Corporate Credit Rating for UTILITÀ S.P.A.: B1- (First Issuance)

modefinance published the Solicited Corporate Credit Rating of UTILITÀ S.P.A. on the website and the rating assigned to the entity is B1- (first issuance). The analysis revealed it is an adequate company with average capability of repaying financial obligations and it is little affected by adverse economic scenarios.

UTILITÀ S.P.A., a major company of Metano Nord Group, was founded in 2000 to offer consulting services mainly dedicated to SMEs for the optimization of energy costs. After a steady growth path, nowadays the Company is a major trader in the Italian energy market that deals with the purchase and supply of electricity and natural gas to large companies, small-medium enterprises, professionals and other traders in the sector.

The economic and financial situation is characterized by satisfactory solvency on the whole, and adequate liquidity management. The profitability area shows appreciable improvement in indicators due to the sharp growth in business volume and margins. 

The cash flow analysis points out how the consistent operating cash flow is almost entirely absorbed by the flow from investing activities, consisting mostly of the increase in long-term receivables. Finally, the absorption of resources due to the gradual return from bank exposure contributes to a decrease in year-end liquidity.

The Company has an administrative body having a collegial form flanked by the Board of Statutory Auditors, while the auditing activity is entrusted to KPMG S.P.A.. The Company has also adopted the 231 Organizational Model, with Supervisory Board performing periodical audits. The group structure is well defined, as the Company is controlled by Metano Nord - Spa and itself does not hold any shareholdings. 

The Company presents a largely sufficient positioning in terms of size and solvency, while profitability ranks below the industry median. The peer group expresses stable solvency while current and quick ratio indicators are improving. Profitability, despite the decline seen in 2020, remains sufficient. 

The macroeconomic outlook looks positive but is impacted by the growing uncertainty of recent months: geopolitical tensions and rising inflation are likely to negatively affect economic growth.

The present Corporate Credit rating is issued by modefinance under EU Regulation 1060/2009 and following amendments.

The present rating is solicited and is based on both private and public information. The rated entity and/or related third parties have provided all private information used. modefinance had access to some accounts and other relevant internal documents of the rated entity and/or related third parties. Solicited and unsolicited ratings issued by modefinance are of comparable quality, as the solicitation status has no effect on methodologies used. More comprehensive information on modefinance Corporate Credit Ratings are available at http://cra.modefinance.com/en

The present Corporate Credit Rating is issued on MORE Methodology 2.0 and Rating Methodology 1.0. A comprehensive description of both methodologies, as well as information on modefinance Rating Scale and Mappings, is available at http://cra.modefinance.com/en/methodologies.

For information on historical default rates of modefinance Corporate Credit Ratings please refer to ESMA Central Repository and ESMA European Rating Platform.

modefinance refers to default as a company under bankruptcy, or under liquidation status, or under administration or for which missed payments on a financial obligation are officially recorded.

The quality of the information available on the rated entity and used to determine the present rating was judged by modefinance as satisfactory. Please note that modefinance does not perform any audit activity and is not in a position to guarantee the accuracy of any information used and/or reported in the present document. As such, modefinance can accept no liability whatsoever for actions taken based on any information that may subsequently prove to be incorrect.

The present credit rating was notified to the rated entity in order to identify potential factual errors, as prescribed by the CRA Regulation.

No amendments were applied after the notification process.

The rated entity is not a buyer of ancillary services provided by modefinance (credit risk software).

The rating action issued by modefinance was performed independently. The analysts, members of the rating team involved in the process, modefinance Srl and its members and shareholders do not have any conflicts of interest in relation to the Rated Entity and/or Related Third Parties. If in the future a potential conflict of interest is identified in relation to the persons reported above, modefinance Ratings will provide the appropriate information and if necessary the rating will be withdrawn.

The present Credit Rating is an opinion of the general creditworthiness that modefinance issues on the rated entity, and should be relied upon to a limited degree. The issued rating is subject to an ongoing monitoring until withdrawal.

Head Analyst - Stefano Chirsich, Rating Analyst
stefano.chirsich@modefinance.com

Assistant Analyst - Fabio Politelli, Rating Analyst
fabio.politelli@modefinance.com

Responsible for Rating Approval - Pinar Dilek, Rating Process Manager
pinar.dilek@modefinance.com