Moody's (NYSE:MCO) Sets New 52-Week High - Here's What Happened

Shares of Moody's Co. (NYSE:MCO - Get Free Report) hit a new 52-week high on Friday . The stock traded as high as $504.46 and last traded at $504.65, with a volume of 47598 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $499.20.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on MCO shares. StockNews.com raised shares of Moody's from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 24th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Moody's from $510.00 to $550.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on shares of Moody's from $454.00 to $459.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Citigroup initiated coverage on Moody's in a research note on Friday, December 20th. They set a "buy" rating and a $565.00 price objective for the company. Finally, UBS Group raised their target price on Moody's from $495.00 to $510.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $507.36.

Moody's Stock Up 0.1 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69, a current ratio of 1.67 and a quick ratio of 1.67. The company has a market capitalization of $90.51 billion, a PE ratio of 45.62, a P/E/G ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 1.30. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $483.06 and its 200 day simple moving average is $474.69.

Insider Activity

In other Moody's news, CEO Robert Fauber sold 281 shares of Moody's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $474.86, for a total transaction of $133,435.66. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 61,894 shares in the company, valued at $29,390,984.84. 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 at the SEC website. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 843 shares of company stock valued at $401,119. 0.07% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Moody's

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in MCO. Planning Capital Management Corp lifted its stake in Moody's by 566.7% during the third quarter. Planning Capital Management Corp now owns 60 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 51 shares in the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Moody's by 272.2% in the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 67 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 49 shares during the period. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Moody's during the 3rd quarter worth about $36,000. Asset Dedication LLC lifted its stake in Moody's by 83.0% during the 3rd quarter. Asset Dedication LLC now owns 86 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $41,000 after acquiring an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Asset Planning Inc acquired a new position in Moody's in the 4th quarter valued at about $42,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.11% of the company's stock.

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.