Moody's Co. (NYSE:MCO) Shares Sold by Olstein Capital Management L.P.

Olstein Capital Management L.P. decreased its holdings in shares of Moody's Co. (NYSE:MCO - Free Report) by 36.9% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 4,100 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 2,400 shares during the quarter. Olstein Capital Management L.P.'s holdings in Moody's were worth $1,946,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. New Covenant Trust Company N.A. purchased a new stake in Moody's in the first quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its stake in Moody's by 114.3% in the second quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 75 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Moody's in the third quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Y.D. More Investments Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Moody's during the second quarter worth approximately $35,000. Finally, Asset Dedication LLC raised its stake in shares of Moody's by 83.0% during the third quarter. Asset Dedication LLC now owns 86 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.11% of the company's stock.

Moody's Price Performance

Moody's stock traded up $4.43 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $465.57. The stock had a trading volume of 733,584 shares, compared to its average volume of 739,401. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $84.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.57, a PEG ratio of 2.99 and a beta of 1.29. Moody's Co. has a 1-year low of $334.78 and a 1-year high of $495.10. The stock's fifty day moving average is $475.02 and its two-hundred day moving average is $443.17.

Moody's (NYSE:MCO - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The business services provider reported $3.21 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.89 by $0.32. The company had revenue of $1.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.71 billion. Moody's had a return on equity of 57.97% and a net margin of 29.05%. Moody's's revenue was up 23.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.43 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that Moody's Co. will post 12.06 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Moody's Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 13th. Investors of record on Friday, November 22nd will be paid a dividend of $0.85 per share. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.73%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 22nd. Moody's's payout ratio is currently 31.05%.

Insider Activity at Moody's

In related news, SVP Caroline Sullivan sold 1,681 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, October 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $462.40, for a total transaction of $777,294.40. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 1,415 shares of the company's stock, valued at $654,296. This trade represents a 0.00 % 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. In other Moody's news, SVP Caroline Sullivan sold 1,681 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $462.40, for a total value of $777,294.40. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 1,415 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $654,296. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Stephen T. Tulenko sold 500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $464.06, for a total value of $232,030.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 6,647 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,084,606.82. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.07% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on MCO shares. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on Moody's from $450.00 to $475.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on Moody's from $455.00 to $464.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on Moody's from $460.00 to $514.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 3rd. Oppenheimer upped their price target on Moody's from $536.00 to $543.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Raymond James cut Moody's from a "market perform" rating to an "underperform" rating in a research note on Monday, September 23rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Moody's has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $500.00.

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.