MCF Advisors LLC Acquires 2,609 Shares of Moody’s Corporation $MCO

MCF Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Moody’s Corporation (NYSE:MCO) by 51.5% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 7,677 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 2,609 shares during the quarter. MCF Advisors LLC’s holdings in Moody’s were worth $3,658,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Rexford Capital Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Moody’s in the second quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. bought a new position in Moody’s in the second quarter valued at about $25,000. Johnson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in Moody’s during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $28,000. Heartwood Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Moody’s during the 3rd quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, Salomon & Ludwin LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Moody’s during the third quarter valued at about $38,000. 92.11% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MCO has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Daiwa Securities Group upgraded Moody’s from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $500.00 to $590.00 in a research report on Tuesday, January 13th. Raymond James Financial raised Moody’s from an “underperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, October 17th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Moody’s from $620.00 to $660.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 14th. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price objective on Moody’s from $534.00 to $507.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 23rd. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Moody’s from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, January 31st. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $560.94.

Moody’s Price Performance

NYSE:MCO opened at $453.78 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $508.26 and a 200 day moving average of $499.41. Moody’s Corporation has a 52-week low of $378.71 and a 52-week high of $546.88. The firm has a market capitalization of $80.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.48, a P/E/G ratio of 2.09 and a beta of 1.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.70, a quick ratio of 1.84 and a current ratio of 1.84.

Insider Transactions at Moody’s

In other news, CEO Robert Fauber sold 575 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $498.90, for a total value of $286,867.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 61,082 shares in the company, valued at approximately $30,473,809.80. This represents a 0.93% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 0.14% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.