North Dakota State Investment Board Takes $2.72 Million Position in Moody's Corporation $MCO

Key Points

• North Dakota State Investment Board initiated a new position in Moody’s, buying 5,332 shares valued at about $2.72 million in the fourth quarter.
• Moody’s reported better-than-expected earnings for the latest quarter, with EPS of $4.33 versus estimates of $4.22, though revenue came in slightly below forecasts at $2.08 billion.
• The company also announced a quarterly dividend of $1.03 per share, payable June 5, while analysts overall maintain a Moderate Buy rating with an average price target of $544.29.

North Dakota State Investment Board bought a new stake in Moody's Corporation (NYSE:MCO - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 5,332 shares of the business services provider's stock, valued at approximately $2,724,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in MCO. Two Sigma Investments LP lifted its position in shares of Moody's by 1,222.0% in the third quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 324,251 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $154,499,000 after acquiring an additional 299,724 shares in the last quarter. Holocene Advisors LP lifted its position in shares of Moody's by 340.0% in the third quarter. Holocene Advisors LP now owns 283,744 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $135,198,000 after acquiring an additional 219,251 shares in the last quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. lifted its position in shares of Moody's by 10,311.9% in the third quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 197,826 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $94,260,000 after acquiring an additional 195,926 shares in the last quarter. Windacre Partnership LLC lifted its position in shares of Moody's by 18.4% in the third quarter. Windacre Partnership LLC now owns 1,164,900 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $555,052,000 after acquiring an additional 181,305 shares in the last quarter. Finally, PFA Pension Forsikringsaktieselskab purchased a new position in shares of Moody's in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $86,930,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.11% of the company's stock.

Moody's Price Performance

NYSE:MCO opened at $443.34 on Tuesday. Moody's Corporation has a one year low of $402.28 and a one year high of $546.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.03, a quick ratio of 1.16 and a current ratio of 1.16. The stock has a market cap of $77.45 billion, a PE ratio of 31.78, a P/E/G ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.37. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $444.71 and a 200 day moving average price of $473.55.

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

Moody's Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 5th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 15th will be paid a dividend of $1.03 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 15th. This represents a $4.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. Moody's's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 29.53%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MCO has been the topic of several research reports. Weiss Ratings downgraded Moody's from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Evercore reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $610.00 price target on shares of Moody's in a report on Thursday, February 19th. 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. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $531.00 price target on Moody's in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Moody's from $600.00 to $560.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 19th. One 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 stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Moody's has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $544.29.

Insider Buying and Selling at Moody's

In other Moody's news, SVP Richard G. Steele sold 158 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 1st. The stock was 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 $999,473.77. This trade represents a 6.87% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Robert Fauber sold 1,467 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction 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 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. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last three months, insiders have sold 8,680 shares of company stock valued at $3,952,188. 0.14% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Moody's Company 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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