Fitch affirms Raytheon

Fitch Ratings said it affirmed Raytheon Co.'s issuer default rating at A-, senior unsecured debt at A-, bank facilities at A-, short-term issuer default rating at F2 and commercial paper programs at F2.

The outlook is stable.

Ratings reflect the company's competitive position in the defense industry, high levels of U.S. defense spending, international revenue growth and large backlog, the agency said.

The company's strong credit metrics, conservative financial policies, financial flexibility and liquidity also support the ratings, the agency noted.

Concerns center on uncertainty about core U.S. defense spending beyond fiscal 2010, the outlook for defense spending related to operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, large share repurchases, the pension deficit, the expiration of the company's credit facility in less than one year and some pending legal issues, Fitch said.

Raytheon's debt-to-EBITDA ratio for the last 12 months was 0.7x compared with 0.8x in 2008 and 0.8x in 2007.

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