Moody’s Co. (NYSE:MCO) Shares Acquired by Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank increased its stake in Moody’s Co. (NYSE:MCO) by 8.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 65,351 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 5,016 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank’s holdings in Moody’s were worth $25,523,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of MCO. Markel Corp raised its stake in shares of Moody’s by 0.8% in the first quarter. Markel Corp now owns 212,990 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $71,865,000 after acquiring an additional 1,750 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. raised its stake in Moody’s by 6.8% in the first quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. now owns 2,126 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $717,000 after buying an additional 135 shares in the last quarter. Prudential PLC acquired a new stake in Moody’s in the first quarter valued at $1,078,000. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC raised its stake in Moody’s by 8.7% in the first quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 1,980 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $668,000 after buying an additional 158 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Candriam Luxembourg S.C.A. raised its stake in Moody’s by 2.3% in the first quarter. Candriam Luxembourg S.C.A. now owns 30,994 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $10,457,000 after buying an additional 684 shares in the last quarter. 92.11% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have weighed in on MCO shares. UBS Group raised their price target on Moody’s from $355.00 to $380.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Moody’s from $420.00 to $410.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 14th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on Moody’s from $455.00 to $420.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 14th. BMO Capital Markets cut their target price on Moody’s from $430.00 to $414.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 14th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus cut their target price on Moody’s from $362.00 to $350.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 14th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Moody’s presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $397.75.

Moody’s Price Performance

Shares of MCO opened at $375.41 on Thursday. Moody’s Co. has a twelve month low of $296.45 and a twelve month high of $407.62. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $385.09 and its two-hundred day moving average is $368.69. The firm has a market capitalization of $68.51 billion, a PE ratio of 43.00, a P/E/G ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 1.27. The company has a current ratio of 1.74, a quick ratio of 1.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.01.

Moody’s (NYSE:MCO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 13th. The business services provider reported $2.19 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.33 by ($0.14). Moody’s had a net margin of 27.16% and a return on equity of 55.23%. The business had revenue of $1.48 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.48 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.60 EPS. Moody’s’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that Moody’s Co. will post 10.68 earnings per share for the current year.

Moody’s Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 23rd were issued a $0.85 dividend. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.91%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 22nd. This is a positive change from Moody’s’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.77. Moody’s’s payout ratio is currently 38.95%.

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.