 4.4 bln usd,' says Wolfgang Draack, Moody's Senior Vice President and lead analyst for ABB. [e-mail] cmr/gp/jfr COPYRIGHT Copyright AFX News Limited 2006. All rights reserved. The copying, republication or redistribution of AFX News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of AFX News. AFX News and AFX Financial News Logo are registered trademarks of AFX News Limited