R.R. Donnelley Swaps Rise as Moody’s, S&P, Downgrade to Junk

The cost to protect against a default by R.R. Donnelley & Sons Co. jumped to the highest level since September 2009 after Moody’s Investors Service, Standard & Poor’s and Fitch Ratings cut the company’s debt grade to junk. R.R. Donnelley contracts have soared 98.6 basis points since it said on May 4 that it will buy back $1 billion of shares and consider acquisitions. Moody’s, S&P and Fitch put the company on review for a downgrade to junk, citing the buybacks and resulting increase in debt.

“R.R. Donnelley participates in an industry with very poor supply/demand balance,” Bill Wolfe, a Moody’s