April 26, 2024

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[THE INVESTOR] The credit ratings of two major food and beverage companies have been downgraded, according to NICE Rating’s latest review.

Both CJ Foodville and Lotteria’s short-term ratings went down a notch to A2- from A2 and to A2+ from A1, respectively. 

CJ Foodville

However, two other F&B firms, E-Land Park and Starbucks Korea, managed to maintain their previous ratings of A3- and A1, respectively. 

NICE Rating pointed out that although CJ Foodville has recorded an average 10 percent annual growth rate between 2013 and 2015 through store expansion and launch of new brands, its flagship brand VIPS has been suffering from lackluster sales. 

Lotteria failed to grow despite aggressive overseas expansion, due to sluggish domestic revenue and weakening profitability, according to the review. 

By Hwang You-mee (glamazon@heraldcorp.com)