Lecap Asset Management Ltd. Takes Position in Moody’s Corporation $MCO

Lecap Asset Management Ltd. purchased a new position in Moody’s Corporation (NYSE:MCO) in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 4,327 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $2,062,000.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Rexford Capital Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Moody’s during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. acquired a new position in Moody’s during the second quarter worth $25,000. Johnson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new position in Moody’s during the second quarter valued at $28,000. Heartwood Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Moody’s in the third quarter valued at about $31,000. Finally, ORG Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of Moody’s by 50.0% during the second quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 66 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 22 shares in the last quarter. 92.11% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Morgan Stanley set a $520.00 price target on shares of Moody’s in a research note on Thursday, October 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Moody’s from $580.00 to $560.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 23rd. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Moody’s in a research report on Friday, October 31st. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price objective on Moody’s from $534.00 to $507.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 23rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Moody’s from $597.00 to $620.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 23rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have given a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $550.27.

Insider Buying and Selling at Moody’s

In related news, CEO Robert Fauber sold 1,167 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $478.95, for a total transaction of $558,934.65. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 61,082 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $29,255,223.90. This trade represents a 1.87% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In the last three months, insiders sold 2,154 shares of company stock worth $1,041,098. Corporate insiders own 0.14% of the company’s stock.

Moody’s Stock Down 0.3%

Shares of MCO opened at $531.43 on Thursday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $494.13 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $496.68. The company has a quick ratio of 1.84, a current ratio of 1.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.70. The company has a market capitalization of $94.81 billion, a PE ratio of 42.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.69 and a beta of 1.45. Moody’s Corporation has a 52-week low of $378.71 and a 52-week high of $540.00.

Moody’s (NYSE:MCO) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 22nd. The business services provider reported $3.92 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.70 by $0.22. The firm had revenue of $2.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.92 billion. Moody’s had a net margin of 29.92% and a return on equity of 63.58%. Moody’s’s revenue was up 10.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $3.21 earnings per share. Moody’s has set its FY 2025 guidance at 14.500-14.750 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Moody’s Corporation will post 13.95 EPS for the current year.

Moody’s Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 21st were paid a $0.94 dividend. This represents a $3.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 21st. Moody’s’s dividend payout ratio is 30.23%.

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.