Moody's Corporation $MCO Holdings Raised by Eurizon Capital SGR S.p.A.

Key Points

• Eurizon Capital SGR increased its Moody’s stake 116.8% in the third quarter, ending with 90,614 shares valued at about $41.2 million. Institutional investors collectively own 92.11% of the stock.
• Moody’s latest quarterly results fell short of forecasts: EPS was $4.14 versus the $4.25 estimate, and revenue was $2.02 billion versus $2.08 billion expected. Revenue nevertheless rose 0.8% year over year.
• Analysts gave Moody’s a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating with an average price target of $552.63; the company also declared a quarterly dividend of $1.03 per share.

Eurizon Capital SGR S.p.A. increased its stake in shares of Moody's Corporation (NYSE:MCO - Free Report) by 116.8% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 90,614 shares of the business services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 48,810 shares during the quarter. Eurizon Capital SGR S.p.A. owned approximately 0.05% of Moody's worth $41,163,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Wilkerson Advisory Group LLC lifted its position in Moody's by 87.1% in the first quarter. Wilkerson Advisory Group LLC now owns 58 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 27 shares during the last quarter. Compass Financial Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Moody's in the second quarter worth approximately $27,000. Gen Wealth Partners Inc bought a new position in shares of Moody's in the third quarter worth approximately $34,000. Balance Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Moody's in the third quarter worth $40,000. Finally, FNY Investment Advisers LLC purchased a new position in shares of Moody's in the second quarter worth $45,000. 92.11% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Moody's

In related news, CEO Michael West sold 9,946 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $488.00, for a total value of $4,853,648.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 8,559 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,176,792. This represents a 53.75% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Robert Fauber sold 1,743 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $510.75, for a total transaction of $890,237.25. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 51,364 shares of the company's stock, valued at $26,234,163. This trade represents a 3.28% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 13,282 shares of company stock worth $6,509,459 over the last 90 days. 0.14% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Moody's Stock Performance

Shares of MCO stock opened at $508.18 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $87.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.97, a PEG ratio of 2.69 and a beta of 1.30. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $478.26 and a 200 day moving average of $466.73. Moody's Corporation has a 52 week low of $402.28 and a 52 week high of $546.88. 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 issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 21st. The business services provider reported $4.14 earnings per share (EPS) 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 company had revenue of $2.02 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.08 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $3.92 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up .8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts expect that Moody's Corporation will post 16.76 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 dividend of $1.03 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 20th. This represents a $4.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.8%. Moody's's payout ratio is currently 25.11%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. Mizuho upped their price target on shares of Moody's from $521.00 to $530.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, July 27th. Citigroup reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $600.00 price target (up from $565.00) on shares of Moody's in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Rothschild & Co Redburn boosted their price objective on shares of Moody's from $510.00 to $520.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. Daiwa Securities Group upped their price objective 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. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on shares of Moody's from $557.00 to $593.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. Thirteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $552.63.

Moody's Company Profile

Moody's Corporation is a global provider of credit ratings, research, data and risk-analysis services. Through Moody's Investors Service, it assesses the creditworthiness of businesses, governments and financial instruments, providing ratings and related research to investors and other market participants. Its Moody's Analytics business offers data, software and analytical tools used in areas such as credit and financial risk management, compliance, and economic research. The company serves clients across international markets, including financial institutions, corporations, governments and investors.

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