Diversified Trust Co Has $2.34 Million Stock Position in Moody’s Co. (NYSE:MCO)

Diversified Trust Co lessened its stake in Moody’s Co. (NYSE:MCO) by 1.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,945 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 59 shares during the quarter. Diversified Trust Co’s holdings in Moody’s were worth $2,341,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in MCO. Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Moody’s by 3.8% during the 2nd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 65,538 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $27,587,000 after acquiring an additional 2,404 shares in the last quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC increased its stake in Moody’s by 10.6% in the 2nd quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 3,437 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,446,000 after buying an additional 330 shares during the last quarter. Choreo LLC lifted its position in Moody’s by 232.6% during the 2nd quarter. Choreo LLC now owns 2,957 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,246,000 after buying an additional 2,068 shares in the last quarter. LGT Fund Management Co Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Moody’s by 2,316.5% during the 2nd quarter. LGT Fund Management Co Ltd. now owns 18,607 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $7,832,000 after buying an additional 17,837 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Royal London Asset Management Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Moody’s by 1.9% in the 2nd quarter. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. now owns 65,656 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $27,637,000 after acquiring an additional 1,212 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.11% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Moody’s news, SVP Caroline Sullivan sold 1,681 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $462.40, for a total value of $777,294.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 1,415 shares in the company, valued at approximately $654,296. This represents a 54.30 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Robert Fauber sold 281 shares of Moody’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 2nd. The stock was 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 in the company, valued at approximately $29,390,984.84. This trade represents a 0.45 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 2,243 shares of company stock valued at $1,045,326 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.07% of the company’s stock.

Moody’s Stock Down 1.9 %

Shares of NYSE MCO opened at $464.30 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $84.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.40, a PEG ratio of 3.24 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a current ratio of 1.67, a quick ratio of 1.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69. Moody’s Co. has a 12 month low of $360.05 and a 12 month high of $503.95. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $479.35 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $468.85.

Moody’s (NYSE:MCO) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 22nd. The business services provider reported $3.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.89 by $0.32. Moody’s had a net margin of 29.05% and a return on equity of 57.97%. The business had revenue of $1.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.71 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.43 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 23.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts forecast that Moody’s Co. will post 12.07 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Moody’s Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 13th. Investors of record on Friday, November 22nd were given a dividend of $0.85 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 22nd. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.73%. Moody’s’s dividend payout ratio is currently 31.05%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently issued reports on the company. StockNews.com upgraded Moody’s from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 24th. Citigroup initiated coverage on shares of Moody’s in a report on Friday, December 20th. They set a “buy” rating and a $565.00 target price on the stock. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Moody’s from $500.00 to $570.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, September 13th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on shares of Moody’s from $454.00 to $459.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on shares of Moody’s from $455.00 to $464.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $506.14.

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.