Moody’s Corporation $MCO Stock: Compass Wealth Management LLC Grows Position

Compass Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Moody’s Corporation (NYSE:MCO) by 51.4% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 5,956 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,022 shares during the period. Compass Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Moody’s were worth $2,705,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Root Financial Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Moody’s in the 3rd quarter valued at $159,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Moody’s by 23.8% during the 3rd quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 796 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $361,000 after buying an additional 153 shares during the last quarter. Obermeyer Wealth Partners increased its holdings in shares of Moody’s by 2.3% during the 3rd quarter. Obermeyer Wealth Partners now owns 56,011 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $25,436,000 after buying an additional 1,239 shares during the last quarter. Vest Financial LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Moody’s during the 3rd quarter worth $385,000. Finally, Quadrant Capital Group LLC raised its position in shares of Moody’s by 3.2% in the 3rd quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 3,985 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,850,000 after buying an additional 122 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.11% of the company’s stock.

Moody’s Stock Up 1.8%

Shares of Moody’s stock opened at $489.64 on Friday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $478.07 and a 200 day moving average price of $468.09. The company has a current ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.86. Moody’s Corporation has a twelve month low of $402.28 and a twelve month high of $546.88. The stock has a market cap of $84.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.50 and a beta of 1.35.

Moody’s (NYSE:MCO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 21st. The business services provider reported $4.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.25 by ($0.11). Moody’s had a net margin of 35.26% and a return on equity of 84.76%. The company had revenue of $2.02 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.08 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $3.92 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up .8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that Moody’s Corporation will post 16.79 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Moody’s Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 11th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 20th will be paid a $1.03 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 20th. This represents a $4.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.8%. Moody’s’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 26.13%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Robert Fauber sold 923 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $455.00, for a total transaction of $419,965.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 51,364 shares in the company, valued at approximately $23,370,620. This trade represents a 1.77% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Company insiders own 0.14% of the company’s stock.

Moody’s News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Bank of America maintained a Buy rating and lowered its price target modestly from $580 to $575, still implying approximately 17% upside from the referenced trading level. Bank of America Moody’s rating
• Positive Sentiment: Moody’s management highlighted strong AI-related activity: issuance tied to AI infrastructure reportedly increased fourfold year over year, while refinancing needs in the U.S. and Europe exceed $5 trillion. These trends could support future demand for Moody’s ratings, data and analytics products. Moody’s long-term investor takeaways
• Positive Sentiment: The company declared a quarterly dividend of $1.03 per share, equivalent to $4.12 annually and a referenced yield of approximately 0.8%, providing a modest shareholder-return benefit.
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst target changes were mixed but generally supportive: Deutsche Bank raised its target from $559 to $561, while Morgan Stanley lifted its target from $470 to $480. Morgan Stanley’s target remains below the referenced share price, suggesting limited near-term upside under that valuation. Deutsche Bank target change Morgan Stanley target change
• Negative Sentiment: Third-quarter adjusted EPS of $4.14 missed the $4.25 consensus estimate, while revenue of $2.02 billion fell short of the $2.08 billion forecast. Revenue rose only 0.8% year over year, increasing concern about slowing growth and cost pressure. Moody’s Q3 earnings miss
• Negative Sentiment: Commentary from Seeking Alpha argued that MCO’s roughly 30-times earnings valuation may already reflect its high business quality, limiting upside unless growth accelerates materially. Moody’s valuation analysis

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on MCO. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their target price on Moody’s from $610.00 to $575.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 16th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on Moody’s from $557.00 to $593.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. Evercore raised their price objective on Moody’s from $570.00 to $588.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered 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, BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on Moody’s from $490.00 to $511.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday. Thirteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $552.63.

About Moody’s

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.