JPMorgan Chase & Co. Sells 115,332 Shares of Moody’s Corporation $MCO

JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut its holdings in Moody’s Corporation (NYSE:MCO) by 10.0% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,034,134 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 115,332 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co.’s holdings in Moody’s were worth $492,777,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D increased its holdings in shares of Moody’s by 4.8% in the third quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D now owns 56,863 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $27,094,000 after buying an additional 2,594 shares during the period. Taylor Hoffman Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Moody’s by 0.9% in the third quarter. Taylor Hoffman Capital Management LLC now owns 10,370 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $4,941,000 after buying an additional 96 shares during the period. Wulff Hansen & CO. raised its holdings in Moody’s by 10.4% during the 3rd quarter. Wulff Hansen & CO. now owns 690 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $329,000 after buying an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board increased its position in shares of Moody’s by 4.3% in the third quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 33,230 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $15,833,000 after acquiring an additional 1,372 shares during the period. Finally, Connable Office Inc. grew its stake in shares of Moody’s by 0.6% in the third quarter. Connable Office Inc. now owns 6,764 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $3,223,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares during the last quarter. 92.11% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Moody’s News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Moody’s this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 results beat on both EPS and revenue — non‑GAAP EPS $3.64 (beat) and revenue $1.89B, with revenue up ~13% year‑over‑year; management pointed to strength in Analytics and Moody’s Investors Service. Moody’s Non‑GAAP EPS of $3.64 beats
• Positive Sentiment: FY‑2026 guidance of $16.40–$17.00 EPS was issued and sits marginally above consensus, providing forward earnings clarity that buoyed sentiment. Benzinga: What’s Going On With Moody’s
• Positive Sentiment: Bank of America initiated coverage with a “Buy” and a $550 price target, giving an incremental analyst catalyst and a sizable upside target relative to recent levels. Finviz: Bank of America initiation
• Positive Sentiment: Strategic expansion — Moody’s opened a regional HQ in Riyadh to deepen Middle East presence, supporting long‑run revenue growth opportunities in accelerating local capital markets. BusinessWire: Moody’s Establishes Regional Headquarters
• Neutral Sentiment: Earnings call materials and transcript are available for detailed read‑throughs of segment performance, op‑ex cadence and M&A/tech investment plans — useful for investors but not a single short‑term catalyst. Earnings Call Transcript
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst consensus is roughly a “Moderate Buy,” indicating broadly positive but not unanimous conviction among sell‑side firms. AmericanBankingNews: Analyst Recommendations
• Negative Sentiment: Some commentary flagged recent share weakness and cautioned that prior pullbacks were expected, indicating lingering investor skepticism on valuation despite the beat. SeekingAlpha: The Drop Was Expected
• Negative Sentiment: Operating expenses rose (management noted higher costs to scale new technologies), which could temper margin expansion if costs persist. Zacks: Q4 Earnings Beat (expenses note)

Moody’s Stock Up 6.3%

NYSE:MCO opened at $450.09 on Thursday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $498.58 and its 200-day moving average price is $494.79. The company has a market capitalization of $80.30 billion, a PE ratio of 36.18, a P/E/G ratio of 1.96 and a beta of 1.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.70, a current ratio of 1.84 and a quick ratio of 1.84. Moody’s Corporation has a 1-year low of $378.71 and a 1-year high of $546.88.

Moody’s (NYSE:MCO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 18th. The business services provider reported $3.64 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.39 by $0.25. The business had revenue of $1.89 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.87 billion. Moody’s had a net margin of 29.92% and a return on equity of 63.58%. Moody’s’s quarterly revenue was up 13.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.62 earnings per share. Moody’s has set its FY 2026 guidance at 16.400-17.000 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Moody’s Corporation will post 13.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have weighed in on MCO. Bank of America assumed coverage on Moody’s in a report on Tuesday. They issued a “buy” rating and a $550.00 price objective for the company. Wall Street Zen lowered Moody’s from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, January 31st. Evercore boosted their price objective on shares of Moody’s from $540.00 to $620.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. BMO Capital Markets dropped their target price on shares of Moody’s from $534.00 to $507.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 23rd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus set a $574.00 target price on shares of Moody’s and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 5th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have given a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Moody’s presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $559.75.

Insider Buying and Selling at Moody’s

In other Moody’s news, CEO Robert Fauber sold 575 shares of Moody’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $498.90, for a total transaction of $286,867.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 61,082 shares in the company, valued at approximately $30,473,809.80. The trade was a 0.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.14% of the stock is owned by insiders.

About Moody’s

Moody’s Corporation is a global provider of credit ratings, research, data and analytics that support financial decision-making and transparency in capital markets. The company traces its origins to the early 20th century when financial analyst John Moody began publishing credit information; today Moody’s is headquartered in New York and serves a broad set of market participants including investors, issuers, financial institutions, corporations, governments and regulators.

Moody’s operates primarily through two complementary businesses.