Hawaiian Electric's stock slides 21% premarket after S&P cuts rating further into junk territory

Hawaiian Electric Industries Inc.'s stock (HE) fell another 21% in premarket trade Friday, after Standard & Poor's again downgraded its rating, sending it further into junk territory, as the problems stemming from the Maui wildfires worsened. On Thursday, Maui County sued the utility over the fires, saying the utility failed to shut off power despite exceptionally high winds and dry conditions Later, the company said it would suspend its dividend to conserve cash and that is has drawn down almost all of its $375 million revolving credit facilities. "We view management's decisions as prudently reducing the company'snear-term liquidity risks, but we also assess these actions as confirmation of the company's likely inconsistent access to the capital markets, which we believe is fundamental to the successful operation of a utility business," S&P said in a statement. The rating agency cut the rating to B- from BB- and said it's still on CreditWatch negative, meaning it could downgrade it again. S&P cut the rating to junk on Aug. 16 to reflect the fallout from the wildfires. The stock has fallen 72% in the year to date, while the S&P 500 has gained 14%.

-Ciara Linnane

This content was created by MarketWatch, which is operated by Dow Jones & Co. MarketWatch is published independently from Dow Jones Newswires and The Wall Street Journal.

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

08-25-23 0719ET

Copyright (c) 2023 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.