Moody’s (NYSE:MCO) Updates FY 2026 Earnings Guidance

Moody’s (NYSE:MCO) issued an update on its FY 2026 earnings guidance on Wednesday morning. The company provided earnings per share (EPS) guidance of 16.400-17.000 for the period, compared to the consensus estimate of 16.670. The company issued revenue guidance of -.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on MCO shares. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Moody’s from $660.00 to $560.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 13th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on Moody’s from $526.00 to $489.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 7th. Daiwa Securities Group raised Moody’s from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $500.00 to $590.00 in a research report on Tuesday, January 13th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on Moody’s from $574.00 to $540.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 19th. Finally, Evercore restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $610.00 price target on shares of Moody’s in a research report on Thursday, February 19th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have given a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $541.69.

Moody’s Stock Up 3.3%

Shares of NYSE MCO opened at $474.94 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.66, a current ratio of 1.74 and a quick ratio of 1.74. The company has a market cap of $84.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.89, a PEG ratio of 2.47 and a beta of 1.45. Moody’s has a 1 year low of $402.28 and a 1 year high of $546.88. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $443.84 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $477.24.

Moody’s (NYSE:MCO) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The business services provider reported $4.33 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.40 by ($0.07). Moody’s had a net margin of 31.86% and a return on equity of 66.01%. The business had revenue of $2.08 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.11 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $3.83 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 8.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Moody’s has set its FY 2026 guidance at 16.400-17.000 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Moody’s will post 16.68 earnings per share for the current year.

Moody’s Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 13th. Investors of record on Monday, March 2nd were issued a dividend of $1.03 per share. This represents a $4.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 2nd. This is an increase from Moody’s’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.94. Moody’s’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 30.12%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Richard G. Steele sold 375 shares of Moody’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $456.71, for a total transaction of $171,266.25. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 2,459 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,123,049.89. This trade represents a 13.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Robert Fauber sold 1,467 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $437.77, for a total transaction of $642,208.59. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 75,489 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $33,046,819.53. This represents a 1.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last quarter, insiders sold 8,222 shares of company stock worth $3,786,732. Insiders own 0.14% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Moody’s

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. purchased a new position in Moody’s during the 2nd quarter worth $25,000. Birchwood Financial Partners Inc. purchased a new stake in Moody’s in the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd bought a new position in Moody’s during the 3rd quarter worth about $30,000. Kemnay Advisory Services Inc. purchased a new position in Moody’s during the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. Finally, Wealth Watch Advisors INC purchased a new position in Moody’s during the 3rd quarter valued at about $32,000. 92.11% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.