Entropy Technologies LP Acquires Shares of 5,884 Moody's Co. (NYSE:MCO)

Entropy Technologies LP acquired a new stake in shares of Moody's Co. (NYSE:MCO - Free Report) in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 5,884 shares of the business services provider's stock, valued at approximately $2,792,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of MCO. New Covenant Trust Company N.A. purchased a new position in shares of Moody's during the 1st quarter valued at about $27,000. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its stake in shares of Moody's by 114.3% during the 2nd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 75 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. Y.D. More Investments Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Moody's during the 2nd quarter valued at about $35,000. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Moody's in the 3rd quarter valued at about $36,000. Finally, EntryPoint Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Moody's in the 1st quarter valued at about $38,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.11% of the company's stock.

Moody's Trading Down 0.6 %

NYSE MCO traded down $2.97 on Tuesday, reaching $475.48. The stock had a trading volume of 530,141 shares, compared to its average volume of 738,197. Moody's Co. has a 12-month low of $342.16 and a 12-month high of $495.10. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $474.27 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $445.61. The company has a quick ratio of 1.67, a current ratio of 1.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69. The firm has a market capitalization of $86.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 43.52, a P/E/G ratio of 3.11 and a beta of 1.29.

Moody's (NYSE:MCO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 22nd. The business services provider reported $3.21 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.89 by $0.32. Moody's had a return on equity of 57.97% and a net margin of 29.05%. The business had revenue of $1.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.71 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.43 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 23.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Moody's Co. will post 12.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Moody's Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 22nd will be given a dividend of $0.85 per share. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.72%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 22nd. Moody's's dividend payout ratio is currently 31.05%.

Insider Activity at Moody's

In related news, SVP Caroline Sullivan sold 1,681 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, October 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $462.40, for a total value of $777,294.40. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 1,415 shares of the company's stock, valued at $654,296. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.07% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the company. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Moody's from $451.00 to $462.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Moody's from $510.00 to $550.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on Moody's from $490.00 to $512.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Oppenheimer boosted their price objective on Moody's from $536.00 to $543.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on Moody's from $454.00 to $459.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $500.00.

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.