NEW YORK: Moody's Investor Service put the credit ratings of Hewlett-Packard under review for a possible downgrade Friday, a day after the company said it would retain its personal computer business.
The credit ratings agency said the review includes the A2 long-term rating, which is five steps below the top grade AAA rating.
Moody's senior vice president Richard Lane said the review will "focus on HP's unfolding corporate strategy under HP's new CEO, as well as the capital structure and liquidity profile implications."
In a statement, Moody's said it will also "assess management's plans to achieve its growth objectives, which we believe will entail making acquisitions, while also reducing financial leverage."
HP's new chief executive Meg Whitman, a former head of eBay, announced Thursday that HP, the world's biggest computer maker, had decided to keep its PC division after exploring a possible sale or spinoff of the unit.
Moody's said HP's liquidity profile remains "solid," although it estimated the company spent nearly $6 billion of the $13 billion in cash it had on hand as of July to fund the $10.3 billion acquisition of British enterprise software company Autonomy.
HP shares were up 2.69 percent at $27.82 in afternoon trading on Wall Street.
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