S&P upgrades Piaggio In early April credit ratings agency Standard & Poor's (S&P) has revised its Piaggio Group credit rating upwards, from “B+” to “BB-”.
According to analysts “the upgrade reflects the higher turnover and gross margin in Europe, which together with a rigorous control of overheads, generated an operating performance above our expectations in 2017 and an EBITDA of over 190 million euro.
“Furthermore, after investments and dividends, the company was able to generate positive cash flows and reduce debt. Now we expect that in 2018 Piaggio will maintain a cashflow/debt ratio [adjusted according to the S&P methodologies] of between 15 and 20%, reducing its leverage in 2019.”
S&P also confirmed the “stable” outlook of the Piaggio Group, adding that “it reflects the expectations that Piaggio will continue to produce solid operating performance, maintaining its market share in Europe and its leadership in the scooter segment. We also believe that Piaggio will record an [adjusted] EBITDA margin exceeding 12%, generating a cashflow/debt ratio of approx. 20% in 2018 and 2019.”
