S&P Global Ratings lowered the long-term rating to "BBB+" from "A-" on St. Louis-based St. Anthony's Medical Center's series 2015B bonds and lowered the medical center's issuer rating to "BBB+" from "A-."
"The [issuer] downgrade reflects significantly negative operating results and thin coverage while a lower rating is precluded by SAMC's relatively stable and ample unrestricted reserves, which cover its outstanding debt by 1.7x," said S&P analyst Cynthia Keller.
The outlook is negative, reflecting S&P Global Ratings' expectation SAMC's financial turnaround efforts remain challenging and its margins may not improve sufficiently during the two-year outlook period.