Moody’s (NYSE:MCO) Reaches New 1-Year High – Should You Buy?

Shares of Moody’s Co. (NYSE:MCO) reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as $506.27 and last traded at $503.34, with a volume of 454416 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $502.84.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have issued reports on MCO shares. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on Moody’s from $454.00 to $459.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. StockNews.com raised Moody’s from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 24th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Moody’s from $462.00 to $481.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on shares of Moody’s from $490.00 to $512.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Oppenheimer lifted their price objective on shares of Moody’s from $543.00 to $545.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 3rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $507.36.

Moody’s Stock Performance

The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $482.92 and a 200-day simple moving average of $475.85. The company has a quick ratio of 1.67, a current ratio of 1.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69. The company has a market cap of $91.24 billion, a PE ratio of 45.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.91 and a beta of 1.31.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Robert Fauber sold 281 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $474.86, for a total transaction of $133,435.66. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 61,894 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $29,390,984.84. This trade represents a 0.45 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 1,124 shares of company stock valued at $540,051. 0.07% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Moody’s

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in MCO. Czech National Bank increased its position in shares of Moody’s by 6.6% in the third quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 31,902 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $15,140,000 after buying an additional 1,977 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in Moody’s by 38.9% during the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,068 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $507,000 after acquiring an additional 299 shares during the last quarter. Atomi Financial Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Moody’s by 4.8% in the third quarter. Atomi Financial Group Inc. now owns 608 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $289,000 after purchasing an additional 28 shares in the last quarter. Brookstone Capital Management increased its stake in shares of Moody’s by 4.2% during the 3rd quarter. Brookstone Capital Management now owns 1,611 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $765,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Daymark Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Moody’s during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $208,000. 92.11% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.