Fitch Ratings said it has upgraded to A-plus from A the following Illinois Finance Authority bonds issued on behalf of Rush University Medical Center Obligated Group (Rush): $95,950,000 revenue bonds, series 2006B; $50,000,000 variable rate demand revenue bonds, series 2008A; and $411,620,000 revenue bonds, series 2009A-D.
The rating outlook is stable.
Bond payments are secured by a pledge of the gross revenues of the obligated group and a mortgage on certain property of the obligated group.
Operating profitability has been consistently strong, exceeding Fitch's A category medians with operating EBITDA margin averaging 12.4% since fiscal 2008 and improving to 13.6% in fiscal 2013.
Rush's moderate debt burden and increased profitability resulted in robust coverage of maximum annual debt service (MADS) by operating EBITDA of 4.4x in fiscal 2013 easily exceeding Fitch's A category median of 3.4x.
