Renaissance Technologies LLC Acquires Shares of 112,080 Moody’s Corporation $MCO

Renaissance Technologies LLC bought a new position in shares of Moody’s Corporation (NYSE:MCO) during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 112,080 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $48,895,000.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in MCO. Cromwell Holdings LLC lifted its holdings in Moody’s by 5.8% in the 4th quarter. Cromwell Holdings LLC now owns 363 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $185,000 after buying an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. DeDora Capital Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Moody’s by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. DeDora Capital Inc. now owns 1,315 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $672,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Guyasuta Investment Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in Moody’s by 2.7% in the fourth quarter. Guyasuta Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 753 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $385,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Carnegie Investment Counsel grew its stake in Moody’s by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Carnegie Investment Counsel now owns 1,081 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $552,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Verdence Capital Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Moody’s by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,895 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $968,000 after purchasing an additional 21 shares during the last quarter. 92.11% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Moody’s Trading Up 3.1%

Moody’s stock opened at $486.05 on Tuesday. Moody’s Corporation has a 52-week low of $402.28 and a 52-week high of $546.88. The company has a quick ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.01. The firm has a market capitalization of $84.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.82, a PEG ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 1.34. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $465.90 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $464.03.

Moody’s (NYSE:MCO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The business services provider reported $4.68 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.26 by $0.42. The company had revenue of $2.19 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.09 billion. Moody’s had a net margin of 34.25% and a return on equity of 80.35%. Moody’s’s revenue was up 15.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $3.56 earnings per share. Moody’s has set its FY 2026 guidance at 16.500-17.000 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Moody’s Corporation will post 16.82 earnings per share for the current year.

Moody’s Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 4th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 14th will be given a dividend of $1.03 per share. This represents a $4.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 14th. Moody’s’s payout ratio is 26.13%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on MCO. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Moody’s from $590.00 to $597.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday. Morgan Stanley set a $512.00 target price on shares of Moody’s in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of Moody’s in a research report on Friday, July 17th. They set a “buy” rating and a $610.00 price target on the stock. UBS Group reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $505.00 price objective on shares of Moody’s in a report on Thursday. Finally, Rothschild & Co Redburn set a $500.00 target price on Moody’s in a report on Thursday, June 18th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Moody’s has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $553.61.

Insider Buying and Selling at Moody’s

In related news, SVP Richard G. Steele sold 158 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 1st. The shares were 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 owned 1,985 shares in the company, valued at $900,534.95. This represents a 7.37% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Robert Fauber sold 1,467 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $466.39, for a total transaction of $684,194.13. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 75,189 shares in the company, valued at approximately $35,067,397.71. The trade was a 1.91% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last three months, insiders sold 3,250 shares of company stock valued at $1,495,098. Company insiders own 0.14% of the company’s stock.

Moody’s Company 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.