Outdoor financials: Jarden's outlook upgraded by Moody's, plus Columbia, Rocky, Outdoor Channel
Jarden's outlook was upgraded by Moody's, Columbia Sportswear was upgraded from "negative" to "neutral," Rocky Brands was downgraded from "neutral" to "underperform," and Outdoor Channel reduced its acquisition workforce.
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Jarden’s outlook upgraded by Moody’s
Moody’s Investors Service raised its ratings outlook on Jarden Corp. (NYSE: JAH), parent of Coleman, Marmot and K2, to positive from stable, citing a good operating performance during the recession and improved liquidity.
Moody’s said the new outlook reflects Jarden’s size, given its $5 billion in revenue, as well as diverse set of products. It also said Jarden’s brands have helped it “weather a severe consumer led recession and should enable it to improve its profitability as the economic recovery begins to take shape.”
Moody’s also affirmed Jarden’s existing ratings, including a junk rating on its corporate family debt. The rating of “B1” is characterized as highly speculative. It also assigned a “Ba2” rating — two notches below investment grade — to a $600 million term loan.
Analysts evaluate Columbia, Rocky
Analysts were weighing in on various outdoor industry companies on Nov. 11. Recent activity included:
• Columbia Sportswear (Nasdaq: COLM) was upgraded by Susquehanna Financial from “negative” to “neutral.”
• Rocky Brands (Nasdaq: RCKY) was downgraded by DA Davidson from “neutral” to “underperform.”
Outdoor Channel reduces acquisition workforce
Outdoor Channel Holdings (Nasdaq: OUTD) said it is reducing the workforce of its Winnercomm business segment, which it acquired in January 2009. The company did not disclose how it would affect future earnings.
The reduction in force is part of the company’s focus on aligning Winnercomm’s production group with current market conditions, and will represent approximately 25 percent of Winnercomm’s current employee base. The reduction plan is not expected to have a material impact on the Skycam and CableCam aerial camera business.
–Compiled by Wendy Geister
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