Capital Analysts LLC Trims Stock Position in Moody’s Co. (NYSE:MCO)

Capital Analysts LLC trimmed its stake in shares of Moody’s Co. (NYSE:MCO) by 2.3% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 2,530 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 60 shares during the period. Capital Analysts LLC’s holdings in Moody’s were worth $988,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Ancora Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Moody’s by 4,900.0% during the first quarter. Ancora Advisors LLC now owns 100 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 98 shares in the last quarter. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL acquired a new position in Moody’s during the 1st quarter worth approximately $31,000. Compass Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Moody’s during the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Moody’s in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Finally, Quarry LP boosted its stake in shares of Moody’s by 143.8% in the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 117 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 69 shares in the last quarter. 92.11% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Moody’s Trading Down 0.9 %

Shares of MCO opened at $370.32 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.01, a current ratio of 1.74 and a quick ratio of 1.74. Moody’s Co. has a 1-year low of $296.45 and a 1-year high of $407.62. The stock has a market cap of $67.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 1.27. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $385.68 and a 200-day simple moving average of $368.64.

Moody’s (NYSE:MCO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 13th. The business services provider reported $2.19 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.33 by ($0.14). Moody’s had a return on equity of 55.23% and a net margin of 27.16%. The company had revenue of $1.48 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.48 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.60 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 14.7% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that Moody’s Co. will post 10.67 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Moody’s Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 23rd were issued a dividend of $0.85 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 22nd. This is an increase from Moody’s’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.77. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.92%. Moody’s’s payout ratio is 38.95%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have issued reports on MCO shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on Moody’s from $420.00 to $410.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 14th. Oppenheimer increased their price target on shares of Moody’s from $411.00 to $424.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 2nd. StockNews.com raised shares of Moody’s from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of Moody’s from $455.00 to $420.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 14th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Moody’s from $355.00 to $380.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 14th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $397.75.

Moody’s Profile

Moody's Corporation operates as an integrated risk assessment firm worldwide. It operates in two segments, Moody's Analytics and Moody's Investors Services. The Moody's Analytics segment develops a range of products and services that support the risk management activities of institutional participants in financial markets.