Robert Fauber Sells 281 Shares of Moody’s Co. (NYSE:MCO) Stock

Moody’s Co. (NYSE:MCO) CEO Robert Fauber sold 281 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $474.86, for a total transaction of $133,435.66. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 61,894 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $29,390,984.84. This trade represents a 0.45 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website.

Robert Fauber also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Friday, November 15th, Robert Fauber sold 281 shares of Moody’s stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $478.99, for a total transaction of $134,596.19.

Moody’s Trading Up 1.3 %

Shares of NYSE:MCO opened at $479.15 on Friday. Moody’s Co. has a 12-month low of $360.05 and a 12-month high of $503.95. The company has a quick ratio of 1.67, a current ratio of 1.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69. The firm has a market capitalization of $86.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 43.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.24 and a beta of 1.30. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $479.02 and a two-hundred day moving average of $467.52.

Moody’s (NYSE:MCO) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The business services provider reported $3.21 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.89 by $0.32. Moody’s had a return on equity of 57.97% and a net margin of 29.05%. The firm had revenue of $1.81 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.71 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.43 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 23.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts expect that Moody’s Co. will post 12.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Moody’s Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 13th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 22nd were paid a $0.85 dividend. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.71%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 22nd. Moody’s’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 31.05%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have issued reports on MCO shares. Evercore ISI initiated coverage on Moody’s in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $521.00 price objective for the company. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on Moody’s from $490.00 to $512.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on Moody’s from $455.00 to $464.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. StockNews.com raised shares of Moody’s from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 24th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Moody’s from $462.00 to $481.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $506.14.

Institutional Trading of Moody’s

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Haverford Trust Co lifted its stake in shares of Moody’s by 1.8% in the 3rd quarter. Haverford Trust Co now owns 1,223 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $580,000 after purchasing an additional 22 shares during the last quarter. Stratos Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Moody’s by 2.1% during the 3rd quarter. Stratos Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,107 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $525,000 after acquiring an additional 23 shares in the last quarter. Okabena Investment Services Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Moody’s by 0.8% during the 3rd quarter. Okabena Investment Services Inc. now owns 2,767 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,313,000 after acquiring an additional 23 shares during the last quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC raised its stake in shares of Moody’s by 2.5% in the 3rd quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 984 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $467,000 after acquiring an additional 24 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Adero Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Moody’s by 3.8% in the 3rd quarter. Adero Partners LLC now owns 660 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $313,000 after purchasing an additional 24 shares during the last quarter. 92.11% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Moody’s

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.