Moody’s (NYSE:MCO) Downgraded to Hold Rating by Wall Street Zen

Moody’s (NYSE:MCO) was downgraded by equities research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued on Saturday.

MCO has been the subject of several other research reports. Mizuho boosted their price objective on Moody’s from $539.00 to $550.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of Moody’s from $580.00 to $560.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 23rd. BMO Capital Markets cut 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. Stifel Nicolaus set a $574.00 price target on shares of Moody’s and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 5th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Moody’s in a research report on Friday, October 31st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Moody’s has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $560.94.

Moody’s Trading Down 0.0%

Shares of MCO stock opened at $515.39 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $91.95 billion, a PE ratio of 41.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.38 and a beta of 1.45. Moody’s has a 52-week low of $378.71 and a 52-week high of $546.88. The business’s fifty day moving average is $509.66 and its 200 day moving average is $500.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.70, a quick ratio of 1.84 and a current ratio of 1.84.

Insider Buying and Selling at Moody’s

In other news, CEO Robert Fauber sold 1,167 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $478.95, for a total value of $558,934.65. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 61,082 shares in the company, valued at approximately $29,255,223.90. The trade was a 1.87% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.14% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Moody’s

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Moody’s during the second quarter valued at about $987,524,000. Two Sigma Investments LP lifted its stake in shares of Moody’s by 1,222.0% in the 3rd quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 324,251 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $154,499,000 after acquiring an additional 299,724 shares during the last quarter. Generation Investment Management LLP purchased a new stake in Moody’s during the 2nd quarter valued at about $135,968,000. Holocene Advisors LP grew its position in Moody’s by 340.0% during the 3rd quarter. Holocene Advisors LP now owns 283,744 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $135,198,000 after acquiring an additional 219,251 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Balyasny Asset Management L.P. grew its position in Moody’s by 10,311.9% during the 3rd quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 197,826 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $94,260,000 after acquiring an additional 195,926 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.11% of the company’s stock.

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.