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Moody's Investors Services
Global Credit Research
Rating Action
3 AUG 2006
 
Rating Action: CA, Inc.
 
MOODY'S CONFIRMS CA'S RATINGS AT Ba1; OUTLOOK IS NEGATIVE
 

Approximately $1.8 billion debt affected

New York, August 03, 2006 -- Moody's Investors Service has confirmed CA's Ba1 senior unsecured rating and assigned a negative rating outlook, concluding a review for possible downgrade initiated on June 30, 2006. The Ba1 rating confirmation reflects the company's completed accounting review and reestablishment of current filing of its 10-K and subsequent 10-Q's, including the company's filing of its 10-K for its March 2006 fiscal year on July 31, 2006.

The negative outlook reflects challenges the company has to implement effective financial controls, remediate material weaknesses to its financial reporting, contain sales force compensation costs, and revive client billings performance. The negative outlook also considers the more aggressive financial policies of the company. Moody's notes that for fiscal 2006, the company's former sales compensation plan resulted in an unexpected $75 million increase to commission expenses (2% of total expenses), while client billings declined slightly, excluding acquisition related products and accelerated customer payments. In Moody's opinion, current revisions to the former sales force compensation plan could negatively impact morale, the retention of key sales executives, and financial performance.

The company's Ba1 senior unsecured rating reflects its large portfolio of mission critical software product offerings and installed base of a diverse set of creditworthy clients, which in isolation could potentially map to a high Baa rating. However, the rating also reflects the uncertainties surrounding the company's ineffective internal controls, subdued organic client billings performance, unsettled fulfillment of the terms of the Deferred Prosecution Agreement (DPA), modest returns on net assets, competition from integrated and non-integrated technology vendors, and exposure to mature mainframe and Unix markets, which drive the overall Ba1 rating. For further information, refer to Moody's credit opinion for CA, Inc.

Headquartered in Islandia, New York, CA, Inc. is an enterprise software vendor for enterprise management, security, and storage applications.

New York
John Moore
Vice President - Senior Analyst
Corporate Finance Group
Moody's Investors Service
JOURNALISTS: 212-553-0376
SUBSCRIBERS: 212-553-1653

New York
Alexandra S. Parker
Senior Vice President
Corporate Finance Group
Moody's Investors Service
JOURNALISTS: 212-553-0376
SUBSCRIBERS: 212-553-1653
 

 


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