Moody’s (NYSE:MCO) Upgraded by StockNews.com to Buy

Moody’s (NYSE:MCO) was upgraded by equities researchers at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report issued on Tuesday.

Several other equities analysts have also issued reports on the company. Oppenheimer boosted their price target on Moody’s from $411.00 to $424.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on Moody’s from $455.00 to $420.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 14th. Robert W. Baird lowered their price objective on Moody’s from $425.00 to $405.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 14th. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price objective on Moody’s from $430.00 to $414.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 14th. Finally, Barclays upgraded Moody’s from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $375.00 to $450.00 in a research note on Tuesday, April 2nd. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $397.75.

Moody’s Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MCO opened at $375.41 on Tuesday. Moody’s has a fifty-two week low of $296.45 and a fifty-two week high of $407.62. The business has a 50-day moving average of $385.09 and a two-hundred day moving average of $368.69. The stock has a market capitalization of $68.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 43.00, a P/E/G ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 1.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.01, a current ratio of 1.74 and a quick ratio of 1.74.

Moody’s (NYSE:MCO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 13th. The business services provider reported $2.19 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.33 by ($0.14). Moody’s had a return on equity of 55.23% and a net margin of 27.16%. The business had revenue of $1.48 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.48 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.60 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts predict that Moody’s will post 10.67 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of MCO. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Moody’s by 23.0% during the 4th quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 150 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $59,000 after buying an additional 28 shares in the last quarter. Wealthsource Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Moody’s by 0.9% during the 3rd quarter. Wealthsource Partners LLC now owns 3,522 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,114,000 after buying an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. Strategic Advocates LLC lifted its stake in shares of Moody’s by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. Strategic Advocates LLC now owns 1,890 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $738,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the period. Manchester Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Moody’s by 7.0% in the 4th quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC now owns 459 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $179,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the period. Finally, First Hawaiian Bank lifted its stake in shares of Moody’s by 1.3% in the 1st quarter. First Hawaiian Bank now owns 2,375 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $933,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the period. 92.11% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Moody’s

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.