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

Moody’s (NYSE:MCO) issued an update on its FY 2026 earnings guidance on Wednesday. The company provided earnings per share (EPS) guidance of 16.500-17.000 for the period, compared to the consensus EPS estimate of 16.710. The company issued revenue guidance of -.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently weighed in on MCO shares. Barclays boosted their price target on Moody’s from $550.00 to $575.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, July 10th. Wolfe Research reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $535.00 target price on shares of Moody’s in a report on Thursday, April 23rd. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Moody’s from $491.00 to $496.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of Moody’s in a research note on Friday, July 17th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $610.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Rothschild & Co Redburn set a $500.00 target price on Moody’s in a research report on Thursday, June 18th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $550.58.

Moody’s Stock Performance

Shares of MCO opened at $489.25 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.16, a quick ratio of 1.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.03. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $462.39 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $465.09. Moody’s has a 12 month low of $402.28 and a 12 month high of $546.88. The stock has a market capitalization of $85.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 1.34.

Moody’s (NYSE:MCO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 22nd. The business services provider reported $4.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.26 by $0.42. Moody’s had a return on equity of 70.97% and a net margin of 31.69%.The company had revenue of $2.19 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.09 billion. Moody’s has set its FY 2026 guidance at 16.500-17.000 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Moody’s will post 16.73 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, SVP Richard G. Steele sold 158 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, June 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $453.67, for a total transaction of $71,679.86. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 1,985 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $900,534.95. This represents a 7.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Robert Fauber sold 1,467 shares of Moody’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $466.39, for a total transaction of $684,194.13. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 75,189 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $35,067,397.71. This trade 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. Insiders have sold a total of 3,250 shares of company stock worth $1,495,098 in the last quarter. 0.14% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Key Stories Impacting Moody’s

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

• Positive Sentiment: Moody’s posted Q2 EPS of $4.68, beating estimates of $4.26, and revenue of $2.19 billion also topped expectations. Article title: Moody’s Q2 2026 earnings press release
• Positive Sentiment: JPMorgan raised its price target on Moody’s from $530 to $600 and reiterated an overweight rating, signaling confidence in further upside. Article title: Moody’s price target raised by JPMorgan
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts have highlighted supportive operating trends, including strong global bond issuance volumes, which could continue to aid Moody’s ratings business and revenue growth. Article title: Strength in Global Bond Issuance Volumes to Aid Moody’s Q2 Earnings
• Neutral Sentiment: Moody’s FY 2026 guidance was set at $16.50–$17.00 EPS, slightly below the consensus estimate, which may limit near-term upside despite the strong quarter.
• Negative Sentiment: Moody’s also warned that Indonesia risks are growing, a reminder that sovereign-credit and macro risk remains an important watch item for the company’s ratings outlook. Article title: Moody’s Warns Indonesia Risks Grow Despite 2.85% Deficit Target

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in MCO. Reynders McVeigh Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Moody’s by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter. Reynders McVeigh Capital Management LLC now owns 1,865 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $889,000 after buying an additional 22 shares during the last quarter. L2 Asset Management LLC raised its stake in Moody’s by 4.3% during the third quarter. L2 Asset Management LLC now owns 710 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $338,000 after buying an additional 29 shares during the last quarter. Prosperity Consulting Group LLC boosted its holdings in Moody’s by 2.4% in the third quarter. Prosperity Consulting Group LLC now owns 1,321 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $629,000 after acquiring an additional 31 shares in the last quarter. Fiduciary Trust Co boosted its holdings in Moody’s by 0.3% in the third quarter. Fiduciary Trust Co now owns 10,745 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $5,120,000 after acquiring an additional 33 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Keel Point LLC grew its stake in shares of Moody’s by 5.3% in the fourth quarter. Keel Point LLC now owns 733 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $375,000 after acquiring an additional 37 shares during the last quarter. 92.11% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.