Ensign Peak Advisors Inc Sells 2,347 Shares of Moody's Co. (NYSE:MCO)

Ensign Peak Advisors Inc cut its stake in shares of Moody's Co. (NYSE:MCO - Free Report) by 3.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 67,689 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 2,347 shares during the quarter. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc's holdings in Moody's were worth $32,042,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Asset Planning Inc purchased a new position in shares of Moody's during the fourth quarter worth approximately $42,000. OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new position in shares of Moody's during the fourth quarter worth approximately $41,000. Albion Financial Group UT purchased a new position in shares of Moody's during the fourth quarter worth approximately $45,000. Activest Wealth Management purchased a new position in shares of Moody's during the fourth quarter worth approximately $47,000. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Moody's by 80.6% during the fourth quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 121 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $57,000 after acquiring an additional 54 shares in the last quarter. 92.11% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Moody's

In related news, CEO Robert Fauber sold 281 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $522.20, for a total value of $146,738.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 61,894 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $32,321,046.80. This trade represents a 0.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 1,111 shares of company stock valued at $520,603. 0.14% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Moody's Price Performance

MCO traded down $2.03 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $485.03. 477,070 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 773,975. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.81, a quick ratio of 1.67 and a current ratio of 1.47. Moody's Co. has a 12-month low of $378.71 and a 12-month high of $531.93. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $447.06 and a 200 day simple moving average of $471.90. The company has a market cap of $87.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 43.04, a PEG ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 1.40.

Moody's (NYSE:MCO - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 22nd. The business services provider reported $3.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.58 by $0.25. Moody's had a net margin of 29.03% and a return on equity of 58.94%. The business had revenue of $1.92 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.90 billion. On average, equities analysts forecast that Moody's Co. will post 13.95 EPS for the current year.

Moody's Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 6th. Investors of record on Friday, May 16th will be issued a $0.94 dividend. This represents a $3.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.78%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 16th. Moody's's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 32.47%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have commented on the stock. William Blair reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Moody's in a research note on Friday, February 14th. BMO Capital Markets decreased their target price on shares of Moody's from $475.00 to $456.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Moody's from $481.00 to $508.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Moody's from $610.00 to $572.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Finally, Bank of America started coverage on shares of Moody's in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $530.00 target price on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $515.87.

Moody's Profile

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.