Seilern Investment Management Ltd Sells 1,102 Shares of Moody’s Corporation $MCO

Seilern Investment Management Ltd lessened its position in Moody’s Corporation (NYSE:MCO) by 23.3% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 3,630 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 1,102 shares during the period. Moody’s comprises 0.2% of Seilern Investment Management Ltd’s portfolio, making the stock its 22nd largest holding. Seilern Investment Management Ltd’s holdings in Moody’s were worth $1,644,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in MCO. Trust Point Inc. raised its holdings in Moody’s by 9.3% in the 2nd quarter. Trust Point Inc. now owns 598 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $271,000 after acquiring an additional 51 shares during the last quarter. FNY Investment Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in Moody’s during the 2nd quarter valued at $45,000. Czech National Bank increased its holdings in shares of Moody’s by 2.3% in the 2nd quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 42,765 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $19,369,000 after purchasing an additional 981 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its holdings in shares of Moody’s by 156.5% in the 2nd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 133,743 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $60,575,000 after purchasing an additional 81,596 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Baron Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Moody’s by 31.9% in the second quarter. Baron Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,557 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $705,000 after purchasing an additional 377 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.11% of the company’s stock.

Moody’s Stock Up 0.9%

MCO opened at $477.26 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.19, a quick ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.01. Moody’s Corporation has a 1-year low of $402.28 and a 1-year high of $546.88. The company has a market capitalization of $82.66 billion, a PE ratio of 30.26, a PEG ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 1.33. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $471.89 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $461.15.

Moody’s (NYSE:MCO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 22nd. The business services provider reported $4.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.26 by $0.42. The firm had revenue of $2.19 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.09 billion. Moody’s had a net margin of 34.25% and a return on equity of 80.35%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $3.56 EPS. Moody’s has set its FY 2026 guidance at 16.500-17.000 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Moody’s Corporation will post 16.89 EPS for the current year.

Moody’s Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 4th. Investors of record on Friday, August 14th will be given a dividend of $1.03 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 14th. This represents a $4.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. Moody’s’s payout ratio is 26.13%.

Insider Activity

In other Moody’s news, CEO Robert Fauber sold 1,467 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $484.30, for a total value of $710,468.10. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 51,964 shares in the company, valued at $25,166,165.20. This represents a 2.75% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, SVP Richard G. Steele sold 158 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $453.67, for a total value of $71,679.86. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 1,985 shares in the company, valued at $900,534.95. This trade represents 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 have sold 3,092 shares of company stock valued at $1,447,682 in the last three months. 0.14% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on MCO shares. Barclays upped their price target on Moody’s from $550.00 to $575.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, July 10th. Wolfe Research reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $535.00 target price on shares of Moody’s in a research report on Thursday, April 23rd. UBS Group restated a “neutral” rating and set a $505.00 target price on shares of Moody’s in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Moody’s from $530.00 to $600.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, July 20th. Finally, Mizuho lifted their price target on shares of Moody’s from $521.00 to $530.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, July 27th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have given a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $553.61.

Moody’s Profile

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.