Moody's on March 20 assigned Spain-based Criteria Caixa S.A. Sociedad Unipersonal a first-time Baa2 long-term issuer rating, with a stable outlook.

The agency said the rating reflects the company's clear and conservative investment strategy, its long-term, actively involved ownership focused on creating value from a stable, high-quality listed investment portfolio, its prudent financial policy and its strong interest cover above 5x.

Meanwhile, Moody's said the stable outlook reflects the high liquidity and quality of Criteria Caixa's investment portfolio, as well as the agency's expectation that the company's net market value leverage will remain below 25% and will likely be closer to 20% over the next 12 to 18 months.