Alesco Advisors LLC An ESL Co Makes New Investment in Moody’s Corporation $MCO

Alesco Advisors LLC An ESL Co acquired a new position in shares of Moody’s Corporation (NYSE:MCO) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 2,622 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,144,000.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Moody’s during the fourth quarter worth $1,097,101,000. Egerton Capital UK LLP acquired a new stake in Moody’s in the 4th quarter valued at about $395,096,000. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its stake in shares of Moody’s by 73.5% in the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 1,716,304 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $876,775,000 after acquiring an additional 726,971 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Moody’s by 72.5% during the first quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,081,807 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $471,963,000 after purchasing an additional 454,684 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Auto Owners Insurance Co lifted its position in shares of Moody’s by 50,985.1% during the fourth quarter. Auto Owners Insurance Co now owns 420,430 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $214,777,000 after purchasing an additional 419,607 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.11% of the company’s stock.

Moody’s Trading Down 3.2%

Shares of NYSE MCO opened at $489.25 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.03, a current ratio of 1.16 and a quick ratio of 1.16. Moody’s Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $402.28 and a fifty-two week high of $546.88. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $462.39 and its 200 day simple moving average is $465.09. The firm has a market capitalization of $85.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.07, a P/E/G ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 1.34.

Moody’s (NYSE:MCO) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The business services provider reported $4.33 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.22 by $0.11. Moody’s had a return on equity of 70.97% and a net margin of 31.69%.The firm had revenue of $2.08 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.11 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $3.83 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 8.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that Moody’s Corporation will post 16.73 EPS for the current year.

Key Moody’s News

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

• Positive Sentiment: JPMorgan raised its price target on Moody’s to $600 from $530 and maintained an overweight rating, signaling confidence in the company’s earnings power and upside potential. Benzinga report on JPMorgan price target hike
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst commentary around Q2 suggests stronger global bond issuance volumes, which could support Moody’s ratings and analytics revenue through higher investment-grade, high-yield, and structured-finance activity.
• Positive Sentiment: Several previews ahead of earnings highlight Moody’s as a financially strong company with solid growth prospects, and analysts are broadly bullish on the stock heading into the report. Article on bullish analyst views
• Neutral Sentiment: Investors are waiting for Moody’s Q2 2026 earnings, with coverage focusing on whether the company can beat estimates and justify its premium valuation. Seeking Alpha earnings preview
• Neutral Sentiment: Moody’s also issued a warning on rising Indonesia risks despite the country’s 2.85% deficit target, but this looks more like a macro risk update than a company-specific catalyst. Yahoo Finance article on Indonesia risks
• Negative Sentiment: Some commentary notes that Moody’s is trading at a rich earnings multiple ahead of its report, which may weigh on the stock if results do not clearly exceed expectations. Motley Fool valuation article

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently weighed in on MCO shares. Bank of America reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $565.00 price target on shares of Moody’s in a report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Rothschild & Co Redburn set a $500.00 price objective on Moody’s in a report on Thursday, June 18th. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on Moody’s in a research report on Friday, July 17th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $610.00 price objective on the stock. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Moody’s from $491.00 to $496.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. Finally, Wolfe Research restated an “outperform” rating and set a $535.00 target price on shares of Moody’s in a research report on Thursday, April 23rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Moody’s currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $550.58.

Insider Activity

In other Moody’s news, SVP Richard G. Steele sold 158 shares of Moody’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $453.67, for a total value of $71,679.86. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 1,985 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $900,534.95. This trade represents a 7.37% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Robert Fauber sold 1,467 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $466.39, for a total value of $684,194.13. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 75,189 shares in the company, valued at $35,067,397.71. The trade was a 1.91% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold a total of 3,250 shares of company stock worth $1,495,098 in the last quarter. 0.14% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.