Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd reduced its position in Moody's Co. (NYSE:MCO - Free Report) by 93.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 80 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 1,082 shares during the quarter. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd's holdings in Moody's were worth $38,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.
Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in MCO. Asset Planning Inc acquired a new position in shares of Moody's during the fourth quarter worth about $42,000. OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new stake in shares of Moody's in the 4th quarter valued at $41,000. Albion Financial Group UT purchased a new stake in shares of Moody's during the 4th quarter worth $45,000. Activest Wealth Management purchased a new stake in Moody's during the 4th quarter worth about $47,000. Finally, Sunbelt Securities Inc. raised its position in shares of Moody's by 101.9% during the 3rd quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 109 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $52,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.11% of the company's stock.
Moody's Price Performance
MCO traded up $0.18 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $437.85. 296,607 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 770,608. The business's 50-day moving average price is $470.05 and its 200 day moving average price is $475.49. The stock has a market capitalization of $78.77 billion, a PE ratio of 38.87, a P/E/G ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 1.38. Moody's Co. has a 1-year low of $360.05 and a 1-year high of $531.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.81, a current ratio of 1.47 and a quick ratio of 1.67.
Moody's (NYSE:MCO - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The business services provider reported $2.62 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.27 by $0.35. The company had revenue of $1.67 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.70 billion. Moody's had a return on equity of 58.94% and a net margin of 29.03%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Moody's Co. will post 13.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.
Moody's Increases Dividend
The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 25th were paid a $0.94 dividend. This is a boost from Moody's's previous quarterly dividend of $0.85. This represents a $3.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.86%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 25th. Moody's's payout ratio is presently 33.36%.
Insiders Place Their Bets
In related news, CEO Robert Fauber sold 281 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $473.62, for a total transaction of $133,087.22. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 61,894 shares in the company, valued at approximately $29,314,236.28. This represents a 0.45 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders have sold a total of 1,258 shares of company stock valued at $610,936 in the last quarter. 0.14% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.
Analysts Set New Price Targets
Several analysts have recently weighed in on MCO shares. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Moody's from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Citigroup initiated coverage on Moody's in a research note 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 research report on Wednesday, March 12th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $504.00 target price on the stock. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Moody's from $510.00 to $540.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, Barclays reduced their target price on shares of Moody's from $570.00 to $520.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 4th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $524.86.
Check Out Our Latest Research Report on Moody's
About Moody's
(
Free Report)
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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