Axa S.A. Sells 38,298 Shares of Moody's Co. (NYSE:MCO)

AXA S.A. lowered its holdings in Moody's Co. (NYSE:MCO - Free Report) by 25.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 111,244 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 38,298 shares during the quarter. AXA S.A. owned about 0.06% of Moody's worth $52,660,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new position in Moody's during the 4th quarter worth about $41,000. Asset Planning Inc acquired a new position in shares of Moody's during the fourth quarter worth approximately $42,000. Albion Financial Group UT bought a new stake in shares of Moody's during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $45,000. Activest Wealth Management bought a new position in Moody's in the 4th quarter worth approximately $47,000. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings in Moody's by 80.6% during the 4th quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 121 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $57,000 after buying an additional 54 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.11% of the company's stock.

Moody's Trading Up 1.2 %

Shares of Moody's stock traded up $5.73 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $468.65. The company's stock had a trading volume of 827,699 shares, compared to its average volume of 771,296. Moody's Co. has a 12 month low of $378.71 and a 12 month high of $531.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.81, a current ratio of 1.47 and a quick ratio of 1.67. The company has a market capitalization of $84.31 billion, a PE ratio of 41.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 1.40. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $448.15 and a 200 day moving average of $471.68.

Moody's (NYSE:MCO - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The business services provider reported $3.83 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.58 by $0.25. Moody's had a net margin of 29.03% and a return on equity of 58.94%. The firm had revenue of $1.92 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.90 billion. Analysts predict that Moody's Co. will post 13.95 earnings per share for the current year.

Moody's Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 6th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 16th will be paid a $0.94 dividend. This represents a $3.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.80%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 16th. Moody's's dividend payout ratio is 32.47%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Robert Fauber sold 415 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $463.08, for a total value of $192,178.20. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 62,824 shares of the company's stock, valued at $29,092,537.92. The trade was a 0.66 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders have sold a total of 1,111 shares of company stock worth $520,603 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.14% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MCO has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. StockNews.com downgraded Moody's from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. BMO Capital Markets cut their target price on shares of Moody's from $475.00 to $456.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Mizuho assumed coverage on shares of Moody's in a research report on Wednesday, March 12th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $504.00 price target for the company. Robert W. Baird cut their price objective on shares of Moody's from $575.00 to $525.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Finally, Barclays dropped their target price on shares of Moody's from $570.00 to $520.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Moody's has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $515.87.

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.