V Square Quantitative Management LLC Takes $1.76 Million Position in Moody’s Corporation $MCO

V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Moody’s Corporation (NYSE:MCO) in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor bought 3,444 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,759,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of MCO. Sivia Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Moody’s during the second quarter worth approximately $267,000. Federated Hermes Inc. increased its stake in shares of Moody’s by 15.5% during the second quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 10,916 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $5,475,000 after purchasing an additional 1,461 shares during the period. L2 Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Moody’s by 5.1% during the second quarter. L2 Asset Management LLC now owns 681 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $342,000 after purchasing an additional 33 shares during the period. SVB Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in Moody’s during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $586,000. Finally, Gerber Kawasaki Wealth & Investment Management bought a new stake in Moody’s in the 2nd quarter valued at $202,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.11% of the company’s stock.

Moody’s Trading Up 2.1%

MCO opened at $447.16 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $79.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.69, a P/E/G ratio of 2.28 and a beta of 1.45. The company has a quick ratio of 1.74, a current ratio of 1.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.66. Moody’s Corporation has a twelve month low of $385.61 and a twelve month high of $546.88. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $448.69 and a 200 day simple moving average of $479.34.

Moody’s (NYSE:MCO) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 18th. The business services provider reported $3.64 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.39 by $0.25. The company had revenue of $1.89 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.87 billion. Moody’s had a net margin of 31.86% and a return on equity of 66.01%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.62 EPS. Moody’s has set its FY 2026 guidance at 16.400-17.000 EPS. Analysts predict that Moody’s Corporation will post 13.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Moody’s Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 13th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 2nd were paid a dividend of $1.03 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 2nd. This is a boost from Moody’s’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.94. This represents a $4.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. Moody’s’s dividend payout ratio is currently 30.12%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have weighed in on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on Moody’s from $600.00 to $560.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 19th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Moody’s from $620.00 to $660.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 14th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price objective on shares of Moody’s from $574.00 to $540.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 19th. BMO Capital Markets restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Moody’s in a research report on Thursday, February 19th. Finally, Bank of America initiated coverage on shares of Moody’s in a research report on Tuesday, February 17th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $550.00 price target for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have issued a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $547.94.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Richard G. Steele sold 375 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $456.71, for a total value of $171,266.25. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 2,459 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,123,049.89. This represents a 13.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Robert Fauber sold 5,213 shares of Moody’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $456.71, for a total transaction of $2,380,829.23. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 75,789 shares in the company, valued at $34,613,594.19. This trade represents a 6.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders have sold 8,222 shares of company stock valued at $3,786,732. Insiders own 0.14% of the company’s stock.

Key Stories Impacting Moody’s

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

• Positive Sentiment: Large buybacks are cited as creating a floor under the stock, supporting investor confidence ahead of results. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Pre-earnings coverage notes Moody’s is set to report Q1 results soon, with analysts expecting double‑digit EPS growth — a catalyst that could drive volatility but also upside if the company beats. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Market commentary flagged that the stock has risen intraday but still lags broader market performance, reflecting mixed investor positioning. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Moody’s Ratings cut the outlook on U.S. BDCs to “negative,” citing redemption pressure, rising leverage and weakening funding access — developments that could pressure fee opportunities and increase credit‑risk-related work for Moody’s. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Coverage highlights that Moody’s negative BDC outlook raises questions for private‑credit platforms and for Moody’s exposure/revenues tied to that market — a potential headwind if the segment weakens. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Moody’s Ratings downgraded Blue Owl Capital’s flagship private‑credit fund to a negative rating amid rising redemptions, an example of the broader private‑credit strain that could temper Moody’s growth in ratings and surveillance revenue. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Morgan Stanley cut its price target on MCO to $489 and moved to an “equal weight” view, reducing near‑term upside expectations and adding analyst pressure on the stock. Read More.

Moody’s Company Profile

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.