Lombard Odier Asset Management Europe Ltd Makes New $2.47 Million Investment in Moody’s Co. (NYSE:MCO)

Lombard Odier Asset Management Europe Ltd acquired a new stake in Moody’s Co. (NYSE:MCO) during the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor acquired 5,865 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $2,469,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. D.A. Davidson & CO. lifted its holdings in shares of Moody’s by 26.8% during the 4th quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 2,140 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $836,000 after acquiring an additional 452 shares in the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC purchased a new position in Moody’s in the 4th quarter worth approximately $161,000. Aigen Investment Management LP acquired a new stake in Moody’s in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $225,000. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. raised its stake in shares of Moody’s by 2.9% during the fourth quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 4,429 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,730,000 after purchasing an additional 124 shares during the period. Finally, US Bancorp DE lifted its position in shares of Moody’s by 6.0% during the fourth quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 17,540 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $6,851,000 after purchasing an additional 992 shares in the last quarter. 92.11% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Moody’s Stock Performance

MCO stock opened at $478.82 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $87.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 52.27, a P/E/G ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 1.29. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $468.48 and its 200 day simple moving average is $424.71. The company has a current ratio of 1.52, a quick ratio of 1.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.59. Moody’s Co. has a 12-month low of $298.86 and a 12-month high of $495.10.

Moody’s (NYSE:MCO) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The business services provider reported $3.28 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.06 by $0.22. Moody’s had a net margin of 28.34% and a return on equity of 57.03%. The company had revenue of $1.82 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.72 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.30 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 21.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Moody’s Co. will post 11.36 EPS for the current year.

Moody’s Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 6th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 16th were issued a dividend of $0.85 per share. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.71%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 16th. Moody’s’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 37.12%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Raymond James downgraded shares of Moody’s from a “market perform” rating to an “underperform” rating in a research note on Monday. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on Moody’s from $443.00 to $454.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 24th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Moody’s from $420.00 to $451.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, September 5th. Oppenheimer raised their price objective on Moody’s from $454.00 to $492.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Moody’s from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Moody’s presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $477.08.

Insider Transactions at Moody’s

In related news, SVP Richard G. Steele sold 1,862 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $455.43, for a total transaction of $848,010.66. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 1,040 shares in the company, valued at approximately $473,647.20. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other Moody’s news, insider Stephen T. Tulenko sold 569 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $444.26, for a total value of $252,783.94. Following the sale, the insider now owns 8,147 shares in the company, valued at $3,619,386.22. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Richard G. Steele sold 1,862 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $455.43, for a total value of $848,010.66. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 1,040 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $473,647.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 2,931 shares of company stock worth $1,332,825. 0.07% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Moody’s 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.