Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. Lowers Stock Position in Moody’s Corporation $MCO

Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. reduced its stake in shares of Moody’s Corporation (NYSE:MCO) by 2.2% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 61,316 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 1,384 shares during the period. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Moody’s were worth $31,323,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. purchased a new position in Moody’s in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Caitlin John LLC purchased a new position in Moody’s in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $27,000. Ares Financial Consulting LLC purchased a new position in Moody’s in the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd purchased a new position in Moody’s in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $30,000. Finally, Wealth Watch Advisors INC purchased a new position in Moody’s in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $32,000. 92.11% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Moody’s Stock Performance

Shares of Moody’s stock opened at $464.84 on Tuesday. Moody’s Corporation has a 52 week low of $402.28 and a 52 week high of $546.88. The company has a quick ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 1.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.03. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $445.88 and its two-hundred day moving average is $471.14. The company has a market capitalization of $81.21 billion, a PE ratio of 33.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.35.

Moody’s (NYSE:MCO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 22nd. The business services provider reported $4.33 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.22 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $2.08 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.11 billion. Moody’s had a return on equity of 70.97% and a net margin of 31.69%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 8.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $3.83 EPS. Moody’s has set its FY 2026 guidance at 16.400-17.000 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Moody’s Corporation will post 16.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Moody’s Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 5th. Investors of record on Friday, May 15th will be paid a dividend of $1.03 per share. This represents a $4.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 15th. Moody’s’s dividend payout ratio is 29.53%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Moody’s news, SVP Richard G. Steele sold 158 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $466.39, for a total value of $73,689.62. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 2,143 shares in the company, valued at approximately $999,473.77. This trade represents a 6.87% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Robert Fauber sold 1,467 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $466.39, for a total value of $684,194.13. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 75,189 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $35,067,397.71. This trade represents a 1.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold a total of 3,092 shares of company stock valued at $1,400,092 over the last 90 days. 0.14% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently commented on the company. Weiss Ratings cut Moody’s from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Monday, April 27th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on Moody’s from $574.00 to $540.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 19th. Wall Street Zen cut Moody’s from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, March 21st. UBS Group lowered their price target on Moody’s from $515.00 to $490.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 19th. Finally, Bank of America reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $565.00 price objective on shares of Moody’s in a report on Wednesday, April 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have issued a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $544.29.

Moody’s Company Profile

Moody’s Corporation is a global provider of credit ratings, research, data and analytics that support financial decision-making and transparency in capital markets. The company traces its origins to the early 20th century when financial analyst John Moody began publishing credit information; today Moody’s is headquartered in New York and serves a broad set of market participants including investors, issuers, financial institutions, corporations, governments and regulators.

Moody’s operates primarily through two complementary businesses.