Qsemble Capital Management LP Buys 2,505 Shares of Moody's Corporation $MCO

Key Points

• Qsemble Capital Management increased its Moody’s stake by 78.3% in the fourth quarter, buying 2,505 shares and bringing its total holdings to 5,703 shares valued at about $2.9 million.
• Insider selling was notable, with SVP Richard G. Steele and CEO Robert Fauber both selling shares on March 3; insiders sold 8,680 shares worth about $3.95 million over the last 90 days.
• Moody’s recently beat earnings estimates with Q1 EPS of $4.33 versus $4.22 expected and announced a quarterly dividend of $1.03 per share, while analysts maintain a consensus Moderate Buy rating and $544.29 price target.

Qsemble Capital Management LP boosted its stake in shares of Moody's Corporation (NYSE:MCO - Free Report) by 78.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,703 shares of the business services provider's stock after buying an additional 2,505 shares during the period. Qsemble Capital Management LP's holdings in Moody's were worth $2,913,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

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

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Richard G. Steele sold 375 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $456.71, for a total value of $171,266.25. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 2,459 shares in the company, valued at $1,123,049.89. The trade was a 13.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Robert Fauber sold 5,213 shares of Moody's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $456.71, for a total value of $2,380,829.23. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 75,789 shares in the company, valued at $34,613,594.19. This trade represents a 6.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 8,680 shares of company stock worth $3,952,188 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.14% of the company's stock.

Moody's Price Performance

Shares of Moody's stock opened at $428.93 on Friday. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $445.24 and its 200-day simple moving average is $474.04. Moody's Corporation has a 52 week low of $402.28 and a 52 week high of $546.88. The company has a market capitalization of $74.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.75, a PEG ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.37. 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 announced its quarterly earnings data 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 business had revenue of $2.08 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.11 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $3.83 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 8.1% on a year-over-year basis. Moody's has set its FY 2026 guidance at 16.400-17.000 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Moody's Corporation will post 16.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Moody's Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 5th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 15th will be given a $1.03 dividend. This represents a $4.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 15th. Moody's's payout ratio is presently 29.53%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MCO has been the subject of several research analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed a "market perform" rating and issued a $489.00 price objective on shares of Moody's in a report on Thursday, April 23rd. Wolfe Research reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $535.00 price objective on shares of Moody's in a report on Thursday, April 23rd. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on Moody's from $526.00 to $489.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 7th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Moody's from $560.00 to $590.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, April 23rd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus cut their price objective on Moody's from $574.00 to $540.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 19th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Moody's currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target 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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