Titan Global Capital Management USA LLC Cuts Stake in Moody's Co. (NYSE:MCO)

Titan Global Capital Management USA LLC lowered its holdings in shares of Moody's Co. (NYSE:MCO - Free Report) by 29.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 11,302 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 4,657 shares during the period. Moody's comprises about 0.8% of Titan Global Capital Management USA LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 25th biggest holding. Titan Global Capital Management USA LLC's holdings in Moody's were worth $5,350,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new position in Moody's in the fourth quarter valued at $41,000. Asset Planning Inc acquired a new position in shares of Moody's during the fourth quarter valued at about $42,000. Albion Financial Group UT bought a new position in shares of Moody's during the 4th quarter worth about $45,000. Activest Wealth Management acquired a new stake in shares of Moody's in the 4th quarter valued at about $47,000. Finally, Sunbelt Securities Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Moody's by 101.9% during the third quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 109 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $52,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. 92.11% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MCO has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Barclays dropped their target price on Moody's from $570.00 to $520.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 4th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of Moody's from $481.00 to $508.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. Citigroup initiated coverage on Moody's in a research report on Friday, December 20th. They set a "buy" rating and a $565.00 price target on the stock. Oppenheimer lifted their price objective on Moody's from $543.00 to $545.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, January 3rd. Finally, Mizuho began coverage on shares of Moody's in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $504.00 price objective on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Moody's currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $524.86.

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Moody's Price Performance

Shares of MCO stock traded down $3.44 on Tuesday, reaching $434.23. The company's stock had a trading volume of 776,997 shares, compared to its average volume of 772,435. Moody's Co. has a 12-month low of $360.05 and a 12-month high of $531.93. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $470.05 and its 200-day simple moving average is $475.49. The company has a quick ratio of 1.67, a current ratio of 1.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.81. The company has a market capitalization of $78.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.53, a PEG ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 1.38.

Moody's (NYSE:MCO - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The business services provider reported $2.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.27 by $0.35. The firm had revenue of $1.67 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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 predict that Moody's Co. will post 13.95 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Moody's Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 25th were given a dividend of $0.94 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 25th. This represents a $3.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.87%. This is a boost from Moody's's previous quarterly dividend of $0.85. Moody's's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 33.36%.

Insider Transactions at Moody's

In other Moody's news, CEO Robert Fauber sold 415 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $463.08, for a total transaction of $192,178.20. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 62,824 shares in the company, valued at $29,092,537.92. This trade represents a 0.66 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 1,258 shares of company stock valued at $610,936. Insiders own 0.14% of the company's stock.

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.