Waterway Wealth Management LLC Invests $1.35 Million in Moody's Corporation $MCO

Key Points

• Waterway Wealth Management disclosed a new position in Moody’s Corporation, buying 3,093 shares valued at about $1.35 million in the first quarter.
• Moody’s reported better-than-expected earnings for the quarter, with EPS of $4.33 versus estimates of $4.22, while revenue rose 8.1% year over year to $2.08 billion.
• The company continues to return capital to shareholders, paying a quarterly dividend of $1.03 per share and yielding about 0.9%, while analysts maintain a consensus rating of Moderate Buy.

Waterway Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Moody's Corporation (NYSE:MCO - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 3,093 shares of the business services provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,349,000.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Moody's in the second quarter worth approximately $25,000. Birchwood Financial Partners Inc. purchased a new position in Moody's during the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Caitlin John LLC purchased a new position in Moody's during the 3rd quarter valued at $27,000. Nalls Sherbakoff Group LLC bought a new position in Moody's in the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Finally, Ares Financial Consulting LLC bought a new position in Moody's in the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. 92.11% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Moody's Price Performance

Shares of MCO stock opened at $438.43 on Friday. Moody's Corporation has a twelve month low of $402.28 and a twelve month high of $546.88. The stock has a market capitalization of $76.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.43, a P/E/G ratio of 2.42 and a beta of 1.35. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $450.83 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $466.83. The company has a current ratio of 1.16, a quick 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 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. The firm had revenue of $2.08 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.11 billion. Moody's had a return on equity of 70.97% and a net margin of 31.69%.The business's revenue for the quarter was up 8.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $3.83 earnings per share. Moody's has set its FY 2026 guidance at 16.400-17.000 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Moody's Corporation will post 16.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Moody's Dividend Announcement

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Wall Street Zen downgraded Moody's from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, March 21st. BMO Capital Markets restated a "market perform" rating on shares of Moody's in a report on Tuesday, May 26th. Wolfe Research reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $535.00 price target on shares of Moody's in a research note on Thursday, April 23rd. Bank of America reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $565.00 price objective on shares of Moody's in a report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on shares of Moody's from $526.00 to $489.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 7th. 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. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $541.83.

Insider Transactions at Moody's

In other news, SVP Richard G. Steele sold 158 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $453.67, for a total value of $71,679.86. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 1,985 shares in the company, valued at approximately $900,534.95. The trade was a 7.37% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed 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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 75,189 shares of the company's stock, valued at $35,067,397.71. The trade was 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. Insiders have sold a total of 4,717 shares of company stock worth $2,137,306 in the last three months. Insiders own 0.14% of the company's stock.

Moody's 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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