TRW Shares Climb After Stock Offer Nets $269M

NEW YORK (AP) — Shares of TRW Automotive Holdings Corp. jumped on Tuesday after the auto parts supplier disclosed that it raised $269 million from a stock offer and its debt outlook was raised by Standard & Poor's.

Shares climbed $1.62, or 9.2 percent, to $19.15 in midday trading.

After the closing bell Monday, the Livonia, Mich.-based maker of braking, steering and suspension systems announced the results of its offering of 16.1 million shares. The offer included 2.1 million shares sold in an overallotment option.

The shares were priced at $17.50. The company had 101 million shares outstanding on July 27, according to a regulatory filing this month.

Also on Monday, Standard & Poor's raised its outlook on the company's debt to "stable" from "negative." The credit ratings agency cited the parts maker's better-than-expected second-quarter earnings.

TRW has been cutting costs to cope with the weak auto production market. The company said this month that second-quarter sales fell 39 percent from a year earlier. S&P predicted a decline of about 30 percent for all of 2009 but would "rise somewhat" next year.

Shares of TRW have recovered considerably from a 52-week low of $1.38 set in March. The stock is still off from a high of $21.34 last August.