Moody's Corporation $MCO is Quantum Capital Management LLC NJ's 9th Largest Position

Key Points

• Quantum Capital Management LLC NJ boosted its Moody’s stake by 18.9% in the first quarter, ending with 99,704 shares valued at about $43.5 million. Moody’s is now its 9th-largest holding and makes up roughly 5.6% of the portfolio.
• Moody’s reported strong Q2 results, with EPS of $4.68 beating estimates and revenue rising 15.1% year over year to $2.19 billion. The company benefited from stronger bond issuance and solid demand for analytics.
• The company raised shareholder returns by increasing its stock repurchase outlook and declaring a quarterly dividend of $1.03 per share. However, it also lowered 2026 operating margin guidance, which has raised some concerns about cost pressure.

Quantum Capital Management LLC NJ grew its stake in Moody's Corporation (NYSE:MCO - Free Report) by 18.9% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 99,704 shares of the business services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 15,833 shares during the period. Moody's comprises approximately 5.6% of Quantum Capital Management LLC NJ's investment portfolio, making the stock its 9th largest holding. Quantum Capital Management LLC NJ owned 0.06% of Moody's worth $43,496,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. purchased a new stake in Moody's during the second quarter worth $25,000. Birchwood Financial Partners Inc. acquired a new stake in Moody's during the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. Nalls Sherbakoff Group LLC purchased a new position in Moody's in the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Ares Financial Consulting LLC purchased a new position in Moody's in the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, Wilkerson Advisory Group LLC raised its position in shares of Moody's by 87.1% in the first quarter. Wilkerson Advisory Group LLC now owns 58 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 27 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.11% of the company's stock.

Trending Headlines about Moody's

Here are the key news stories impacting Moody's this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Moody’s reported Q2 EPS of $4.68, ahead of consensus, and revenue of $2.19 billion, up 15.1% year over year, helped by stronger bond issuance activity and solid demand in analytics. Article Link
• Positive Sentiment: The company raised its stock repurchase outlook and declared a $1.03 dividend, which supports shareholder returns. Article Link
• Neutral Sentiment: Moody’s updated full-year 2026 EPS guidance to $16.50-$17.00, which is broadly in line with expectations, but not enough to offset concerns about margin pressure. Article Link
• Negative Sentiment: The market is reacting to lower 2026 operating margin guidance, suggesting costs may be rising faster than expected and limiting enthusiasm for the earnings beat. Article Link

Moody's Stock Down 0.3%

Shares of NYSE MCO opened at $489.38 on Thursday. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $463.40 and its 200-day simple moving average is $464.93. Moody's Corporation has a 52-week low of $402.28 and a 52-week high of $546.88. The firm has a market cap of $85.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 1.34. The company has a quick ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 1.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.03.

Moody's (NYSE:MCO - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The business services provider reported $4.68 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $4.26 by $0.42. Moody's had a net margin of 31.69% and a return on equity of 70.97%. The business had revenue of $2.19 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.09 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $3.56 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 15.1% on a year-over-year basis. Moody's has set its FY 2026 guidance at 16.500-17.000 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Moody's Corporation will post 16.73 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Moody's Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 4th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 14th will be paid a dividend of $1.03 per share. This represents a $4.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 14th. Moody's's payout ratio is 29.53%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Moody's from $560.00 to $590.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 23rd. Mizuho cut their price target on Moody's from $524.00 to $521.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 28th. Wolfe Research reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $535.00 price target on shares of Moody's in a report on Thursday, April 23rd. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on Moody's in a research report on Friday, July 17th. They set a "buy" rating and a $610.00 price target on the stock. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Moody's from $530.00 to $600.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $551.42.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Robert Fauber sold 1,467 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $466.39, for a total value of $684,194.13. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 75,189 shares in the company, valued at $35,067,397.71. This trade represents a 1.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, SVP Richard G. Steele sold 158 shares of Moody's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $453.67, for a total value of $71,679.86. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 1,985 shares in the company, valued at $900,534.95. This represents a 7.37% 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 3,250 shares of company stock valued at $1,495,098 in the last three months. Insiders own 0.14% of the company's stock.

Moody's Profile

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.

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