MOODY’S WEIGHS DH DOWNGRADE

MOODY’S WEIGHS DH DOWNGRADE

NEW YORK — Moody’s Investor Service on Friday placed the long-term debt ratings of Dayton Hudson Corp. under review for a possible downgrade.
Moody’s cited “the more difficult retail environment together with the continued inability of the company to turn around its Mervyn’s business and the margin pressures from severe competition in its strong Target format.”
The ratings affected are on DH’s senior debt and shelf registration debt, both currently rated A3.
Standard & Poor’s on Dec. 15 lowered DH’s senior debt ratings to Triple-B-Plus from Single-A. S&P based its downgrade on problems at Mervyn’s.