Newport Trust Company LLC Has $141.74 Million Stock Holdings in Moody's Corporation $MCO

Key Points

• Newport Trust Company LLC trimmed its Moody’s position by 2.2% in the fourth quarter, but still held 277,462 shares worth about $141.7 million at quarter-end.
• Moody’s reported Q1 earnings that beat expectations, posting $4.33 EPS versus $4.22 expected, while revenue of $2.08 billion came in slightly below estimates but still rose 8.1% year over year.
• The company also announced a quarterly dividend of $1.03 per share, and analysts currently have a Moderate Buy consensus with an average price target of $544.29.

Newport Trust Company LLC cut its position in shares of Moody's Corporation (NYSE:MCO - Free Report) by 2.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 277,462 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 6,110 shares during the period. Newport Trust Company LLC owned 0.16% of Moody's worth $141,741,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of MCO. BAM Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Moody's during the 3rd quarter worth about $871,000. California Public Employees Retirement System boosted its holdings in shares of Moody's by 3.6% during the 3rd quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 298,104 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $142,041,000 after buying an additional 10,434 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Moody's by 0.3% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 647,711 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $308,649,000 after buying an additional 1,942 shares during the period. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans boosted its holdings in shares of Moody's by 135.7% during the 3rd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 45,829 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $21,837,000 after buying an additional 26,388 shares during the period. Finally, Katamaran Capital LLP bought a new stake in shares of Moody's during the 3rd quarter worth about $4,275,000. 92.11% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, SVP Richard G. Steele sold 158 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $466.39, for a total transaction of $73,689.62. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 2,143 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $999,473.77. This represents a 6.87% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 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 Friday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $466.39, for a total transaction of $684,194.13. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 75,189 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $35,067,397.71. This trade represents a 1.91% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 8,680 shares of company stock valued at $3,952,188. 0.14% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Moody's Stock Performance

NYSE MCO opened at $445.14 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 1.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.03. The company has a market capitalization of $77.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.91, a P/E/G ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 1.37. Moody's Corporation has a 12-month low of $402.28 and a 12-month high of $546.88. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $443.46 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $472.80.

Moody's (NYSE:MCO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 22nd. The business services provider reported $4.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $4.22 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $2.08 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.11 billion. Moody's had a net margin of 31.69% and a return on equity of 70.97%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 8.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $3.83 EPS. Moody's has set its FY 2026 guidance at 16.400-17.000 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Moody's Corporation will post 16.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Moody's Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 5th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 15th will be issued 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, May 15th. Moody's's dividend payout ratio is 29.53%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently commented on MCO shares. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Moody's from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, March 21st. Evercore reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $610.00 target price on shares of Moody's in a report on Thursday, February 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of Moody's from $600.00 to $560.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 19th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Moody's from $560.00 to $590.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, April 23rd. Finally, Mizuho cut their price objective on shares of Moody's from $524.00 to $521.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 28th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have issued a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $544.29.

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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