Bentley Praised for 'Very Good Strategic Positioning' as Moody's Upgrades its Bond Rating

WALTHAM, Mass., Dec. 8, 2017 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Moody's Investors Service has upgraded Bentley University's bond rating from A3 to A2, a sign of the university's excellent financial position. According to Moody's, "The A2 rating is supported by the university's solid market niche focusing on business education which results in high job placement rates and good return on investment for students," Moody's reported.

Moody's also found:

• The university benefits from a strong senior leadership team and stable board composition, with a forward-looking focus on growing and adapting its business and continually improving the university's brand.
• The university's sound fiscal stewardship is reflected in conservative budgeting, multi-year forecasting, regular budgetary oversight and consistently strong operating cash flow.

The upgrade in Bentley's bond rating is even more impressive given the timing – it came as Moody's downgraded its 2018 outlook for higher education as a whole from "stable" to "negative."

"Bentley continues to command steady student demand for its undergraduate programs in business and accounting. Increased applications, the university's ability to consistently meet enrollment targets, growth in net tuition per student, and the large number of accepted freshmen students who choose to enroll (26% yield rate) all reflect Bentley's very good strategic positioning," Moody's said. "These trends are counter to industry trends for many other colleges where the business programs are struggling."

"The university's senior leadership is very proud of this upgrade and Bentley's sound financial footing," said Ken Cody, Bentley's vice president for administration and finance. "Moody's confidence in us is a testament to the value that a Bentley education delivers to students."

Read Moody's announcement about Bentley's bond rating upgrade

One of the Nation's Top Business Schools

Bentley University is one of the nation's leading business schools, dedicated to preparing a new kind of business leader with the technical skills, global perspective and ethical standards required to make a difference in an ever-changing world. Bentley's diverse arts and sciences program combined with an advanced business curriculum prepares graduates to make an impact in their chosen fields and their lives. The university enrolls approximately 4,000 undergraduate and 1,000 graduate students. The Princeton Review ranked Bentley #1 in the United States in both career services and internships and Bloomberg BusinessWeek ranked Bentley a top 10 undergraduate business school.

SOURCE Bentley University

Related Links

http://www.bentley.edu