Farther Finance Advisors LLC Buys 2,637 Shares of Moody's Corporation $MCO

Key Points

• Farther Finance Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Moody's by 119.9%, buying 2,637 shares to own 4,836 shares worth about $2.47 million after the quarter.
• Moody's topped Q4 expectations with EPS of $3.64 versus $3.39 and revenue of $1.89 billion (up 13% year-over-year), and issued FY2026 guidance of $16.40–$17.00 EPS.
• Corporate insiders have been net sellers recently: CEO Robert Fauber sold 5,213 shares and insiders sold a total of 8,222 shares (~$3.79 million) over the last quarter, while insiders own only 0.14% of the company.

Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Moody's Corporation (NYSE:MCO - Free Report) by 119.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 4,836 shares of the business services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 2,637 shares during the period. Farther Finance Advisors LLC's holdings in Moody's were worth $2,471,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of MCO. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of Moody's during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Caitlin John LLC bought a new stake in Moody's during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $27,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd purchased a new position in Moody's during the third quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Wealth Watch Advisors INC bought a new position in shares of Moody's in the third quarter worth approximately $32,000. Finally, Eagle Bay Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Moody's in the fourth quarter worth $39,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.11% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently weighed in on MCO. Bank of America initiated coverage on shares of Moody's in a research note on Tuesday, February 17th. They set a "buy" rating and a $550.00 target price on the stock. Barclays decreased their price target on Moody's from $580.00 to $550.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 23rd. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price objective on Moody's from $574.00 to $540.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Moody's from $600.00 to $560.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 19th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Moody's from $660.00 to $560.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $541.69.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Moody's news, CEO Robert Fauber sold 5,213 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $456.71, for a total transaction of $2,380,829.23. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 75,789 shares in the company, valued at $34,613,594.19. This trade represents a 6.44% 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. Also, SVP Richard G. Steele sold 375 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $456.71, for a total transaction of $171,266.25. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 2,459 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,123,049.89. This trade represents a 13.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 8,222 shares of company stock valued at $3,786,732 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.14% of the company's stock.

Moody's Stock Up 1.6%

Shares of MCO stock opened at $455.67 on Friday. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $442.77 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $477.58. Moody's Corporation has a 52 week low of $402.28 and a 52 week high of $546.88. The stock has a market cap of $81.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.31, a PEG ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.45. The company has a quick ratio of 1.74, a current ratio of 1.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.66.

Moody's (NYSE:MCO - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 18th. The business services provider reported $3.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.39 by $0.25. Moody's had a return on equity of 66.01% and a net margin of 31.86%.The firm had revenue of $1.89 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.87 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.62 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 13.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Moody's has set its FY 2026 guidance at 16.400-17.000 EPS. Analysts predict that Moody's Corporation will post 13.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Moody's Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 13th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 2nd were given a dividend of $1.03 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 2nd. This represents a $4.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.9%. This is an increase from Moody's's previous quarterly dividend of $0.94. Moody's's dividend payout ratio is currently 30.12%.

About Moody's

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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding MCO? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Moody's Corporation (NYSE:MCO - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.