JPMorgan Chase & Co. Lowers Moody’s (NYSE:MCO) Price Target to $560.00

Moody’s (NYSE:MCO) had its price objective decreased by research analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $600.00 to $560.00 in a note issued to investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “overweight” rating on the business services provider’s stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.‘s target price would suggest a potential upside of 25.21% from the company’s previous close.

A number of other equities analysts also recently commented on MCO. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $531.00 target price on shares of Moody’s in a research note on Wednesday. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price objective on Moody’s from $574.00 to $540.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. Evercore restated an “outperform” rating and set a $610.00 target price on shares of Moody’s in a research note on Thursday. Mizuho upped their price target on Moody’s from $539.00 to $550.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 28th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Moody’s in a report on Friday, October 31st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $553.75.

Moody’s Stock Performance

Shares of MCO opened at $447.25 on Thursday. Moody’s has a 1 year low of $378.71 and a 1 year high of $546.88. The stock has a market capitalization of $79.30 billion, a PE ratio of 32.69, a PEG ratio of 1.97 and a beta of 1.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.66, a quick ratio of 1.84 and a current ratio of 1.74. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $497.07 and a 200-day simple moving average of $493.97.

Moody’s (NYSE:MCO) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 18th. The business services provider reported $3.64 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 firm had revenue of $1.89 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.87 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.62 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 13.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Moody’s has set its FY 2026 guidance at 16.400-17.000 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Moody’s will post 13.95 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Robert Fauber sold 592 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $516.15, for a total value of $305,560.80. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 61,082 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $31,527,474.30. This represents a 0.96% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.14% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Moody’s

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Cromwell Holdings LLC lifted its position in Moody’s by 5.8% during the 4th quarter. Cromwell Holdings LLC now owns 363 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $185,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares during the period. DeDora Capital Inc. raised its stake in shares of Moody’s by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. DeDora Capital Inc. now owns 1,315 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $672,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Guyasuta Investment Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Moody’s by 2.7% during the fourth quarter. Guyasuta Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 753 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $385,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the period. Carnegie Investment Counsel grew its position in Moody’s by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. Carnegie Investment Counsel now owns 1,081 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $552,000 after buying an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Finally, VestGen Advisors LLC increased its stake in Moody’s by 2.0% in the 2nd quarter. VestGen Advisors LLC now owns 1,097 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $550,000 after buying an additional 21 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.11% of the company’s stock.

Trending Headlines about Moody’s

Here are the key news stories impacting Moody’s this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 results beat expectations — EPS of $3.64 topped consensus and revenue rose ~13% with record Investors Services revenue, supporting near-term fundamentals and earnings guidance. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Management set upbeat FY2026 profit guidance and cited strong demand for credit ratings and M&A activity — this underpins forward growth expectations. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Strategic growth drivers highlighted: AI integration and expanded decision‑grade data offerings are being cited as contributors to recurring revenue and product differentiation. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Dividend increase announced — Moody’s raised its quarterly payout ~9.6% to $1.03, signaling confidence in cash flow and returning capital to shareholders. (Ex-dividend date March 2)
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst target revisions and model updates are rolling in ahead of/after the print; some firms adjusted forecasts (mixed impact as revisions reflect both beat and longer-term assumptions). Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: JPMorgan cut its price target from $600 to $560 but kept an “overweight” rating — this narrows upside expectations while still signaling conviction in the name. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Post-earnings pullback was anticipated by some analysts/comments — Seeking Alpha and others note investor profit-taking and that the stock may be re-pricing 2026 assumptions despite the beat. Article Title

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.