Franklin Resources Inc. Has $225.01 Million Stock Position in Moody's Co. (NYSE:MCO)

Franklin Resources Inc. cut its stake in Moody's Co. (NYSE:MCO - Free Report) by 5.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 576,130 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 31,119 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. owned about 0.31% of Moody's worth $225,013,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of MCO. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Moody's in the third quarter valued at $35,000. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Moody's by 87.7% in the third quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 122 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 57 shares during the period. Milestone Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Moody's in the third quarter valued at $52,000. Advantage Trust Co purchased a new position in Moody's in the fourth quarter valued at $52,000. Finally, Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Moody's in the fourth quarter valued at $64,000. 92.11% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Moody's Stock Performance

Shares of MCO traded up $2.25 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $415.20. 820,924 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 724,245. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.68, a current ratio of 1.42 and a quick ratio of 1.42. The stock has a market capitalization of $75.82 billion, a PE ratio of 45.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.53 and a beta of 1.26. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $389.19 and its 200-day simple moving average is $381.95. Moody's Co. has a 52-week low of $298.86 and a 52-week high of $417.75.

Moody's (NYSE:MCO - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The business services provider reported $3.37 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.06 by $0.31. Moody's had a return on equity of 54.50% and a net margin of 27.01%. The firm had revenue of $1.79 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.70 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.99 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 21.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that Moody's Co. will post 10.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Moody's Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 7th. Investors of record on Friday, May 17th will be issued a dividend of $0.85 per share. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.82%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 16th. Moody's's dividend payout ratio is presently 37.12%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on MCO shares. UBS Group raised their target price on Moody's from $355.00 to $380.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on shares of Moody's from $420.00 to $410.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 14th. Barclays upgraded shares of Moody's from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and increased their price target for the company from $375.00 to $450.00 in a research note on Tuesday, April 2nd. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price target on shares of Moody's from $430.00 to $414.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 14th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Moody's from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Moody's currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $400.50.

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.