Fitch Downgrades First Industrial

The senior unsecured notes and preferred stock of First Industrial LP, the operating partnership of First Industrial Realty Trust, have been downgraded by Fitch Ratings.The $1.2 billion of senior unsecured notes were downgraded from BBB-plus to BBB, and the $250 million of preferred stock was downgraded from BBB to BBB-minus, Fitch said. The rating outlook was revised from Negative to Stable. The rating agency attributed the downgrades to "erosion in coverage statistics and moderately high leverage levels, along with the uncertainty regarding the timing and magnitude of an economic recovery." Fitch also pointed to the evolution of First Industrial's business model into one that can expand short-term income, such as fees and gains on sale. This shorter-term income "heightens [the company's] cash flow volatility and dilutes its quality of earnings," the rating agency said. Fitch can be found on the Web at http://www.fitchratings.com.