Article: Fitch Changes Ratings On $18 Billion Of Preferred Stock -- Fitch Financial Wire --

NEW YORK, Dec. 18 /PRNewswire/ -- Fitch Investors Service has changed ratings on $18 billion of preferred stock issued by 37 companies, putting ratings on a scale equal to bonds. Fitch believes this action will more accurately quantify risk by creating a single ratings scale for investment-and speculative-grade bonds and preferred stock. The 21 downgrades and 20 upgrades reflect Fitch's new preferred stock criteria, announced Dec. 6. Credit fundamentals of issuers are unchanged. Ratings of senior or other debt securities are unaffected.

The change was prompted by $40 billion of new trust preferred issued this year and recognizes that previous rating scales ...

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