DGAP-News: Hapag-Lloyd AG / Key word(s): Rating 
Moody's and Standard & Poor's (S&P) upgrade both Hapag-Lloyd's corporate rating and its senior unsecured bond rating 
2021-03-23 / 13:32 
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement. 
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Hamburg, 23 March 2021 
Moody's and Standard & Poor's (S&P) upgrade both Hapag-Lloyd's corporate rating and its senior unsecured bond rating 
- Container shipping has performed strongly despite the pandemic 
- Hapag-Lloyd with robust operating performance in the current market environment 
- Debt reduction has clearly exceeded expectations 
The rating agencies Moody's Investor Service (Moody's) and Standard & Poor's Global Rating (S&P) have today published 
updated credit ratings for Hapag-Lloyd. 
Moody's raised Hapag-Lloyd's credit rating by one notch, from 'Ba3' to 'Ba2'. In addition, the rating for its senior 
unsecured bonds improved from 'B2' to 'B1'. The ratings have been assigned a 'stable' outlook. Moody's acknowledged 
that container shipping has performed very strongly despite the pandemic. It positively highlighted Hapag-Lloyd's debt 
reduction in the second half of the year, which was well above expectations. At the same time, the rating actions also 
take into account Hapag-Lloyd's prudent financial policy, which is reflected not least in its leverage ratio (net debt 
to EBITDA), with a basic target of less than 3.0x and significant improvement to 1.8x by year-end 2020. 
Furthermore, S&P upgraded Hapag-Lloyd's credit rating from 'BB-' to 'BB' with a 'stable' outlook. At the same time, the 
rating for its senior unsecured bonds was raised by three notches, from 'B' to 'BB'. S&P reasoned that Hapag-Lloyd's 
EBITDA performance of EUR 2.7 billion in 2020 was above the original expectations of EUR 2.0 billion. Moreover, the 
rating agency noted that Hapag-Lloyd's strong operating performance can particularly be attributed to a significant 
increase in freight rates in the fourth quarter and was also assisted by low bunker prices and successful 
cost-reduction measures. It was also positively mentioned that Hapag-Lloyd has used the strong free operating cash flow 
of 2020 to further reduce debt. 
"We are very pleased that Moody's and S&P have once again positively recognised our earning power as well as our 
progress in reducing debt and the improvements in our balance sheet structure. With these rating upgrades, we are also 
looking at the highest credit ratings that Hapag-Lloyd has received since the research initiation of Moody's and S&P. 
Looking forward, we will continue pursuing our prudent financial policy while keeping a close eye on our costs. In 
addition, we will maintain our present course and continue to rigorously implement our Strategy 2023," said Mark Frese, 
Chief Financial Officer of Hapag-Lloyd AG. 
About Hapag-Lloyd 
With a fleet of 237 modern container ships and a total transport capacity of 1.7 million TEU, Hapag-Lloyd is one of the 
world's leading liner shipping companies. The Company has around 13,100 employees and 395 offices in 129 countries. 
Hapag-Lloyd has a container capacity of approximately 2.7 million TEU - including one of the largest and most modern 
fleets of reefer containers. A total of 122 liner services worldwide ensure fast and reliable connections between more 
than 600 ports on all the continents. Hapag-Lloyd is one of the leading operators in the Transatlantic, Middle East, 
Latin America and Intra-America trades. 
Disclaimer 
This press release contains forward-looking statements that involve a number of risks and uncertainties. Such 
statements are based on a number of assumptions, estimates, projections or plans that are inherently subject to 
significant risks, uncertainties and contingencies. Actual results can differ materially from those anticipated in the 
Company's forward-looking statements. 
 
Contact: 
Heiko Hoffmann 
Senior Director Investor Relations 
Hapag-Lloyd AG 
Ballindamm 25 
20095 Hamburg 
Phone +49 40 3001-2896 
Fax +49 40 3001-72896 
Mobile +49 172 875-2126 
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2021-03-23 Dissemination of a Corporate News, transmitted by DGAP - a service of EQS Group AG. 
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement. 
The DGAP Distribution Services include Regulatory Announcements, Financial/Corporate News and Press Releases. 
Archive at www.dgap.de 
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Language:     English 
Company:      Hapag-Lloyd AG 
              Ballindamm 25 
              20095 Hamburg 
              Germany 
Phone:        +49 (0) 40 3001 - 2896 
Fax:          +49 (0) 40 3001 - 72896 
E-mail:       ir@hlag.com 
Internet:     www.hapag-lloyd.com 
ISIN:         DE000HLAG475 
WKN:          HLAG47 
Listed:       Regulated Market in Frankfurt (Prime Standard), Hamburg; Regulated Unofficial Market in Berlin, 
              Dusseldorf, Hanover, Munich, Stuttgart, Tradegate Exchange 
EQS News ID:  1177589 
 
End of News   DGAP News Service 
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1177589 2021-03-23

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

March 23, 2021 08:34 ET (12:34 GMT)