NS Partners Ltd Purchases 697 Shares of Moody's Corporation (NYSE:MCO)

Key Points

• NS Partners Ltd increased its holdings in Moody's Corporation by 0.9%, owning 76,615 shares valued at approximately $35.68 million at the end of the last quarter.
• Moody's earnings beat consensus estimates with a reported $3.56 EPS for the quarter and revenue of $1.90 billion, indicating a year-over-year revenue growth of 4.5%.
• Several analysts have raised their price targets for Moody's stock, with a consensus target price now at $538.80 and a majority rating of "Moderate Buy."

NS Partners Ltd lifted its position in Moody's Corporation (NYSE:MCO - Free Report) by 0.9% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 76,615 shares of the business services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 697 shares during the period. Moody's comprises approximately 1.6% of NS Partners Ltd's holdings, making the stock its 21st largest position. NS Partners Ltd's holdings in Moody's were worth $35,679,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in Moody's by 0.8% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 14,815,629 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $6,899,490,000 after purchasing an additional 119,548 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp grew its position in Moody's by 20.5% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,776,729 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $841,050,000 after purchasing an additional 302,453 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its position in Moody's by 16.1% during the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,590,679 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $752,980,000 after purchasing an additional 220,681 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its position in Moody's by 9.7% during the first quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 1,586,672 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $738,897,000 after purchasing an additional 140,128 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its position in Moody's by 21.0% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,530,582 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $712,777,000 after purchasing an additional 265,389 shares in the last quarter. 92.11% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Moody's Stock Performance

Shares of Moody's stock traded up $1.57 on Friday, reaching $515.63. The stock had a trading volume of 375,081 shares, compared to its average volume of 867,140. The stock has a market cap of $92.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 43.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 1.40. Moody's Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $378.71 and a fifty-two week high of $531.93. The business's 50-day moving average price is $495.99 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $478.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.70, a quick ratio of 1.75 and a current ratio of 1.75.

Moody's (NYSE:MCO - Get Free Report) last released its 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 firm had revenue of $1.90 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.82 billion. Moody's had a net margin of 29.18% and a return on equity of 60.73%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $3.28 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Moody's Corporation will post 13.95 EPS for the current year.

Moody's Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 5th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 15th will be paid a $0.94 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 15th. This represents a $3.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. Moody's's dividend payout ratio is currently 31.95%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CFO Noemie Clemence Heuland sold 897 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $508.24, for a total value of $455,891.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 2,148 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,091,699.52. This represents a 29.46% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Michael L. West sold 3,704 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 completion of 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 position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 8,593 shares of company stock worth $4,382,984. Insiders own 0.14% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MCO has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Moody's from $520.00 to $580.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 24th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Moody's from $493.00 to $498.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, July 7th. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their target price on shares of Moody's from $533.00 to $468.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Moody's from $573.00 to $595.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 24th. Finally, Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on shares of Moody's from $525.00 to $552.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Moody's presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $538.80.

Moody's Company 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.