FY2024 Earnings Forecast for Moody’s Issued By William Blair

Moody’s Co. (NYSE:MCO) – Research analysts at William Blair increased their FY2024 earnings per share estimates for shares of Moody’s in a report issued on Tuesday, October 15th. William Blair analyst A. Nicholas now forecasts that the business services provider will earn $11.61 per share for the year, up from their prior forecast of $11.21. The consensus estimate for Moody’s’ current full-year earnings is $11.46 per share. William Blair also issued estimates for Moody’s’ FY2025 earnings at $12.81 EPS.

Moody’s (NYSE:MCO) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The business services provider reported $3.28 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.06 by $0.22. Moody’s had a net margin of 28.34% and a return on equity of 57.03%. The firm had revenue of $1.82 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.72 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.30 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 21.6% on a year-over-year basis.

A number of other equities research analysts have also commented on the company. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on Moody’s from $450.00 to $475.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 24th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Moody’s from $510.00 to $550.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on shares of Moody’s from $443.00 to $454.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Moody’s from $500.00 to $570.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, September 13th. Finally, Evercore ISI initiated coverage on shares of Moody’s in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $521.00 price objective on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $488.46.

Moody’s Stock Performance

Shares of Moody’s stock opened at $488.46 on Thursday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $477.50 and its 200 day simple moving average is $435.57. The company has a current ratio of 1.52, a quick ratio of 1.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.59. The company has a market capitalization of $89.19 billion, a PE ratio of 53.33, a PEG ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 1.29. Moody’s has a 12 month low of $298.86 and a 12 month high of $495.10.

Moody’s Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 6th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 16th were paid a $0.85 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 16th. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.70%. Moody’s’s dividend payout ratio is 37.12%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Moody’s news, insider Stephen T. Tulenko sold 500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $464.06, for a total transaction of $232,030.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 6,647 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,084,606.82. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, insider Stephen T. Tulenko sold 500 shares of Moody’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $464.06, for a total transaction of $232,030.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 6,647 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,084,606.82. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Stephen T. Tulenko sold 569 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $444.26, for a total value of $252,783.94. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 8,147 shares in the company, valued at $3,619,386.22. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 2,931 shares of company stock valued at $1,332,825 in the last 90 days. 0.07% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Moody’s

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Conning Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Moody’s by 3.0% during the 2nd quarter. Conning Inc. now owns 778 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $327,000 after buying an additional 23 shares during the last quarter. Stratos Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in Moody’s by 2.1% during the third 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 during the last quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. lifted its position in Moody’s by 1.8% during the second quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 1,357 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $571,000 after acquiring an additional 24 shares during the last quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Moody’s by 2.6% during the second quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 960 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $404,000 after acquiring an additional 24 shares during the period. Finally, Diversified Trust Co grew its position in shares of Moody’s by 0.5% in the third quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 5,004 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,375,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. 92.11% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Moody’s Company Profile

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.