Windmill Hill Asset Management Ltd boosted its stake in shares of Moody’s Corporation (NYSE:MCO – Free Report) by 16.8% during the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 10,912 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,572 shares during the quarter. Moody’s accounts for about 1.5% of Windmill Hill Asset Management Ltd’s holdings, making the stock its 7th biggest position. Windmill Hill Asset Management Ltd’s holdings in Moody’s were worth $4,760,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.
Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in MCO. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Moody’s during the fourth quarter valued at $1,097,101,000. Qsemble Capital Management LP lifted its stake in Moody’s by 78.3% in the 4th quarter. Qsemble Capital Management LP now owns 5,703 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $2,913,000 after acquiring an additional 2,505 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its position in Moody’s by 28.3% during the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 218,843 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $111,796,000 after acquiring an additional 48,240 shares during the period. LBP AM SA boosted its position in Moody’s by 5,179.4% during the 4th quarter. LBP AM SA now owns 38,751 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $19,796,000 after acquiring an additional 38,017 shares during the period. Finally, Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd grew its stake in Moody’s by 14.7% during the 3rd quarter. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd now owns 41,816 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $19,924,000 after acquiring an additional 5,362 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.11% of the company’s stock.
Moody’s Stock Up 2.6%
MCO opened at $517.65 on Friday. Moody’s Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $402.28 and a fifty-two week high of $546.88. The business has a 50-day moving average of $459.32 and a 200-day moving average of $465.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.03, a current ratio of 1.16 and a quick ratio of 1.16. The company has a market capitalization of $90.43 billion, a PE ratio of 37.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 1.34.
Moody’s Announces Dividend
The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 5th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 15th were paid a $1.03 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 15th. This represents a $4.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.8%. Moody’s’s payout ratio is 29.53%.
Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth
MCO has been the topic of a number of research reports. Mizuho dropped their target price on Moody’s from $524.00 to $521.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 28th. Bank of America reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $565.00 price objective on shares of Moody’s in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Moody’s from $550.00 to $575.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, July 10th. Rothschild & Co Redburn set a $500.00 target price on shares of Moody’s in a research report on Thursday, June 18th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Moody’s from $491.00 to $496.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have given a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Moody’s presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $545.06.
View Our Latest Research Report on MCO
Insider Buying and Selling
In other news, CEO Robert Fauber sold 1,467 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $453.67, for a total transaction of $665,533.89. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 52,564 shares in the company, valued at approximately $23,846,709.88. This trade represents a 2.72% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, SVP Richard G. Steele sold 158 shares of Moody’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $453.67, for a total transaction of $71,679.86. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 1,985 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $900,534.95. The trade was a 7.37% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold 3,250 shares of company stock valued at $1,495,098 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.14% of the company’s stock.
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.
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