S&P changes Baxter view to stable

S&P said it revised the outlook on Baxter International Inc. to stable from negative and affirmed all ratings, including the A- corporate credit rating.

Baxter is finalizing the complete monetization of its retained equity stake in Baxalta, retiring about $3.7 billion of debt, and reducing the pension deficit by about $700 million. The company used the remaining proceeds to buy back Baxter shares.

"The outlook revision to stable reflects Baxter's achieving its debt reduction plans and our expectation that Baxter will maintain leverage below 2x and that EBITDA margins and free cash flow will gradually improve over the next few years," S&P credit analyst David Kaplan said in a news release.

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