Moody’s Co. (NYSE:MCO) Shares Sold by Manning & Napier Advisors LLC

Manning & Napier Advisors LLC reduced its holdings in Moody’s Co. (NYSE:MCO) by 3.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 221,437 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 8,603 shares during the quarter. Moody’s accounts for 1.2% of Manning & Napier Advisors LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 29th largest position. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC’s holdings in Moody’s were worth $104,822,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Planning Capital Management Corp increased its position in shares of Moody’s by 566.7% during the 3rd quarter. Planning Capital Management Corp now owns 60 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 51 shares during the period. Larson Financial Group LLC increased its position in shares of Moody’s by 272.2% during the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 67 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares during the period. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Moody’s during the 3rd quarter worth $36,000. Asset Dedication LLC boosted its stake in shares of Moody’s by 83.0% during the 3rd quarter. Asset Dedication LLC now owns 86 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $41,000 after acquiring an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Albion Financial Group UT bought a new stake in shares of Moody’s during the 4th quarter worth $45,000. 92.11% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Moody’s Stock Down 0.4 %

MCO traded down $2.08 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $490.92. 35,037 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 567,887. Moody’s Co. has a fifty-two week low of $360.05 and a fifty-two week high of $503.95. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $481.97 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $473.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69, a current ratio of 1.67 and a quick ratio of 1.67. The stock has a market cap of $88.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 44.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.82 and a beta of 1.30.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Evercore ISI assumed coverage on Moody’s in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $521.00 price objective for the company. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on Moody’s from $454.00 to $459.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Oppenheimer raised their target price on Moody’s from $543.00 to $545.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on Moody’s from $468.00 to $481.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Moody’s from $462.00 to $481.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Moody’s has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $507.36.

Insider Buying and Selling at Moody’s

In other Moody’s news, CEO Robert Fauber sold 281 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $478.99, for a total transaction of $134,596.19. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 61,354 shares in the company, valued at $29,387,952.46. This trade represents a 0.46 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders have sold a total of 843 shares of company stock worth $401,119 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.07% of the company’s stock.

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.