The Dividend Daily

On Monday Moody’s Corporation (MCO) saw its price target raised by Piper Jaffray as the analysts reaffirmed their bullish view on the credit rating agency.

The analysts raised MCO price target from $58 to $59. The new valuation suggests a +10.6% upside to Monday’s opening price of $53.36. The firm reiterated its “Overweight” rating on Moody’s.

A Piper Jaffray analyst commented, “Very robust 4Q debt issuance trends should drive EPS upside relative to our prior expectations. We boost our estimates to reflect this recent strength, partially mitigated by higher near-term operating costs. No change to our long-standing bullish view of MCO. Robust near-term EPS growth, attractive secular revenue growth prospects, potential for margin upside, and fading regulatory and legal risk make MCO one of our favorite investment ideas. Based on our higher estimates our price target moves fractionally higher to $59 from $58.”

Moody’s shares were up slightly during trading on Monday. The stock is up +48.37% over the past year.

The Bottom Line
Shares of Moody’s Corporation (MCO) have a 1.50% dividend yield, based on the latest intraday stock price of $53.23. The stock has technical support in the $48-$50 price area. If the shares can firm up, we see overhead resistance around the $57-$59 price levels.

Moody’s Corporation (MCO) is not recommended at this time, holding a Dividend.com DARS™ Rating of 3.3 out of 5 stars.

Be sure to visit our complete recommended list of the Best Dividend Stocks, as well as a detailed explanation of our ratings system here.