Moody’s Ratings changed Mexican media giant Grupo Televisa’s long-term debt outlook to negative from stable, maintaining the rating at “Baa3,” noting that the company’s competitive position faces operational challenges that could “limit improvements in the near future.”
In a statement late Wednesday, Moody’s said it also “affirmed the Baa3 long-term issuer rating, the Baa3 senior unsecured rating and the Baa3 senior unsecured (P) rating.”
“Televisa’s Baa3 ratings are supported by the company’s track record of conservative financial management and strong liquidity, as well as operating in the telecommunications market in Mexico,” he highlighted.
Regarding the negative outlook, the rating agency added that it “reflects our opinion that consolidated subscriber losses, including the Cable and Sky segments, of 7.6 percent for the last twelve months ended June 2024, will defy a reversal of this trend, after the cleaning carried out in the 3Q (third quarter of) 2023.”
In July 2024, Televisa closed the acquisition of the remaining 41.3 percent stake in Sky to combine it with its Cable segment.
“We believe this strategy should improve the company’s credit metrics in the short term, however we expect leverage (gross debt/EBITDA, adjusted by Moody’s) to remain above 3.5x (2.3x on a net basis) for more time, which is high for the rating category,” highlighted the rating agency.
“This, together with negative operating trends, does not compare favorably with the credit profile of other Baa3-rated peers,” it added.
Among the challenges facing the company, the rating agency highlighted the investigation in the United States related to FIFA, which could impact its business.
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– 2024-09-27 08:39:30
