Moody's Corporation $MCO Shares Sold by Blue Edge Capital LLC

Key Points

• Blue Edge Capital cut its Moody’s stake by 76.9% in the first quarter, selling 4,147 shares and retaining 1,246 shares worth approximately $544,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 92.11% of MCO.
• Moody’s reported quarterly adjusted earnings of $4.68 per share on $2.19 billion in revenue, exceeding analyst estimates and representing 15.1% year-over-year revenue growth. The company projects fiscal 2026 earnings of $16.50–$17.00 per share.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive outlook, with a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a $553.61 price target. Moody’s also declared a quarterly dividend of $1.03 per share, equivalent to a 0.9% annualized yield.

Blue Edge Capital LLC cut its position in Moody's Corporation (NYSE:MCO - Free Report) by 76.9% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,246 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 4,147 shares during the quarter. Blue Edge Capital LLC's holdings in Moody's were worth $544,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in MCO. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Moody's in the fourth quarter valued at about $1,097,101,000. Qsemble Capital Management LP increased its holdings in Moody's by 78.3% during the 4th quarter. Qsemble Capital Management LP now owns 5,703 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $2,913,000 after purchasing an additional 2,505 shares during the last quarter. LBP AM SA increased its holdings in Moody's by 5,179.4% during the 4th quarter. LBP AM SA now owns 38,751 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $19,796,000 after purchasing an additional 38,017 shares during the last quarter. National Pension Service raised its position in shares of Moody's by 38.7% in the 4th quarter. National Pension Service now owns 514,377 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $262,769,000 after purchasing an additional 143,515 shares in the last quarter. Finally, TRB Advisors LP raised its position in shares of Moody's by 200.0% in the 4th quarter. TRB Advisors LP now owns 30,000 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $15,326,000 after purchasing an additional 20,000 shares in the last quarter. 92.11% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other Moody's news, 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 transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 1,985 shares in the company, valued at $900,534.95. The trade was a 7.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Robert Fauber sold 1,467 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $453.67, for a total value of $665,533.89. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 52,564 shares of the company's stock, valued at $23,846,709.88. This trade represents a 2.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 0.14% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Wolfe Research reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $535.00 price target on shares of Moody's in a research report on Thursday, April 23rd. UBS Group reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $505.00 price objective on shares of Moody's in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. Citigroup restated a "buy" rating on shares of Moody's in a research note on Wednesday. Mizuho increased their price target on shares of Moody's from $521.00 to $530.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, July 27th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on Moody's from $489.00 to $515.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Moody's has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $553.61.

Moody's Stock Performance

Shares of MCO opened at $478.90 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $82.95 billion, a PE ratio of 30.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.38 and a beta of 1.34. The business's fifty day moving average price is $469.00 and its 200 day moving average price is $463.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.01, a current ratio of 1.19 and a quick ratio of 1.19. Moody's Corporation has a 12-month low of $402.28 and a 12-month high of $546.88.

Moody's (NYSE:MCO - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The business services provider reported $4.68 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.26 by $0.42. The firm had revenue of $2.19 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.09 billion. Moody's had a net margin of 34.25% and a return on equity of 80.35%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 15.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $3.56 earnings per share. Moody's has set its FY 2026 guidance at 16.500-17.000 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Moody's Corporation will post 16.82 EPS for the current year.

Moody's Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 4th. Investors of record on Friday, August 14th will be given a dividend of $1.03 per share. This represents a $4.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 14th. Moody's's dividend payout ratio is currently 26.13%.

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.

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