Akre Capital Management LLC cut its stake in Moody's Corporation (NYSE:MCO - Free Report) by 18.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,735,231 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 383,718 shares during the quarter. Moody's comprises approximately 9.7% of Akre Capital Management LLC's holdings, making the stock its 5th largest holding. Akre Capital Management LLC owned approximately 0.97% of Moody's worth $886,443,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.
A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of MCO. California Public Employees Retirement System lifted its position in shares of Moody's by 3.6% during the third quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 298,104 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $142,041,000 after purchasing an additional 10,434 shares during the last quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. lifted its position in shares of Moody's by 39.0% during the third quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. now owns 15,130 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $7,209,000 after purchasing an additional 4,247 shares during the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Moody's by 5.4% in the third quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 316,969 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $151,029,000 after acquiring an additional 16,099 shares in the last quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Moody's by 98.3% in the third quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. now owns 14,845 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $7,073,000 after acquiring an additional 7,359 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co raised its holdings in shares of Moody's by 24.5% in the third quarter. Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co now owns 23,476 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $11,186,000 after acquiring an additional 4,625 shares in the last quarter. 92.11% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.
Insider Transactions at Moody's
In other Moody's news, SVP Richard G. Steele sold 158 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $453.67, for a total value of $71,679.86. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 1,985 shares in the company, valued at approximately $900,534.95. The trade was a 7.37% 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. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Robert Fauber sold 1,467 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $466.39, for a total transaction of $684,194.13. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 75,189 shares of the company's stock, valued at $35,067,397.71. This represents a 1.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold 4,717 shares of company stock valued at $2,137,306 over the last quarter. 0.14% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.
Analyst Ratings Changes
Several analysts recently weighed in on MCO shares. Wall Street Zen downgraded Moody's from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, March 21st. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Moody's from $560.00 to $590.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, April 23rd. Bank of America restated a "buy" rating and issued a $565.00 price objective on shares of Moody's in a report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on Moody's from $526.00 to $489.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 7th. Finally, Evercore restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $610.00 price objective on shares of Moody's in a report on Thursday, February 19th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have issued a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $544.29.
Check Out Our Latest Analysis on Moody's
Moody's Stock Performance
Shares of Moody's stock opened at $448.12 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $78.29 billion, a PE ratio of 32.12, a P/E/G ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 1.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.03, a quick ratio of 1.16 and a current ratio of 1.16. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $448.68 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $469.30. Moody's Corporation has a one year low of $402.28 and a one year high of $546.88.
Moody's (NYSE:MCO - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The business services provider reported $4.33 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $4.22 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $2.08 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.11 billion. Moody's had a net margin of 31.69% and a return on equity of 70.97%. The firm's revenue was up 8.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $3.83 earnings per share. Moody's has set its FY 2026 guidance at 16.400-17.000 EPS. Research analysts expect that Moody's Corporation will post 16.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.
Moody's Dividend Announcement
The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 5th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 15th were issued a $1.03 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 15th. This represents a $4.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.9%. Moody's's payout ratio is currently 29.53%.
Moody's Company Profile
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Free Report)
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.
Further Reading
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