Campbell Newman Asset Management Inc. Decreases Position in Moody’s Corporation $MCO

Campbell Newman Asset Management Inc. trimmed its stake in shares of Moody’s Corporation (NYSE:MCO) by 3.5% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 45,495 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 1,628 shares during the quarter. Moody’s accounts for 1.8% of Campbell Newman Asset Management Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 23rd largest holding. Campbell Newman Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Moody’s were worth $22,820,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC increased its stake in Moody’s by 1,000.0% in the first quarter. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC now owns 55 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Saudi Central Bank purchased a new stake in Moody’s during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $30,000. ORG Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Moody’s by 50.0% during the second quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 66 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 22 shares during the period. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division boosted its holdings in shares of Moody’s by 42.9% in the second quarter. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division now owns 80 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 24 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Maryland Capital Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Moody’s during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $47,000. 92.11% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Moody’s Trading Up 0.8%

MCO opened at $480.58 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $86.02 billion, a PE ratio of 40.83, a P/E/G ratio of 3.05 and a beta of 1.42. Moody’s Corporation has a 12-month low of $378.71 and a 12-month high of $531.93. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $505.70 and its 200 day moving average price is $481.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.70, a current ratio of 1.75 and a quick ratio of 1.75.

Moody’s (NYSE:MCO) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The business services provider reported $3.56 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.39 by $0.17. The company had revenue of $1.90 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.82 billion. Moody’s had a return on equity of 60.73% and a net margin of 29.18%.Moody’s’s quarterly revenue was up 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $3.28 EPS. Moody’s has set its FY 2025 guidance at 13.500-14.000 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Moody’s Corporation will post 13.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Moody’s Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 5th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 15th were paid a dividend of $0.94 per share. This represents a $3.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 15th. Moody’s’s payout ratio is presently 31.95%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MCO has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on shares of Moody’s from $525.00 to $552.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, July 24th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on Moody’s from $509.00 to $534.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Moody’s from $495.00 to $565.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, July 21st. Oppenheimer raised their target price on shares of Moody’s from $552.00 to $563.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 24th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Moody’s from $493.00 to $498.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, July 7th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $540.71.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Noemie Clemence Heuland sold 897 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $508.24, for a total value of $455,891.28. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 2,148 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,091,699.52. The trade was a 29.46% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Michael L. West sold 3,704 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $511.10, for a total transaction of $1,893,114.40. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 8,209 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,195,619.90. The trade was a 31.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 9,423 shares of company stock worth $4,812,135. 0.14% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Moody’s Profile

Moody’s Corporation operates as an integrated risk assessment firm worldwide. It operates in two segments, Moody’s Analytics and Moody’s Investors Services. The Moody’s Analytics segment develops a range of products and services that support the risk management activities of institutional participants in financial markets.