Stifel Nicolaus Issues Positive Forecast for Moody’s (NYSE:MCO) Stock Price

Moody’s (NYSE:MCO) had its price objective increased by equities research analysts at Stifel Nicolaus from $459.00 to $533.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a “hold” rating on the business services provider’s stock. Stifel Nicolaus’ price objective would suggest a potential upside of 1.96% from the company’s current price.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Moody’s from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 24th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Moody’s from $481.00 to $508.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday. Citigroup started coverage on shares of Moody’s in a report on Friday, December 20th. They set a “buy” rating and a $565.00 price target for the company. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on shares of Moody’s from $490.00 to $512.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, William Blair reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Moody’s in a report on Friday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Moody’s currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $522.62.

Moody’s Stock Performance

NYSE:MCO opened at $522.76 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.67, a quick ratio of 1.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $484.94 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $478.65. Moody’s has a twelve month low of $360.05 and a twelve month high of $531.93. The company has a market capitalization of $94.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 47.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 1.31.

Moody’s (NYSE:MCO) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The business services provider reported $2.62 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.27 by $0.35. Moody’s had a net margin of 29.05% and a return on equity of 57.97%. The firm had revenue of $1.67 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.70 billion. As a group, research analysts expect that Moody’s will post 12.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Moody’s

In related news, CEO Robert Fauber sold 281 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $473.62, for a total value of $133,087.22. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 61,894 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $29,314,236.28. This represents a 0.45 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Insiders have sold 843 shares of company stock valued at $405,455 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.07% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Moody’s

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Moody’s during the fourth quarter worth $988,750,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Moody’s by 74,000.1% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 724,699 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $343,935,000 after purchasing an additional 723,721 shares during the period. FMR LLC raised its holdings in shares of Moody’s by 12.3% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 6,581,036 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $3,123,294,000 after purchasing an additional 723,226 shares during the period. Proficio Capital Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of Moody’s by 92,060.2% during the fourth quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 612,865 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $290,112,000 after purchasing an additional 612,200 shares during the period. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its holdings in shares of Moody’s by 32.0% during the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 2,075,719 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $985,115,000 after purchasing an additional 502,891 shares during the period. 92.11% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Moody’s

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.