Principal Financial Group Inc. Purchases 1,942 Shares of Moody’s Corporation $MCO

Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Moody’s Corporation (NYSE:MCO) by 0.3% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 647,711 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 1,942 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Moody’s were worth $308,649,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Rexford Capital Inc. acquired a new position in Moody’s in the second quarter valued at about $25,000. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Moody’s in the 2nd quarter valued at about $25,000. Johnson Financial Group Inc. bought a new stake in Moody’s in the 2nd quarter valued at $28,000. Heartwood Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Moody’s in the 3rd quarter valued at about $31,000. Finally, Salomon & Ludwin LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Moody’s during the 3rd quarter valued at $38,000. Institutional investors own 92.11% of the company’s stock.

Moody’s Stock Performance

MCO stock opened at $515.39 on Monday. Moody’s Corporation has a 12-month low of $378.71 and a 12-month high of $546.88. The business has a 50 day moving average of $509.66 and a 200-day moving average of $500.42. 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 firm has a market cap of $91.95 billion, a PE ratio of 41.43, a P/E/G ratio of 2.38 and a beta of 1.44.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Stifel Nicolaus set a $574.00 price objective on Moody’s and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 5th. Mizuho upped their price objective on shares of Moody’s from $539.00 to $550.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 28th. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on shares of Moody’s from $540.00 to $620.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Moody’s from $520.00 to $526.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 13th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets decreased their price target on shares of Moody’s from $534.00 to $507.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 23rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have given a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $560.94.

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.