Moody’s (NYSE:MCO) CEO Sells 185 Shares of Company Stock

Moody’s Corporation (NYSE:MCO) CEO Michael West sold 185 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $506.88, for a total transaction of $93,772.80. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 8,374 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,244,613.12. This represents a 2.16% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website.

Moody’s Trading Down 0.5%

Shares of MCO stock traded down $2.73 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $503.29. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 911,053 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,055,550. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $477.37 and its 200-day simple moving average is $467.49. The company has a quick ratio of 1.29, a current ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.86. Moody’s Corporation has a 12-month low of $402.28 and a 12-month high of $546.88. The firm has a market capitalization of $86.77 billion, a PE ratio of 30.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.47 and a beta of 1.30.

Moody’s (NYSE:MCO) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 21st. The business services provider reported $4.14 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.25 by ($0.11). Moody’s had a return on equity of 84.76% and a net margin of 35.26%. The firm had revenue of $2.02 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.08 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $3.92 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up .8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that Moody’s Corporation will post 16.73 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Moody’s Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 11th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 20th will be given a dividend of $1.03 per share. This represents a $4.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 20th. Moody’s’s dividend payout ratio is presently 25.11%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Moody’s

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA lifted its position in shares of Moody’s by 8.0% in the third quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 90,018 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $40,880,000 after purchasing an additional 6,687 shares in the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC increased its stake in Moody’s by 4.4% in the 3rd quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 4,431 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,012,000 after buying an additional 185 shares during the period. May Hill Capital LLC acquired a new position in Moody’s in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $213,000. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC lifted its position in Moody’s by 4.3% in the 3rd quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC now owns 1,344 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $610,000 after buying an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CenterBook Partners LP boosted its stake in shares of Moody’s by 21.6% during the 3rd quarter. CenterBook Partners LP now owns 2,088 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $948,000 after buying an additional 371 shares during the period. 92.11% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have issued reports on MCO. Bank of America decreased their price target on Moody’s from $580.00 to $575.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 22nd. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of Moody’s from $470.00 to $480.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 22nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price target on shares of Moody’s from $587.00 to $594.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. Jefferies Financial Group cut shares of Moody’s to a “neutral” rating and set a $560.00 price objective on the stock. in a research note on Friday, October 16th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus dropped their target price on shares of Moody’s from $550.00 to $537.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 22nd. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Moody’s has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $552.63.

Moody’s Company Profile

Moody’s Corporation (NYSE:MCO) is a global provider of credit ratings, research, data, analytics and risk-management solutions. Through Moody’s Investors Service, the company assigns credit ratings and publishes research on corporate, government and structured-finance debt issuers, helping investors and other market participants evaluate credit risk.

Through Moody’s Analytics, the company provides financial intelligence, economic research, data, software and advisory services. Its offerings support credit analysis, lending, portfolio management, enterprise risk management, compliance and related functions across financial institutions, corporations, governments and other organizations.

Moody’s traces its origins to 1909, when John Moody established the company that introduced published credit ratings for bonds.