S&P Valuation and Risk Strategies Increases Credit Focus on Relative Credit Health Assessment Solution

NEW YORK, Sept. 12, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- S&P Valuation and Risk Strategies today announced the availability of a new credit risk model that provides relative credit assessments for rated and unrated public companies, incorporating enhanced operational, solvency and liquidity measures.  This new model achieves improved ranking accuracy and enhanced overall performance through methodology enhancements.

The enhanced model is available for use within the Credit Health Panel.  The Credit Health Panel allows for extensive peer-to-peer analysis, tracking of relative corporate credit health in terms of operational, solvency and liquidity relative strength measures, and monitoring of market-driven credit risk signals as early warning signals.  

New features include a new combination of twenty-four key financial credit metrics, which have proven to have the greatest explanatory power in long standing proprietary quantitative credit risk models. The Credit Health Panel continues to allow the creation and management of custom groups of companies on a worldwide basis, tracking as many as 25 different groups with up to 100 companies in each, and an advanced search process that can screen by geography, sector, credit scores and S&P rating, in addition to the twenty-four credit risk financial metrics.

"Based upon the feedback of our clients, we have developed a version of the model based on isolating a select number of key business metrics with high explanatory value for the measurement and monitoring of credit health," said Silvina Aldeco-Martinez, Global Product Manager at S&P Valuation and Risk Strategies. "The introduction earlier this year of customizable peer groups was incredibly well received by our clients due to the time-saving gain and workflow efficiencies.  During these times of greater financial and macroeconomic uncertainty across the world, the current enhancements make the Credit Health Panel a vital tool in distinguishing a company's relative credit strength."

Further enhancements planned for the Credit Health Panel in early 2012 will include deeper portfolio capabilities, enhanced customized alert and notification functions, and data source traceability.  In addition, S&P Valuation and Risk Strategies group is continuously working on extending the Credit Health Panel methodology and solution to provide even more comprehensive coverage for unrated companies in key markets globally.  

The Credit Health Panel is available to S&P customers worldwide through the Global Credit Portal. www.standardandpoors.com/ratingsdirect.

About Standard & Poor's

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Standard & Poor's Financial Services LLC, a subsidiary of The McGraw-Hill Companies (NYSE:MHP), is the world's foremost provider of independent credit ratings, indices, risk evaluation, investment research and data. With offices in 23 countries and markets, Standard & Poor's is an essential part of the world's financial infrastructure and has played a leading role for over 150 years in providing investors with the independent benchmarks they need to feel more confident about their investment and financial decisions. For more information, visit www.standardandpoors.com

Media Contact:
Michael Privitera
Standard & Poor's Communications
212-438-6679
[email protected]

SOURCE Standard & Poor's