Voloridge Investment Management LLC Sells 49,125 Shares of Moody's Co. (NYSE:MCO)

Voloridge Investment Management LLC trimmed its stake in shares of Moody's Co. (NYSE:MCO - Free Report) by 71.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 19,803 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 49,125 shares during the quarter. Voloridge Investment Management LLC's holdings in Moody's were worth $9,374,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of MCO. Carson Advisory Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Moody's by 2.9% in the 4th quarter. Carson Advisory Inc. now owns 741 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $351,000 after acquiring an additional 21 shares during the last quarter. Avitas Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Moody's by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Avitas Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,803 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,327,000 after acquiring an additional 22 shares during the last quarter. Catalyst Financial Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Moody's by 5.1% in the 4th quarter. Catalyst Financial Partners LLC now owns 451 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $213,000 after acquiring an additional 22 shares during the last quarter. Summit Financial LLC increased its holdings in shares of Moody's by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Summit Financial LLC now owns 1,641 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $777,000 after acquiring an additional 22 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CX Institutional increased its holdings in shares of Moody's by 2.3% in the 4th quarter. CX Institutional now owns 1,113 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $527,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. 92.11% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Moody's

In other Moody's news, CEO Robert Fauber sold 415 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $437.80, for a total value of $181,687.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 62,690 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $27,445,682. This represents a 0.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.14% of the company's stock.

Moody's Stock Performance

Shares of Moody's stock traded down $4.18 during trading on Friday, hitting $477.47. 142,173 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 766,292. Moody's Co. has a 12 month low of $378.71 and a 12 month high of $531.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.81, a quick ratio of 1.67 and a current ratio of 1.47. The stock has a market cap of $85.90 billion, a PE ratio of 42.50, a P/E/G ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 1.40. The stock's fifty day moving average is $453.59 and its 200 day moving average is $473.24.

Moody's (NYSE:MCO - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The business services provider reported $3.83 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.58 by $0.25. The company had revenue of $1.92 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.90 billion. Moody's had a net margin of 29.03% and a return on equity of 58.94%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Moody's Co. will post 13.95 EPS for the current year.

Moody's Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 6th. Investors of record on Friday, May 16th will be given a dividend of $0.94 per share. This represents a $3.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.79%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 16th. Moody's's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 32.47%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the company. UBS Group raised their price target on Moody's from $510.00 to $540.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Robert W. Baird dropped their price target on Moody's from $575.00 to $525.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Mizuho assumed coverage on Moody's in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $504.00 price target on the stock. Wall Street Zen downgraded Moody's from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Finally, William Blair restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Moody's in a research note on Friday, February 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $520.87.

About Moody's

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.