Moody’s Co. (NYSE:MCO) Shares Sold by Victory Capital Management Inc.

Victory Capital Management Inc. lessened its holdings in shares of Moody’s Co. (NYSE:MCO) by 2.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 63,018 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 1,699 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Moody’s were worth $24,612,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Wealthsource Partners LLC lifted its position in Moody’s by 0.9% during the third quarter. Wealthsource Partners LLC now owns 3,522 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,114,000 after buying an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. Sound View Wealth Advisors Group LLC lifted its holdings in Moody’s by 2.0% in the third quarter. Sound View Wealth Advisors Group LLC now owns 1,580 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $499,000 after acquiring an additional 31 shares during the last quarter. Realta Investment Advisors grew its position in Moody’s by 3.2% in the fourth quarter. Realta Investment Advisors now owns 997 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $389,000 after acquiring an additional 31 shares during the period. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in Moody’s by 3.2% during the fourth quarter. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,072 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $419,000 after acquiring an additional 33 shares during the last quarter. Finally, HM Payson & Co. raised its position in Moody’s by 1.2% in the third quarter. HM Payson & Co. now owns 2,862 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $905,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.11% of the company’s stock.

Moody’s Trading Up 0.5 %

Shares of NYSE:MCO opened at $395.95 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $72.30 billion, a PE ratio of 43.23, a P/E/G ratio of 3.00 and a beta of 1.26. The company’s 50 day moving average is $384.45 and its two-hundred day moving average is $375.15. Moody’s Co. has a 52 week low of $298.86 and a 52 week high of $407.62. The company has a current ratio of 1.42, a quick ratio of 1.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.68.

Moody’s (NYSE:MCO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The business services provider reported $3.37 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.06 by $0.31. The company had revenue of $1.79 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.70 billion. Moody’s had a return on equity of 54.50% and a net margin of 27.01%. Moody’s’s quarterly revenue was up 21.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.99 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that Moody’s Co. will post 10.78 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Moody’s Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 7th. Investors of record on Friday, May 17th will be issued a $0.85 dividend. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.86%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 16th. Moody’s’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 37.12%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on MCO shares. Barclays upgraded Moody’s from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $375.00 to $450.00 in a report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Oppenheimer raised their price target on Moody’s from $411.00 to $424.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 2nd. BMO Capital Markets cut their price objective on Moody’s from $430.00 to $414.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 14th. StockNews.com upgraded Moody’s from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 16th. Finally, Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on shares of Moody’s from $405.00 to $414.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, May 3rd. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Moody’s currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $400.50.

About Moody’s

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.