Moody's Co. (NYSE:MCO) Shares Sold by Banco Santander S.A.

Banco Santander S.A. decreased its position in shares of Moody's Co. (NYSE:MCO - Free Report) by 59.8% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 17,664 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 26,309 shares during the quarter. Banco Santander S.A.'s holdings in Moody's were worth $7,435,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. lifted its stake in Moody's by 3.3% in the fourth quarter. Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. now owns 6,167 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $2,409,000 after buying an additional 199 shares during the last quarter. PGGM Investments acquired a new stake in Moody's during the 4th quarter worth $195,000. Mather Group LLC. boosted its stake in Moody's by 23.5% during the 4th quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 1,737 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $678,000 after purchasing an additional 330 shares during the period. Choreo LLC increased its stake in Moody's by 6.5% in the fourth quarter. Choreo LLC now owns 890 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $348,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares during the period. Finally, Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC raised its holdings in shares of Moody's by 2.8% in the fourth quarter. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC now owns 7,108 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $2,776,000 after buying an additional 195 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.11% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Moody's

In other Moody's news, SVP Richard G. Steele sold 1,862 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $455.43, for a total value of $848,010.66. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 1,040 shares in the company, valued at approximately $473,647.20. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other Moody's news, SVP Richard G. Steele sold 1,862 shares of Moody's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $455.43, for a total value of $848,010.66. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 1,040 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $473,647.20. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Stephen T. Tulenko sold 500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, August 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $464.06, for a total value of $232,030.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 6,647 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,084,606.82. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 2,931 shares of company stock valued at $1,332,825 over the last quarter. Insiders own 0.07% of the company's stock.

Moody's Price Performance

NYSE MCO traded up $0.53 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $483.06. The stock had a trading volume of 592,187 shares, compared to its average volume of 730,220. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $449.09 and a 200 day simple moving average of $411.35. The company has a quick ratio of 1.52, a current ratio of 1.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.59. The company has a market cap of $88.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 52.74, a P/E/G ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 1.28. Moody's Co. has a 52-week low of $298.86 and a 52-week high of $488.64.

Moody's (NYSE:MCO - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 23rd. The business services provider reported $3.28 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.06 by $0.22. Moody's had a net margin of 28.34% and a return on equity of 57.03%. The firm had revenue of $1.82 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.72 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.30 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 21.6% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that Moody's Co. will post 11.34 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Moody's Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 6th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 16th will be given a $0.85 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 16th. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.70%. Moody's's dividend payout ratio is currently 37.12%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently issued reports on MCO. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on Moody's from $450.00 to $475.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 24th. Barclays increased their price target on Moody's from $450.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Moody's from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 22nd. Oppenheimer lifted their target price on shares of Moody's from $454.00 to $492.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. Finally, Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of Moody's from $430.00 to $510.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 16th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $456.00.

Moody's Company 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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