Moody's Corporation (NYSE:MCO) Stock Now Rated "Moderate Buy" by Sell-Side Analysts

Key Points

• Analysts rate Moody’s “Moderate Buy”: Thirteen of 20 analysts recommend buying the stock, while seven rate it a hold. The average 12-month price target is $552.63 versus a recent price of $483.21.
• Recent results fell short of expectations: Third-quarter EPS was $4.14 versus the $4.25 consensus, and revenue of $2.02 billion missed estimates of $2.08 billion, though revenue still grew 0.8% year over year.
• Growth opportunities remain alongside valuation concerns: AI-related infrastructure issuance rose fourfold year over year and management slightly raised its outlook, but Moody’s trades at roughly 29 times earnings. The company also declared a quarterly dividend of $1.03 per share.

Shares of Moody's Corporation (NYSE:MCO - Get Free Report) have earned an average recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the twenty research firms that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and thirteen have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $552.63.

MCO has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their target price on Moody's from $550.00 to $537.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. Mizuho increased their price target on Moody's from $521.00 to $530.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, July 27th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on shares of Moody's from $490.00 to $511.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research report on Thursday. Bank of America lowered their price objective on shares of Moody's from $580.00 to $575.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group boosted their price objective on shares of Moody's from $500.00 to $535.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th.

Key Stories Impacting Moody's

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

• Positive Sentiment: Moody’s reported strong momentum in AI-related infrastructure issuance, which increased fourfold year over year. Management also slightly raised its outlook, while refinancing needs exceeding $5 trillion across the U.S. and Europe could support future ratings and analytics demand. MCO Q3 deep dive: AI infrastructure and analytics drive segment divergence, guidance slightly raised
• Positive Sentiment: Deutsche Bank maintained a Buy rating and raised its price target to $561 from $559, indicating analysts still see meaningful upside. Deutsche Bank adjusts Moody's price target
• Positive Sentiment: Moody’s declared a quarterly dividend of $1.03 per share, or $4.12 annualized, providing continued shareholder returns. The yield is approximately 0.8%.
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst views remain mixed. Bank of America, Stifel and Deutsche Bank retained Buy ratings despite trimming or making only modest adjustments to their targets, while Morgan Stanley raised its target to $480, close to the recent trading level. Analysts have conflicting sentiments on financial companies
• Negative Sentiment: Third-quarter results missed expectations: earnings per share came in at $4.14 versus the $4.25 consensus, while revenue of $2.02 billion fell short of the $2.08 billion estimate. Revenue growth was only 0.8% year over year, raising concerns about near-term operating momentum. Moody's misses Q3 2026 revenue estimates
• Negative Sentiment: Commentary highlighting Moody’s elevated valuation—around 30 times earnings—has intensified concerns that the stock’s premium price leaves limited room for execution disappointments. Moody's Q3 earnings emphasize detached valuation

Moody's Stock Performance

Shares of MCO stock opened at $483.21 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $83.31 billion, a PE ratio of 29.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.49 and a beta of 1.35. Moody's has a 52-week low of $402.28 and a 52-week high of $546.88. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $478.05 and its 200 day moving average price is $468.20. The company has a quick ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.86.

Moody's (NYSE:MCO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 21st. The business services provider reported $4.14 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $4.25 by ($0.11). Moody's had a return on equity of 84.76% and a net margin of 35.26%. The company had revenue of $2.02 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.08 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $3.92 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up .8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Moody's will post 16.71 EPS for the current year.

Moody's Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 11th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 20th will be issued a $1.03 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 20th. This represents a $4.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.9%. Moody's's payout ratio is presently 26.13%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Moody's

In other news, CEO Robert Fauber sold 923 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $455.00, for a total transaction of $419,965.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 51,364 shares in the company, valued at $23,370,620. The trade was a 1.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 0.14% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Moody's

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Slow Capital Inc. boosted its holdings in Moody's by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter. Slow Capital Inc. now owns 10,514 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $4,775,000 after purchasing an additional 109 shares in the last quarter. Norris Perne & French LLP MI increased its position in Moody's by 241.1% during the 3rd quarter. Norris Perne & French LLP MI now owns 81,339 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $36,939,000 after purchasing an additional 57,495 shares during the period. Signaturefd LLC increased its position in Moody's by 4.8% during the 3rd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 4,759 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $2,161,000 after purchasing an additional 218 shares during the period. Evergreen Capital Management LLC increased its position in Moody's by 62.4% during the 3rd quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC now owns 2,282 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $1,036,000 after purchasing an additional 877 shares during the period. Finally, Carderock Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Moody's by 3.2% during the 3rd quarter. Carderock Capital Management Inc. now owns 14,193 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $6,445,000 after buying an additional 443 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.11% of the company's stock.

Moody's Company Profile

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.

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