Moody's Co. (NYSE:MCO) Shares Sold by Baskin Financial Services Inc.

Baskin Financial Services Inc. lowered its position in Moody's Co. (NYSE:MCO - Free Report) by 0.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 107,805 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 603 shares during the period. Moody's accounts for 4.1% of Baskin Financial Services Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 9th largest holding. Baskin Financial Services Inc. owned 0.06% of Moody's worth $51,032,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MCO. M&T Bank Corp boosted its stake in shares of Moody's by 11.2% during the 3rd quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 62,913 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $29,858,000 after acquiring an additional 6,340 shares in the last quarter. Fiduciary Alliance LLC grew its holdings in Moody's by 32.5% during the fourth quarter. Fiduciary Alliance LLC now owns 14,316 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $6,777,000 after purchasing an additional 3,510 shares during the last quarter. Burney Co. bought a new position in shares of Moody's in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $6,775,000. Mizuho Securities USA LLC lifted its stake in shares of Moody's by 567.2% in the third quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 80,781 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $38,338,000 after buying an additional 68,674 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jennison Associates LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Moody's by 22.6% during the 3rd quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 2,333,263 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $1,107,344,000 after buying an additional 430,878 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 92.11% of the company's stock.

Moody's Stock Up 0.1 %

Shares of NYSE MCO opened at $499.49 on Monday. 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 company has a market cap of $90.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 45.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 1.30. Moody's Co. has a 12-month low of $360.05 and a 12-month high of $505.78. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $483.06 and its 200 day simple moving average is $474.69.

Insider Transactions at Moody's

In related news, CEO Robert Fauber sold 281 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $473.62, for a total value of $133,087.22. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 61,894 shares in the company, valued at $29,314,236.28. This trade represents a 0.45 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 843 shares of company stock worth $401,119. Corporate insiders own 0.07% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently commented on MCO shares. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Moody's from $510.00 to $550.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Moody's from $462.00 to $481.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. StockNews.com upgraded Moody's from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 24th. Oppenheimer upped their target price on Moody's from $543.00 to $545.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on shares of Moody's from $454.00 to $459.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $507.36.

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.

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