CHICAGO TRUST Co NA Takes $887,000 Position in Moody's Corporation $MCO

Key Points

• Chicago Trust Co NA has acquired a new stake in Moody's Corporation for approximately $887,000, purchasing 1,768 shares in the second quarter.
• Moody's reported a quarterly earnings per share (EPS) of $3.56, surpassing estimates, with a revenue of $1.90 billion for the quarter, reflecting a 4.5% increase year-over-year.
• Moody's declared a quarterly dividend of $0.94 per share, resulting in an annualized dividend of $3.76 and a dividend yield of 0.8%.

CHICAGO TRUST Co NA bought a new stake in Moody's Corporation (NYSE:MCO - Free Report) in the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 1,768 shares of the business services provider's stock, valued at approximately $887,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC raised its holdings in shares of Moody's by 1,000.0% in the first quarter. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC now owns 55 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Saudi Central Bank purchased a new position in Moody's during the first quarter worth about $30,000. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division raised its holdings in Moody's by 42.9% during the second quarter. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division now owns 80 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 24 shares in the last quarter. Maryland Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Moody's during the second quarter worth about $47,000. Finally, Golden State Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in Moody's by 5,050.0% during the first quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 103 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $48,000 after purchasing an additional 101 shares in the last quarter. 92.11% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Moody's Stock Down 2.5%

MCO stock opened at $476.32 on Wednesday. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $507.68 and its 200-day simple moving average is $480.17. The firm has a market capitalization of $85.26 billion, a PE ratio of 40.47, a P/E/G ratio of 3.13 and a beta of 1.42. 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 1.70, a current ratio of 1.75 and a quick ratio of 1.75.

Moody's (NYSE:MCO - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The business services provider reported $3.56 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.39 by $0.17. The business had revenue of $1.90 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.82 billion. Moody's had a net margin of 29.18% and a return on equity of 60.73%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $3.28 earnings per share. Moody's has set its FY 2025 guidance at 13.500-14.000 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Moody's Corporation will post 13.95 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Moody's Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 5th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 15th were given a $0.94 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 15th. This represents a $3.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.8%. Moody's's dividend payout ratio is currently 31.95%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Oppenheimer increased their price target on shares of Moody's from $552.00 to $563.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, July 24th. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $550.00 price target on shares of Moody's in a report on Wednesday, June 4th. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Moody's from $520.00 to $580.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, July 24th. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on shares of Moody's from $525.00 to $552.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, July 24th. Finally, UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Moody's from $445.00 to $515.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $540.71.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Michael L. West sold 3,704 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $511.10, for a total transaction of $1,893,114.40. Following the transaction, the insider owned 8,209 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,195,619.90. This represents a 31.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CFO Noemie Clemence Heuland sold 897 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $508.24, for a total transaction of $455,891.28. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 2,148 shares in the company, valued at $1,091,699.52. The trade was a 29.46% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 9,423 shares of company stock valued at $4,812,135. Corporate insiders own 0.14% of the company's stock.

Moody's 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.

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