Moody's Co. (NYSE:MCO) Shares Sold by Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp

Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp lowered its position in Moody's Co. (NYSE:MCO - Free Report) by 4.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 207,604 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 10,156 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp owned 0.11% of Moody's worth $98,274,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MCO. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. acquired a new position in Moody's during the third quarter worth about $273,000. Meridian Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Moody's in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $210,000. Cerity Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Moody's by 2.8% during the 3rd quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 40,082 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $19,023,000 after purchasing an additional 1,075 shares during the last quarter. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of Moody's by 10.7% in the third quarter. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC now owns 722 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $343,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of Moody's by 272.2% in the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 67 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.11% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Robert Fauber sold 281 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $473.62, for a total value of $133,087.22. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 61,894 shares of the company's stock, valued at $29,314,236.28. This trade represents a 0.45 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In the last quarter, insiders sold 1,124 shares of company stock worth $552,193. 0.14% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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Moody's Trading Down 1.7 %

NYSE:MCO traded down $7.89 on Friday, reaching $461.09. 535,573 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 744,111. The business has a fifty day moving average of $485.56 and a 200-day moving average of $480.00. The company has a quick ratio of 1.67, a current ratio of 1.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.81. Moody's Co. has a 52-week low of $360.05 and a 52-week high of $531.93. The firm has a market capitalization of $82.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 1.34.

Moody's (NYSE:MCO - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The business services provider reported $2.62 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.27 by $0.35. Moody's had a net margin of 29.03% and a return on equity of 58.94%. The company had revenue of $1.67 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.70 billion. As a group, analysts expect that Moody's Co. will post 13.95 earnings per share for the current year.

Moody's Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 25th were given a $0.94 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 25th. This represents a $3.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.82%. This is a positive change from Moody's's previous quarterly dividend of $0.85. Moody's's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 33.36%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MCO has been the topic of several recent research reports. Citigroup assumed 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. Mizuho assumed coverage on shares of Moody's in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $504.00 target price on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on shares of Moody's from $459.00 to $533.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. William Blair reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Moody's in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Finally, Oppenheimer lifted their target price on Moody's from $543.00 to $545.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $527.00.

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.