Skye Global Management LP Has $94.21 Million Stock Position in Moody’s Co. (NYSE:MCO)

Skye Global Management LP trimmed its holdings in shares of Moody’s Co. (NYSE:MCO) by 27.3% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 198,500 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 74,578 shares during the period. Moody’s makes up approximately 2.3% of Skye Global Management LP’s holdings, making the stock its 10th largest position. Skye Global Management LP owned approximately 0.11% of Moody’s worth $94,206,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in MCO. Planning Capital Management Corp grew its stake in shares of Moody’s by 566.7% in the third quarter. Planning Capital Management Corp now owns 60 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 51 shares during the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its stake in Moody’s by 114.3% during the 2nd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 75 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares in the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC raised its holdings in Moody’s by 272.2% in the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 67 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. Y.D. More Investments Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Moody’s during the second quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Finally, Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Moody’s during the third quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.11% of the company’s stock.

Moody’s Stock Up 0.2 %

NYSE MCO opened at $500.88 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $474.49 and its 200-day moving average price is $453.66. The company has a market capitalization of $90.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 45.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.26 and a beta of 1.29. Moody’s Co. has a 52 week low of $358.49 and a 52 week high of $503.95. The company has a quick ratio of 1.67, a current ratio of 1.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69.

Moody’s (NYSE:MCO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 22nd. The business services provider reported $3.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.89 by $0.32. The firm had revenue of $1.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.71 billion. Moody’s had a net margin of 29.05% and a return on equity of 57.97%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 23.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.43 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that Moody’s Co. will post 12.07 earnings per share for the current year.

Moody’s Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 13th. Investors of record on Friday, November 22nd will be given a dividend of $0.85 per share. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.68%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 22nd. Moody’s’s dividend payout ratio is currently 31.05%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on MCO shares. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective 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 cut Moody’s from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Raymond James cut shares of Moody’s from a “market perform” rating to an “underperform” rating in a research note on Monday, September 23rd. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Moody’s from $495.00 to $510.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Moody’s from $500.00 to $570.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, September 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Moody’s currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $500.00.

Insider Activity at Moody’s

In other Moody’s news, SVP Caroline Sullivan sold 1,681 shares of Moody’s stock in a transaction on Monday, October 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $462.40, for a total value of $777,294.40. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 1,415 shares in the company, valued at approximately $654,296. The trade was a 54.30 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Robert Fauber sold 281 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 15th. The shares were 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $29,387,952.46. This trade represents a 0.46 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.07% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Moody’s Company 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.