Moody's (NYSE:MCO) Upgraded to "Buy" at Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Moody's has been upgraded from "hold" to "buy" by Wall Street Zen, reflecting positive sentiment among analysts regarding the company's performance.
• Analysts have varied opinions on Moody's, with 1 "Strong Buy", 12 "Buy", and 6 "Hold" ratings, leading to a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a target price of $542.33.
• Moody's reported $3.92 earnings per share last quarter, exceeding estimates, with revenue growth of 10.7% year-over-year and a net margin of nearly 30%.

Moody's (NYSE:MCO - Get Free Report) was upgraded by investment analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a note issued to investors on Saturday.

A number of other equities research analysts have also weighed in on the stock. Raymond James Financial upgraded shares of Moody's from an "underperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a report on Friday, October 17th. UBS Group increased their target price on Moody's from $445.00 to $515.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Mizuho lifted their price target on Moody's from $532.00 to $539.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, October 16th. Oppenheimer upped their price objective on Moody's from $552.00 to $563.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 24th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of Moody's in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $542.33.

Moody's Price Performance

MCO stock opened at $490.54 on Friday. The business's 50-day moving average is $493.32 and its two-hundred day moving average is $484.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.70, a current ratio of 1.84 and a quick ratio of 1.75. The firm has a market capitalization of $87.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.43, a P/E/G ratio of 2.82 and a beta of 1.41. Moody's has a 1 year low of $378.71 and a 1 year high of $531.93.

Moody's (NYSE:MCO - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 22nd. The business services provider reported $3.92 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.70 by $0.22. The firm had revenue of $2.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.92 billion. Moody's had a net margin of 29.92% and a return on equity of 63.58%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 10.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.21 earnings per share. Moody's has set its FY 2025 guidance at 14.500-14.750 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Moody's will post 13.95 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Moody's

In related news, insider Stephen T. Tulenko sold 2,120 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $511.18, for a total value of $1,083,701.60. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 5,558 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,841,138.44. This represents a 27.61% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Richard G. Steele sold 1,457 shares of Moody's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $508.83, for a total value of $741,365.31. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 1,386 shares in the company, valued at approximately $705,238.38. This trade represents a 51.25% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 9,423 shares of company stock worth $4,802,876. Insiders own 0.14% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Moody's

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. MGO One Seven LLC boosted its stake in Moody's by 71.4% during the 3rd quarter. MGO One Seven LLC now owns 1,755 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $836,000 after purchasing an additional 731 shares during the period. Meeder Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Moody's by 151.7% in the third quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 302 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $144,000 after buying an additional 182 shares during the last quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI boosted its stake in shares of Moody's by 25.6% during the third quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI now owns 4,773 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $2,274,000 after buying an additional 972 shares during the period. Tema Etfs LLC grew its holdings in shares of Moody's by 75.1% during the third quarter. Tema Etfs LLC now owns 6,771 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $3,226,000 after buying an additional 2,904 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Forum Financial Management LP increased its position in Moody's by 21.1% in the 3rd quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 810 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $386,000 after acquiring an additional 141 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.11% of the company's stock.

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.

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