S&P Upgrades Navajo Nation Credit Rating to A+ with Stable Outlook

S&P Global Ratings upgraded the Navajo Nation’s issuer credit rating to A+ from A and assigned a stable outlook, according to an S&P report released Feb. 19, 2026; the Navajo Times reported the action on Feb. 26, 2026 in a post by Krista Allen. The agency also raised its long-term rating on the Nation’s series 2015A general obligation refunding bonds to A+ from A, the S&P release and Navajo Times coverage state.

S&P’s report attributed the upgrade to improved debt metrics and steady fiscal performance. The report language cited in local coverage reads: “S&P Global Ratings has raised the Navajo Nation’s issuer credit rating to A+ from A, citing improved debt metrics and ongoing sound financial performance, according to a report released Feb. 19.” The Navajo Times also quoted S&P’s summary phrase that “the upgrade is based on improved debt metrics and continued stable financial results.”

S&P analysts outlined specific forward-looking expectations in the Feb. 19 report as relayed by the Navajo Times. Analysts wrote that “revenue[s] are expected to remain sufficient to support operations.” The report further stated that “financial flexibility is likely to continue through its permanent fund, though the fund is not pledged to the 2015 bonds,” and that “carrying charges are expected to remain low.”

The rating action applied directly to the Nation’s series 2015A general obligation refunding bonds, which S&P moved to A+ from A. S&P’s note that the permanent fund is not pledged to the 2015 bonds clarifies that the fund contributes to financial flexibility but is not formal security for that particular obligation; no other bond covenant details, outstanding principal amounts, coupon or maturity schedules were provided in the S&P text or the Navajo Times report.

Local publication details: the Navajo Times posted its story under the News section labeled TÓNANEESDIZÍ with the byline “Posted by Krista Allen | Feb 26, 2026 | News | TÓNANEESDIZÍ.” A Facebook share of the Navajo Times item captured a truncated snippet reading, “Credit ratings agency Standard & Poor's (S&P) has affirmed this nation's” (text truncated in the shared excerpt).

Publicly available material supplied with the announcement leaves several factual gaps that local officials and investors will want filled. The S&P release and Navajo Times coverage did not include numeric debt metrics such as debt-to-revenue ratios, no size or recent performance figures for the Navajo Nation permanent fund were provided, and the series 2015A bonds’ outstanding principal, coupon rates and maturities were not listed. The supplied materials also contain no reaction from Navajo Nation leadership, the Nation’s Department of Finance, or bond counsel.

The Feb. 19 S&P Global Ratings report and the Navajo Times post by Krista Allen on Feb. 26 constitute the public record for the upgrade. S&P’s explicit assessments — improved debt metrics, continued stable financial results, expected revenue sufficiency, ongoing financial flexibility via the permanent fund, and low carrying charges — frame the agency’s reasoning for moving the Nation and its 2015A bonds to A+ with a stable outlook.