Moody's lowers Briggs & Stratton's credit rating

Moody's Investors Service lowered the noninvestment-grade credit ratings of engine maker Briggs & Stratton Corp. because of its "weak operating performance and negative free cash flow generation."

The agency lowered to Ba2 from Ba1 the company's corporate family rating, its probability of default and its senior unsecured notes. Both Ba2 and Ba1 are noninvestment grade.

The action by Moody's, which also said the outlook is "Stable," affects about $266 million in debt of the Wauwatosa, Wis.-based company.

The agency cited "continued unfavorable weather conditions, a weak U.S. economy, unfavorable product mix, ongoing competition from Asian engines and costs associated with reconfiguring various operations" as reasons for the company's weak performance in 2007 and 2008.

Briggs & Stratton is the world's largest producer of air-cooled gasoline engines for outdoor power equipment as well as a manufacturer of home power products.

Shares ended Thursday's holiday-shortened regular session down 32 cents, or 2.6 percent, to $12.11. In aftermarket trading, shares fell 2 more cents to $12.09 _ a level last seen in early 1993. In the past 52 weeks, shares had ranged from $12.38 to $33.40.