Fitch Affirms Nabors' IDR At 'BBB'; Outlook Revised To Stable

(RTTNews) - Fitch Ratings said Monday that it has affirmed Nabors Industries, Inc.'s (NBR) Long-term Issuer Default Rating at 'BBB'.

The Rating Outlook is revised to Stable from Negative.

Fitch has also upgraded Nabors' Short-term IDR to 'F2' from 'F3'.

Fitch said the Stable Outlook reflects the positive near-term trends for U.S. land drillers and oilfield service providers due to increasing shale activity and improving liquids-focused rig counts. The Outlook is further supported by Nabors' recent favorable international drilling renewal rates and contract awards.

The short-term rating upgrade is based on the Long-term IDR Outlook revision to Stable, liquidity back-up adequacy, and the majority of current and forecasted short-term metrics being more consistent with an 'F2', the rating agency said.

Nabors' ratings reflect its favorable rig fleet repositioning efforts, positive near-term trends for U.S. land drillers and oilfield service providers, strengthening international drilling segment, and manageable current and projected leverage profile, Fitch said.