Moody's Investors Service assigned a first-time corporate family rating of Ba1 to Amsterdam-based retail real estate company Echo Polska Properties NV.
The outlook is stable.
The company owns and manages shopping centers in Poland.
Egor Nikishin, Moody's lead analyst for Echo Polska Properties, said the rating reflects the company's "strong position as one of the leading shopping center owners in the Polish market" as well as the impact of positive macroeconomic and property market fundamentals.
Moody's noted the company's solid portfolio of well-positioned large shopping centers spread across major Polish retail cities with a 98.6% occupancy rate. The rating agency also pointed out the company's long debt maturity profile that does not need any refinancing until 2020, as well as its 36.2% shareholding by Redefine Properties Ltd., and PIMCO and Oaktree's direct and indirect ownership of an 18% stake, which strengthens access to equity capital.
