Unigestion Holding SA Increases Stock Holdings in Moody’s Co. (NYSE:MCO)

Unigestion Holding SA boosted its stake in Moody’s Co. (NYSE:MCO) by 236.6% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,594 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,229 shares during the quarter. Unigestion Holding SA’s holdings in Moody’s were worth $2,180,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in MCO. Planning Capital Management Corp boosted its position in Moody’s by 566.7% in the 3rd quarter. Planning Capital Management Corp now owns 60 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 51 shares during the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC boosted its stake in Moody’s by 272.2% during the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 67 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. Y.D. More Investments Ltd bought a new position in shares of Moody’s during the second quarter worth about $35,000. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Moody’s in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $36,000. Finally, Asset Dedication LLC raised its position in shares of Moody’s by 83.0% during the 3rd quarter. Asset Dedication LLC now owns 86 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $41,000 after acquiring an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.11% of the company’s stock.

Moody’s Price Performance

NYSE MCO opened at $491.55 on Wednesday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $476.78 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $458.51. Moody’s Co. has a 12-month low of $360.05 and a 12-month high of $503.95. The stock has a market capitalization of $89.07 billion, a PE ratio of 44.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.22 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a quick ratio of 1.67, a current ratio of 1.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69.

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

Moody’s Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 13th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 22nd will be given a dividend of $0.85 per share. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.69%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 22nd. Moody’s’s dividend payout ratio is 31.05%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on shares of Moody’s from $455.00 to $464.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on shares of Moody’s from $460.00 to $514.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 3rd. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on shares of Moody’s from $454.00 to $459.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Raymond James lowered Moody’s from a “market perform” rating to an “underperform” rating in a report on Monday, September 23rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Moody’s from $451.00 to $462.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $500.00.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Caroline Sullivan sold 1,681 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the senior vice president now owns 1,415 shares in the company, valued at approximately $654,296. This trade represents a 54.30 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Robert Fauber sold 281 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $478.99, for a total value of $134,596.19. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 61,354 shares in the company, valued at $29,387,952.46. This represents a 0.46 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.07% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.