Russell Investments Group Ltd. Purchases 22,724 Shares of Moody’s Corporation $MCO

Russell Investments Group Ltd. raised its position in shares of Moody’s Corporation (NYSE:MCO) by 3.6% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 645,429 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 22,724 shares during the quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd.’s holdings in Moody’s were worth $293,128,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of MCO. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its position in shares of Moody’s by 3.2% in the 1st quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 2,349,281 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,024,874,000 after acquiring an additional 72,043 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its stake in shares of Moody’s by 2.4% in the 2nd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,420,099 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $643,191,000 after purchasing an additional 33,024 shares during the period. Amundi lifted its stake in shares of Moody’s by 20.0% in the 2nd quarter. Amundi now owns 1,011,495 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $458,126,000 after purchasing an additional 168,528 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in shares of Moody’s by 7.2% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 882,973 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $385,188,000 after purchasing an additional 59,121 shares during the period. Finally, National Pension Service boosted its position in shares of Moody’s by 0.3% during the 2nd quarter. National Pension Service now owns 500,927 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $226,880,000 after purchasing an additional 1,634 shares in the last quarter. 92.11% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Moody’s Trading Down 1.5%

MCO opened at $507.08 on Friday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $478.16 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $466.79. Moody’s Corporation has a 1-year low of $402.28 and a 1-year high of $546.88. The company has a market cap of $87.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a current ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.86.

Moody’s (NYSE:MCO) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 21st. The business services provider reported $4.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.25 by ($0.11). The company had revenue of $2.02 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.08 billion. Moody’s had a return on equity of 84.76% and a net margin of 35.26%. Moody’s’s revenue for the quarter was up .8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $3.92 EPS. Analysts predict that Moody’s Corporation will post 16.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Moody’s Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 11th. Investors of record on Friday, November 20th will be paid a dividend of $1.03 per share. This represents a $4.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 20th. Moody’s’s dividend payout ratio is 25.11%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Jason Phillips sold 195 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $509.23, for a total transaction of $99,299.85. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 1,894 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $964,481.62. This represents a 9.33% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Michael West sold 9,946 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $488.00, for a total value of $4,853,648.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 8,559 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,176,792. The trade was a 53.75% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders have sold 13,282 shares of company stock valued at $6,509,459. 0.14% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently commented on MCO. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Moody’s from $597.00 to $595.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 22nd. Rothschild & Co Redburn lifted their target price on Moody’s from $510.00 to $520.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. Mizuho boosted their price target on Moody’s from $521.00 to $530.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, July 27th. Deutsche Bank increased their price target on Moody’s from $587.00 to $594.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on shares of Moody’s from $490.00 to $511.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 22nd. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $552.63.

About Moody’s

Moody’s Corporation is a global provider of credit ratings, research, data and risk-analysis services. Through Moody’s Investors Service, it assesses the creditworthiness of businesses, governments and financial instruments, providing ratings and related research to investors and other market participants. Its Moody’s Analytics business offers data, software and analytical tools used in areas such as credit and financial risk management, compliance, and economic research. The company serves clients across international markets, including financial institutions, corporations, governments and investors.