Moody’s (NYSE:MCO) Given Outperform Rating at Royal Bank of Canada

Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed their outperform rating on shares of Moody’s (NYSE:MCO) in a report published on Monday, Benzinga reports. They currently have a $404.00 price target on the business services provider’s stock.

Several other analysts also recently weighed in on MCO. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Moody’s from $300.00 to $323.00 in a report on Monday, July 10th. Barclays increased their target price on Moody’s from $300.00 to $350.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 26th. Bank of America began coverage on Moody’s in a report on Thursday, June 15th. They set a buy rating on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on Moody’s from $328.00 to $362.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a report on Monday, July 3rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Moody’s from $346.00 to $365.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 26th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $329.56.

Moody’s Stock Performance

Shares of MCO opened at $343.40 on Monday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $342.76 and its 200-day simple moving average is $323.57. Moody’s has a 12-month low of $230.16 and a 12-month high of $363.19. The firm has a market cap of $63.01 billion, a PE ratio of 44.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a current ratio of 1.65, a quick ratio of 1.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.09.

Moody’s (NYSE:MCO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 25th. The business services provider reported $2.30 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.23 by $0.07. Moody’s had a net margin of 25.81% and a return on equity of 55.98%. The company had revenue of $1.49 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.45 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.22 earnings per share. Moody’s’s quarterly revenue was up 8.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that Moody’s will post 10.07 EPS for the current year.

Moody’s Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 8th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 18th were issued a $0.77 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, August 17th. This represents a $3.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.90%. Moody’s’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 39.69%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Robert Fauber sold 282 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $351.24, for a total transaction of $99,049.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 65,838 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $23,124,939.12. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, CEO Robert Fauber sold 282 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, July 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $351.24, for a total transaction of $99,049.68. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 65,838 shares in the company, valued at approximately $23,124,939.12. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Caroline Sullivan sold 297 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $339.04, for a total value of $100,694.88. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 891 shares in the company, valued at $302,084.64. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 26,611 shares of company stock valued at $9,092,342 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.42% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Moody’s

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Natixis acquired a new stake in shares of Moody’s in the second quarter valued at about $25,000. Clearstead Trust LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Moody’s during the second quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Compass Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Moody’s during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Ancora Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Moody’s by 4,900.0% in the first quarter. Ancora Advisors LLC now owns 100 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 98 shares during the period. Finally, Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL purchased a new stake in Moody’s during the 1st quarter worth $31,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.07% 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 Investors Service and Moody's Analytics. The Moody's Investors Service segment publishes credit ratings and provides assessment services on various debt obligations, programs and facilities, and entities that issue such obligations, such as various corporate, financial institution, and governmental obligations, as well as and structured finance securities.