Cerity Partners LLC Sells 983 Shares of Moody's Corporation (NYSE:MCO)

Cerity Partners LLC reduced its position in shares of Moody's Corporation (NYSE:MCO - Free Report) by 2.2% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 43,067 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 983 shares during the period. Cerity Partners LLC's holdings in Moody's were worth $20,056,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of MCO. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Moody's during the fourth quarter worth about $988,750,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in shares of Moody's by 55,808.8% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 802,850 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $373,879,000 after buying an additional 801,414 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp boosted its position in Moody's by 20.5% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,776,729 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $841,050,000 after purchasing an additional 302,453 shares during the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its position in Moody's by 142.4% during the first quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 71,040 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $33,083,000 after purchasing an additional 238,569 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its position in Moody's by 16.1% during the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,590,679 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $752,980,000 after purchasing an additional 220,681 shares during the last quarter. 92.11% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Moody's Price Performance

Moody's stock traded down $6.30 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $499.42. 455,742 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 766,094. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $483.66 and a 200-day simple moving average of $473.63. Moody's Corporation 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 1.77, a current ratio of 1.57 and a quick ratio of 1.56. The firm has a market cap of $89.85 billion, a PE ratio of 43.13, a PEG ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 1.38.

Moody's (NYSE:MCO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 22nd. The business services provider reported $3.83 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.58 by $0.25. The firm had revenue of $1.92 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.90 billion. Moody's had a return on equity of 60.37% and a net margin of 29.15%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Moody's Corporation will post 13.95 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Moody's Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 6th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 16th were issued a $0.94 dividend. This represents a $3.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.75%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 16th. Moody's's dividend payout ratio is presently 32.47%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Moody's

In related news, CEO Robert Fauber sold 415 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $437.80, for a total transaction of $181,687.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 62,690 shares of the company's stock, valued at $27,445,682. This trade represents a 0.66% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.14% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently commented on the company. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Moody's from $493.00 to $498.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, July 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on Moody's from $585.00 to $495.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Bank of America assumed coverage on Moody's in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. They set a "buy" rating and a $530.00 price target for the company. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Moody's from $572.00 to $573.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 3rd. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $550.00 price objective on shares of Moody's in a research note on Wednesday, June 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Moody's currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $519.07.

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.