Cache Advisors LLC Acquires Shares of 1,096 Moody's Co. (NYSE:MCO)

Cache Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Moody's Co. (NYSE:MCO - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 1,096 shares of the business services provider's stock, valued at approximately $519,000.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vise Technologies Inc. raised its holdings in Moody's by 92.9% in the 4th quarter. Vise Technologies Inc. now owns 3,268 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,547,000 after buying an additional 1,574 shares during the last quarter. Blue Fin Capital Inc. raised its holdings in Moody's by 2.1% in the 4th quarter. Blue Fin Capital Inc. now owns 4,940 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $2,339,000 after buying an additional 103 shares during the last quarter. Cornerstone Advisory LLC raised its holdings in Moody's by 2.2% in the 4th quarter. Cornerstone Advisory LLC now owns 1,143 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $598,000 after buying an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. Novem Group bought a new position in Moody's in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $823,000. Finally, Taylor Hoffman Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Moody's by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Taylor Hoffman Capital Management LLC now owns 9,959 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $4,714,000 after buying an additional 73 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.11% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Moody's

In related news, CEO Robert Fauber sold 415 shares of Moody's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $437.80, for a total value of $181,687.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 62,690 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $27,445,682. This trade represents a 0.66% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.14% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Moody's Trading Up 0.4%

Shares of MCO stock traded up $1.85 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $480.36. 137,459 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 767,182. The firm has a market cap of $86.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.67, a P/E/G ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 1.40. Moody's Co. has a fifty-two week low of $378.71 and a fifty-two week high of $531.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.81, a quick ratio of 1.67 and a current ratio of 1.47. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $453.35 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $473.22.

Moody's (NYSE:MCO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The business services provider reported $3.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 business had revenue of $1.92 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.90 billion. Equities analysts anticipate that Moody's Co. will post 13.95 EPS for the current year.

Moody's Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 6th. Investors of record on Friday, May 16th will be given a $0.94 dividend. This represents a $3.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.78%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 16th. Moody's's payout ratio is currently 32.47%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price objective on shares of Moody's from $475.00 to $456.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Mizuho began coverage on shares of Moody's in a research report on Wednesday, March 12th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $504.00 target price for the company. Robert W. Baird decreased their target price on shares of Moody's from $575.00 to $525.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Moody's from $510.00 to $540.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Moody's from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $520.87.

Moody's Company Profile

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.