MHP Mcgraw Hill Financial, Inc.

Bank of America Shares Lowered to 'Hold' (*** out of *****) from 'Buy,' FleetBoston Maintained at 'Hold' (*** out of ****) by S&P Equity Research NEW YORK, Oct. 27 /PRNewswire/ -- Standard & Poor's banks equity analyst downgraded the STARS ranking on shares of Bank of America to "Hold" (*** out of *****) from "Buy" (***** out of *****) at $73.80 per share, and maintained the STARS ranking on FleetBoston Financial of "Hold" (*** out of *****) at $39.35 per share. A leading provider of independent investment research, ratings and indices, Standard & Poor's made this announcement through Standard & Poor's MarketScope, its real-time market intelligence service. "We are downgrading our opinion on Bank of America to "Hold" as it agrees to merge with FleetBoston Financial," says Mark Morgan, Banks Analyst, Standard & Poor's Equity Research Services. "The planned deal is expected to close in the second quarter of 2004, pending necessary approvals. We are concerned about the premium paid for FleetBoston (the deal is expected to be worth about $45 per FleetBoston share), a company we think has low earnings visibility, a volatile earnings history, and ongoing credit quality issues. We are cutting Bank of America's 2004 estimate to $7.00 from $7.25 to reflect the expected earnings dilution. We think integration challenges raise risk for Bank of America stock. We are also lowering our 12-month target price on Bank of America's shares to $80 from $95, based on a price/earnings ratio of 11.5 times our 2004 estimate," concludes Morgan. About Standard & Poor's STock Appreciation Ranking System (STARS) Standard & Poor's Stock Appreciation Ranking System (STARS), which was first introduced on December 31, 1986, reflects the opinions of Standard & Poor's equity analysts on the price appreciation potential of 1,200 U.S. stocks for the next 12 month period. Rankings range from five-STARS ("Buy") to one-STARS ("Sell"). About Standard & Poor's Standard & Poor's Equity Research Services has the largest U.S. equity coverage count among equity research firms that are not affiliated with a Wall Street investment bank, analyzing 1,200 U.S. stocks. Standard & Poor's, a division of The McGraw-Hill Companies (NYSE:MHP), is the world's foremost provider of independent credit ratings, indices, risk evaluation, investment research, data and valuations. With 5000 employees located in 20 countries, Standard & Poor's is an essential part of the world's financial infrastructure and has played a leading role for more than 140 years in providing investors with the independent benchmarks they need to feel more confident about their investment and financial decisions. For more information, visit http://www.standardandpoors.com/. The analyst quoted above is a Standard & Poor's equity analyst. He has no affiliation with any company referenced above. He has no ownership interest in any company referenced above. Standard & Poor's other affiliates may provide services to the companies that are the subject of this report. Standard & Poor's analytic services are performed as entirely separate activities in order to preserve the independence of each analytic process. In this regard, STARS, which are published by Standard & Poor's Equity Research Services, operates independently from, and has no access to information obtained by Standard & Poor's Ratings Services, which may in the course of its operations obtain access to confidential information. Standard & Poor's analytic services are performed as entirely separate activities in order to preserve the independence of each analytic process. In this regard, STARS, which are published by Standard & Poor's Equity Research Services, operates independently from, and has no access to information obtained by Standard & Poor's Rating Services, which may in the course of its operations obtain access to confidential information. DATASOURCE: Standard & Poor's CONTACT: John J. Piecuch Communications Manager (+1) 212-438-1102 Web site: http://www.standardandpoors.com/

Copyright