Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio Takes $29.27 Million Position in Moody’s Corporation $MCO

Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio purchased a new stake in shares of Moody’s Corporation (NYSE:MCO) during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 64,614 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $29,265,000.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Moody’s by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,965,480 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $2,019,551,000 after purchasing an additional 42,966 shares during the period. Morgan Stanley increased its position in shares of Moody’s by 2.7% during the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 2,370,601 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,211,023,000 after buying an additional 62,798 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its position in shares of Moody’s by 3.2% in the first quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 2,349,281 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,024,874,000 after acquiring an additional 72,043 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Moody’s during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,097,101,000. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its stake in Moody’s by 73.5% during the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 1,716,304 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $876,775,000 after acquiring an additional 726,971 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.11% of the company’s stock.

Moody’s Stock Up 1.3%

Shares of NYSE:MCO opened at $515.69 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $89.32 billion, a PE ratio of 32.70, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 1.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.01, a quick ratio of 1.19 and a current ratio of 1.19. Moody’s Corporation has a 52-week low of $402.28 and a 52-week high of $546.88. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $484.86 and a 200 day moving average of $460.08.

Moody’s (NYSE:MCO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The business services provider reported $4.68 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.26 by $0.42. The business had revenue of $2.19 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.09 billion. Moody’s had a return on equity of 80.35% and a net margin of 34.25%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $3.56 earnings per share. Moody’s has set its FY 2026 guidance at 16.500-17.000 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Moody’s Corporation will post 16.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Moody’s Dividend Announcement

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Robert Fauber sold 1,467 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, August 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $484.30, for a total transaction of $710,468.10. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 51,964 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $25,166,165.20. This trade represents a 2.75% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, SVP Richard G. Steele sold 158 shares of Moody’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $453.67, for a total transaction of $71,679.86. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 1,985 shares in the company, valued at approximately $900,534.95. The trade was a 7.37% 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. Insiders sold a total of 3,092 shares of company stock valued at $1,447,682 in the last ninety days. 0.14% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have issued reports on MCO shares. UBS Group reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $505.00 target price on shares of Moody’s in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. Citigroup reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Moody’s in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Weiss Ratings raised Moody’s from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. Rothschild & Co Redburn set a $500.00 target price on Moody’s in a research report on Thursday, June 18th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Moody’s from $530.00 to $600.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, July 20th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Moody’s has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $553.61.

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.