Strategic Global Advisors LLC Has $9.52 Million Position in Moody’s Corporation $MCO

Strategic Global Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Moody’s Corporation (NYSE:MCO) by 28.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 18,625 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 4,100 shares during the quarter. Moody’s comprises approximately 1.5% of Strategic Global Advisors LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 17th biggest position. Strategic Global Advisors LLC’s holdings in Moody’s were worth $9,515,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in MCO. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Moody’s during the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,097,101,000. Egerton Capital UK LLP acquired a new stake in Moody’s during the fourth quarter worth approximately $395,096,000. First Trust Advisors LP grew its position in Moody’s by 315.6% during the fourth quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 417,782 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $213,424,000 after buying an additional 317,245 shares in the last quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP grew its position in Moody’s by 1,222.0% during the third quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 324,251 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $154,499,000 after buying an additional 299,724 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Holocene Advisors LP grew its position in Moody’s by 340.0% during the third quarter. Holocene Advisors LP now owns 283,744 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $135,198,000 after buying an additional 219,251 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.11% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Barclays reduced their price target on Moody’s from $580.00 to $550.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 23rd. Mizuho decreased their price target on Moody’s from $524.00 to $521.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 28th. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $531.00 price target on Moody’s in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. UBS Group lowered their price target on Moody’s from $515.00 to $490.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 19th. Finally, Bank of America reissued a “buy” rating and set a $565.00 price target on shares of Moody’s in a report on Wednesday, April 22nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have issued a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $544.29.

Moody’s Stock Up 0.1%

Shares of MCO opened at $448.12 on Monday. Moody’s Corporation has a 52 week low of $402.28 and a 52 week high of $546.88. The stock has a market capitalization of $78.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.12, a PEG ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 1.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.03, a quick ratio of 1.16 and a current ratio of 1.16. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $448.68 and a 200-day moving average of $469.24.

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

Moody’s Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 5th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 15th were paid a $1.03 dividend. This represents a $4.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 15th. Moody’s’s dividend payout ratio is presently 29.53%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Robert Fauber sold 1,467 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $466.39, for a total value of $684,194.13. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 75,189 shares in the company, valued at approximately $35,067,397.71. This represents a 1.91% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, SVP Richard G. Steele sold 158 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, June 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $453.67, for a total value of $71,679.86. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 1,985 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $900,534.95. The trade was a 7.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold a total of 4,717 shares of company stock valued at $2,137,306 over the last quarter. 0.14% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

About Moody’s

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.