Poplar Grove Village, Ill., Upgraded to AA-Minus by S&P

Standard & Poor's Ratings Services said it raised its long-term rating on Poplar Grove Village, Ill.'s general obligation bonds to AA-minus from A-plus.

It also assigned a AA-minus long-term rating to the village's 2015 GO refunding bonds.

The outlook is stable.

"The higher rating reflects another year of improved financial results and our expectation that the very strong budgetary performance and flexibility will be sustained in future years," said Standard & Poor's credit analyst Kathryn Clayton.

"The AA-minus rating reflects our view of the village's very strong budgetary performance and liquidity," she added.

Other factors include its: strong overall management; very strong budgetary flexibility, with general fund available reserves equal to 101% of fiscal 2014 of adjusted operating expenditures; and weak debt and contingent liabilities profile.

The village's very weak economy mitigates some of those strengths. The very weak economy reflects very weak income and wealth indicators, elevated county unemployment, and concentration in the manufacturing and service sectors, the rating agency said.

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