Moody's Co. (NYSE:MCO) Shares Purchased by Crossmark Global Holdings Inc.

Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. grew its holdings in Moody's Co. (NYSE:MCO - Free Report) by 13.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 16,289 shares of the business services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 1,891 shares during the quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc.'s holdings in Moody's were worth $7,711,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. State Street Corp boosted its position in Moody's by 0.9% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 7,047,772 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $3,344,802,000 after buying an additional 63,556 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Moody's by 12.3% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 6,581,036 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $3,123,294,000 after acquiring an additional 723,226 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Moody's by 13.0% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,612,172 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $1,708,851,000 after purchasing an additional 416,535 shares during the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC lifted its position in Moody's by 22.6% during the third quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 2,333,263 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,107,344,000 after purchasing an additional 430,878 shares during the period. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its holdings in Moody's by 32.0% in the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 2,075,719 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $985,115,000 after purchasing an additional 502,891 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.11% of the company's stock.

Moody's Price Performance

NYSE MCO traded down $0.15 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $484.60. 413,328 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 610,333. The company has a market capitalization of $87.81 billion, a PE ratio of 44.26, a PEG ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 1.30. The firm's 50-day moving average is $480.50 and its 200-day moving average is $472.10. Moody's Co. has a 52-week low of $360.05 and a 52-week high of $503.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69, a current ratio of 1.67 and a quick ratio of 1.67.

Moody's (NYSE:MCO - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The business services provider reported $3.21 earnings per share (EPS) 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 during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.71 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.43 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 23.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that Moody's Co. will post 12.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MCO has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Moody's from $462.00 to $481.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Evercore ISI initiated coverage on shares of Moody's in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. They set an "outperform" rating and a $521.00 price objective on the stock. Oppenheimer boosted their target price on shares of Moody's from $543.00 to $545.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. Citigroup started coverage on shares of Moody's in a research report on Friday, December 20th. They set a "buy" rating and a $565.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Robert W. Baird raised their target price on Moody's from $490.00 to $512.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Moody's presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $507.36.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Robert Fauber sold 281 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $478.99, for a total transaction of $134,596.19. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 61,354 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $29,387,952.46. This trade represents a 0.46 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Caroline Sullivan sold 1,681 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $462.40, for a total value of $777,294.40. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 1,415 shares in the company, valued at approximately $654,296. The trade was a 54.30 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 2,524 shares of company stock valued at $1,178,413 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.07% of the company's stock.

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.