Moody's (NYSE:MCO) Issues Quarterly Earnings Results

Key Points

• Missed estimates: Moody's reported Q EPS of $4.33 (vs. $4.40 consensus) and revenue of $2.08B (vs. $2.11B), though revenue was up 8.1% year-over-year, and the company updated FY 2026 guidance to $16.40–$17.00 EPS.
• Dividend hike: Moody's raised its quarterly dividend to $1.03 (annualized $4.12) from $0.94, implying a 0.9% yield and a payout ratio around 30%.
• Market and analyst reaction: shares rose about 3.3% on the report, and analysts maintain a consensus of "Moderate Buy" with an average target price of $541.69 amid mixed price-target revisions.

Moody's (NYSE:MCO - Get Free Report) posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday. The business services provider reported $4.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.40 by ($0.07), Zacks reports. Moody's had a return on equity of 66.01% and a net margin of 31.86%.The firm had revenue of $2.08 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.11 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $3.83 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 8.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Moody's updated its FY 2026 guidance to 16.400-17.000 EPS.

Moody's Trading Up 3.3%

Shares of MCO stock opened at $474.94 on Wednesday. Moody's has a 12-month low of $402.28 and a 12-month high of $546.88. The company has a market capitalization of $84.54 billion, a PE ratio of 34.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.47 and a beta of 1.45. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $443.84 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $477.24. The company has a quick ratio of 1.74, a current ratio of 1.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.66.

Moody's Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 13th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 2nd were given a dividend of $1.03 per share. This represents a $4.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. This is a boost from Moody's's previous quarterly dividend of $0.94. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 2nd. Moody's's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 30.12%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on MCO shares. Daiwa Securities Group raised shares of Moody's from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and upped their target price for the company from $500.00 to $590.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 13th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on Moody's from $574.00 to $540.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 19th. Evercore restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $610.00 price objective on shares of Moody's in a research note on Thursday, February 19th. UBS Group cut their price objective on Moody's from $515.00 to $490.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 19th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded Moody's from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, March 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have given a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $541.69.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Moody's news, CEO Robert Fauber sold 5,213 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on 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 transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 75,789 shares of the company's stock, valued at $34,613,594.19. This represents a 6.44% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Richard G. Steele sold 375 shares of the stock in a transaction on 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 owned 2,459 shares in the company, valued at $1,123,049.89. The trade was a 13.23% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 8,222 shares of company stock worth $3,786,732. 0.14% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Moody's

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Sivia Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Moody's in the 2nd quarter worth about $267,000. Federated Hermes Inc. grew its position in shares of Moody's by 15.5% during the 2nd quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 10,916 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $5,475,000 after purchasing an additional 1,461 shares in the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Moody's by 6.2% during the second quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 1,468 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $736,000 after purchasing an additional 86 shares during the period. CIBC Asset Management Inc raised its position in shares of Moody's by 3.8% in the second quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 25,303 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $12,692,000 after buying an additional 929 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Treasurer of the State of North Carolina raised its position in shares of Moody's by 0.4% in the second quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 72,615 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $36,423,000 after buying an additional 280 shares in the last quarter. 92.11% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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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