Brooklands Fund Management Ltd Purchases 14,880 Shares of Moody's Corporation $MCO

Key Points

• Brooklands Fund Management acquired 14,880 Moody’s shares worth approximately $6.76 million, making the stock 1% of its portfolio. Institutional investors collectively own 92.11% of Moody’s.
• Moody’s reported quarterly revenue of $2.02 billion and earnings of $4.14 per share, both below analyst expectations, although revenue increased 0.8% year over year.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $1.03 per share, equivalent to an annualized $4.12 dividend and a 0.8% yield. Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus with an average price target of $552.63.

Brooklands Fund Management Ltd purchased a new stake in Moody's Corporation (NYSE:MCO - Free Report) in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 14,880 shares of the business services provider's stock, valued at approximately $6,757,000. Moody's comprises approximately 1.0% of Brooklands Fund Management Ltd's portfolio, making the stock its 24th biggest holding.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of MCO. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its holdings in Moody's by 3.2% during the 1st quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 2,349,281 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,024,874,000 after purchasing an additional 72,043 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its position in Moody's by 2.4% during the second quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,420,099 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $643,191,000 after purchasing an additional 33,024 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its position in Moody's by 72.5% during the first quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,081,807 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $471,963,000 after purchasing an additional 454,684 shares during the period. Amundi increased its holdings in shares of Moody's by 20.0% in the second quarter. Amundi now owns 1,011,495 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $458,126,000 after purchasing an additional 168,528 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its holdings in shares of Moody's by 7.2% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 882,973 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $385,188,000 after purchasing an additional 59,121 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.11% of the company's stock.

Moody's Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:MCO opened at $488.58 on Friday. Moody's Corporation has a 12-month low of $402.28 and a 12-month high of $546.88. The company's 50 day moving average price is $477.40 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $467.84. The firm has a market cap of $84.23 billion, a PE ratio of 29.77, a PEG ratio of 2.47 and a beta of 1.35. The company has a quick ratio of 1.29, a current ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.86.

Moody's (NYSE:MCO - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results 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 net margin of 35.26% and a return on equity of 84.76%. The business had revenue of $2.02 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.08 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $3.92 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up .8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that Moody's Corporation will post 16.71 earnings per share for the current year.

Moody's Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 11th. Investors of record on Friday, November 20th will be given 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 presently 25.11%.

Insider Activity at Moody's

In related news, CEO Robert Fauber sold 1,467 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $484.30, for a total value of $710,468.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 51,964 shares of the company's stock, valued at $25,166,165.20. The trade was a 2.75% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders own 0.14% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Citigroup reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $600.00 price objective (up from $565.00) on shares of Moody's in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Daiwa Securities Group upped their price target 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. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their price target on shares of Moody's from $610.00 to $575.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 16th. Evercore increased their price target on shares of Moody's from $570.00 to $588.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. Finally, Rothschild & Co Redburn raised their price objective on shares of Moody's from $510.00 to $520.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Moody's presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $552.63.

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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