Moody’s Co. (NYSE:MCO) Stock Holdings Decreased by Round Hill Asset Management

Round Hill Asset Management lessened its position in Moody’s Co. (NYSE:MCO) by 43.4% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 3,299 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 2,530 shares during the period. Moody’s makes up approximately 1.1% of Round Hill Asset Management’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 25th biggest holding. Round Hill Asset Management’s holdings in Moody’s were worth $1,562,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Avitas Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in Moody’s by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Avitas Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,803 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,327,000 after acquiring an additional 22 shares in the last quarter. Catalyst Financial Partners LLC grew its position in Moody’s by 5.1% during the fourth quarter. Catalyst Financial Partners LLC now owns 451 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $213,000 after purchasing an additional 22 shares in the last quarter. Summit Financial LLC increased its stake in Moody’s by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Summit Financial LLC now owns 1,641 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $777,000 after buying an additional 22 shares during the period. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. lifted its position in Moody’s by 3.2% in the 4th quarter. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. now owns 746 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $353,000 after buying an additional 23 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CX Institutional boosted its stake in shares of Moody’s by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. CX Institutional now owns 1,113 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $527,000 after buying an additional 25 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.11% of the company’s stock.

Moody’s Stock Down 9.2 %

Moody’s stock opened at $401.74 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.81, a current ratio of 1.47 and a quick ratio of 1.67. Moody’s Co. has a fifty-two week low of $360.05 and a fifty-two week high of $531.93. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $482.15 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $478.89. The firm has a market cap of $72.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.65, a P/E/G ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 1.38.

Moody’s (NYSE:MCO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The business services provider reported $2.62 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.27 by $0.35. The business had revenue of $1.67 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.70 billion. Moody’s had a return on equity of 58.94% and a net margin of 29.03%. As a group, analysts forecast that Moody’s Co. will post 13.95 earnings per share for the current 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 paid a $0.94 dividend. This is an increase from Moody’s’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.85. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 25th. This represents a $3.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.94%. Moody’s’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 33.36%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Moody’s news, CEO Robert Fauber sold 415 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $463.08, for a total value of $192,178.20. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 62,824 shares in the company, valued at $29,092,537.92. This trade represents a 0.66 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 1,258 shares of company stock valued at $610,936. 0.14% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on MCO shares. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on shares of Moody’s from $459.00 to $533.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Citigroup initiated coverage on Moody’s in a research report on Friday, December 20th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $565.00 target price on the stock. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Moody’s from $481.00 to $508.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. Oppenheimer boosted their price target 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, Mizuho began coverage on shares of Moody’s in a research 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 given a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $523.43.

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.