A flame from a Saudi Aramco oil installation known as “Pump 3” is seen in the desert near the oil-rich area of Khouris, 160 km east of the Saudi capital Riyadh, on June 23, 2008. AFP FILE PHOTO
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — Rating agencies have given oil giant Saudi Aramco high ratings ahead of its upcoming bonds sale, with Fitch Ratings saying the company had profits of $224 billion last year before taxes.
Fitch gave it an A+, its first ever such rating for Aramco.
Saudi Aramco's 'A+' First-Time IDR Published, Outlook Stable https://t.co/WQNU4LOHO8 pic.twitter.com/wWDcyaZ4kN
— Fitch Ratings (@FitchRatings) April 1, 2019
Moody’s Investors Services gave it an A1 rating and says Aramco reported $355.9 billion in revenue and $111.1 billion in net income last year.
Moody’s also said Monday the firm had $48.8 billion of cash relative to $27 billion of reported debt at the end of 2018.
The agencies’ reports offer a rare glimpse into the state-owned oil firm’s finances ahead of Aramco’s plans to issue a multibillion-dollar bond after it purchased a 70 percent stake in Saudi petrochemical firm SABIC from the kingdom’s sovereign wealth fund.
Saudi Aramco signs share purchase agreement to acquire 70% majority stake in SABIC from the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia https://t.co/zoZBEGnizz
— aramco | أرامكو (@Saudi_Aramco) March 27, 2019