Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC Has $14.90 Million Stock Holdings in Moody’s Corporation $MCO

Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its stake in Moody’s Corporation (NYSE:MCO) by 19.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 27,547 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,447 shares during the quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in Moody’s were worth $14,901,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Rexford Capital Inc. purchased a new stake in Moody’s during the second quarter valued at about $25,000. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Moody’s in the second quarter worth approximately $25,000. Caitlin John LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Moody’s during the third quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Johnson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Moody’s in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Finally, Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Moody’s in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.11% of the company’s stock.

Moody’s Stock Down 0.1%

Moody’s stock opened at $427.92 on Thursday. Moody’s Corporation has a twelve month low of $378.71 and a twelve month high of $546.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.66, a quick ratio of 1.74 and a current ratio of 1.74. The firm has a market cap of $76.17 billion, a PE ratio of 31.28, a P/E/G ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 1.45. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $466.63 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $484.01.

Moody’s (NYSE:MCO) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 18th. The business services provider reported $3.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.39 by $0.25. Moody’s had a net margin of 31.86% and a return on equity of 66.01%. The company had revenue of $1.89 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.87 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.62 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.0% on a year-over-year basis. Moody’s has set its FY 2026 guidance at 16.400-17.000 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Moody’s Corporation will post 13.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Moody’s Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 13th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 2nd were paid a $1.03 dividend. This represents a $4.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.0%. This is an increase from Moody’s’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.94. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 2nd. Moody’s’s dividend payout ratio is presently 30.12%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price objective on shares of Moody’s from $574.00 to $540.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 19th. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $531.00 target price on Moody’s in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Moody’s from $620.00 to $660.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 14th. Barclays lowered their price target on Moody’s from $580.00 to $550.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 23rd. Finally, Mizuho reduced their price objective on Moody’s from $550.00 to $524.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have given a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $550.25.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Robert Fauber sold 5,213 shares of Moody’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $456.71, for a total transaction of $2,380,829.23. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 75,789 shares in the company, valued at $34,613,594.19. The trade was a 6.44% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Richard G. Steele sold 375 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $456.71, for a total value of $171,266.25. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 2,459 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,123,049.89. The trade was a 13.23% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 6,755 shares of company stock worth $3,144,524. Insiders own 0.14% of the company’s stock.

About Moody’s

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.