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Moody’s Corporation

Moody’s Corporation

MCO · NYSE · Financial Data

Moody’s Corporation is one of the world’s leading financial information, credit ratings, data, analytics, and risk assessment companies.

Current price

$462.77

▼ −$1.36 (0.29%) today

Share price

Live market data
▼ -10.95 (-2.31%)2025-10-13 — 2026-10-14
$547.25$518.72$490.19$461.65$433.12$404.592025-10-132026-10-14
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ET&A View

Last reviewed 15 September 2026

Buy

ET&A sees significant upside from the current price with an attractive risk/reward profile.

Fair Value
Members
12M Price Target
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Preferred Entry
Members
ET&A Score
8.8/ 10Strong overall
Members see what we think Moody’s Corporation is worth today, our 12-month Price Target, the price we would prefer to buy at and the return we expect. See membership

Moody’s is one of the highest-quality financial-information businesses globally, combining an extremely difficult-to-replicate credit-ratings franchise with an increasingly recurring data, research and analytics platform.

Is it expensive?

Read our full view

Why we like it

  • Turns about 32% of its sales into spare cash.
  • Very profitable — keeps about 49% of its sales as profit.
  • Profits are growing fast (+19%).

What worries us

Members see every risk we are watching. See membership

Business Health

Is the business financially healthy?

Yes — very healthy

Revenue, earnings, margins, cash generation and the balance sheet stand out.

Overall

Excellent

  • Revenue

    $8.2bn · ↑ +9% last year

    Growth Strong

  • Earnings

    $2.8bn · ↑ +19% last year

    Growth Excellent

  • Margins

    Keeps 49% of sales as operating profit

    Excellent

  • Cash generation

    $2.6bn spare cash a year · 32% of sales

    Excellent

  • Balance sheet

    Debt ≈ 1.5 years of earnings

    Strong

  • Dividend

    0.9% yield · Pays out 25% of earnings · covered 4.0×

    Yield Weak
Financial and earnings trends

Investor View

More on Moody’s Corporation

Open a section for the detail behind the quick view.

Our full viewET&A's complete thesis — why we hold the view we do.

Moody’s is one of the highest-quality financial-information businesses globally, combining an extremely difficult-to-replicate credit-ratings franchise with an increasingly recurring data, research and analytics…

Insight

The complete ET&A view

See our full reasoning, what could drive the shares higher or go wrong, our Fair Value and Preferred Entry, and how our view has changed.

  • Our View in full
  • What could drive it higher / go wrong
  • Fair Value & Preferred Entry
  • How our view has changed
Explore Insight →Included with Insight
What could drive it higher — and what could go wrongThe catalysts and risks we are watching.
Members see every catalyst and risk we are watching. See membership
Valuation discussionWhere today's price sits, and how it compares with the company's own history and its peers.
Members see where the price sits against our valuation, its history and its peers. See membership
Who it suitsStrategy suitability and investment style.

Long-term growth investors

Also suits: Investors who want a mix of growth and stability

Investment styleQualityGrowthET&A strategies: Balanced, Growth · what these mean
How it compares with peersOther companies we cover in Financial Data.

Compare Moody’s Corporation with any company → The model’s own peer calculations are in the Research View.

What the company doesThe full company profile.

Moody’s Corporation is one of the world’s leading financial information, credit ratings, data, analytics, and risk assessment companies. The business is best known for Moody’s Ratings, which provides credit ratings, research, and risk analysis used by investors, issuers, banks, governments, and financial institutions to assess creditworthiness across bonds, loans, structured finance, public finance, and corporate debt markets.

Moody’s strength comes from its trusted position in global credit markets, its long-standing data assets, and its growing analytics platform. Beyond ratings, Moody’s provides economic research, company data, risk models, compliance tools, banking and insurance solutions, and workflow software that help customers understand and manage financial, credit, regulatory, and business risks. This gives Moody’s exposure to both capital markets activity and the long-term demand for better risk intelligence across financial and corporate decision-making.

Financial Data · USA

Research ViewOpen the full researchFull financial statements, valuation multiples, historical data, forecasts, methodology, scoring calculations and the valuation model.

For detailed analysis. Each section opens on its own.

Financial statementsEvery published figure with its source, the market snapshot and connected sheets.

Income

Revenue
$8.2bn
Gross profit
$6.1bn
EBITDA
$4.1bn
Operating profit (EBIT)
$3.5bn
Net income
$2.8bn
Earnings per share (EPS)
$15.76

Growth

Revenue growth, latest year
8.9%
Revenue growth, 3-year average
12.2%
Earnings growth, latest year
19.5%
Earnings growth, 3-year average
21.4%
Revenue growth, latest quarter vs a year earlier
15.1%
Earnings growth, latest quarter vs a year earlier
56.7%

Margins & returns

Gross margin
75.0%
EBITDA margin
49.7%
Operating margin
49.5%
Net margin
34.3%
Return on equity (ROE)
76.9%
Return on assets (ROA)
15.6%

Cash flow

Operating cash flow
$3.3bn
Free cash flow
$2.6bn
Free-cash-flow margin
31.6%
Free cash flow ÷ net income
0.9×

Balance sheet

Cash
$1.5bn
Total debt
$7.6bn
Net debt
$6.1bn
Net debt ÷ EBITDA
1.5×
Debt ÷ equity
2.4×
Current ratio
1.2×

Shares & dividends

Shares outstanding
173.2m
Market capitalisation
$80.1bn
Dividend per share
$3.94
Dividend yield
0.9%
Payout ratio
25.0%
  • Market data — the live feed (Yahoo Finance)
  • Calculated — worked out by ET&A from the figures shown, using the formulas in our methodology

Other published figures

Price / Sales
Members
EV / EBITDA
Members
Price / Book
Members
Forward P/E
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Valuation ratios (P/E, P/S, P/B, EV/EBITDA) are part of ET&A membership — view plans.

Market data

Live
Price$462.77
Day−$1.36 (−0.29%)
52-week range$412.23 – $539.61
vs 52-week low+12.26%
vs 52-week high−14.24%

As of 14 October 2026

P/E Ratio
29.36x
Valuation multiplesP/E, forward P/E, EV/EBITDA, Price/Sales and FCF yield — today and at Fair Value.

Standard ways of comparing the share price with the company’s earnings, sales and cash. Tap the “i” for what each one means.

MeasureTodaySource
P/EMembers
Forward P/EMembers
EV/EBITDAMembers
Price/SalesMembers
FCF YieldMembers

Valuation ratios are part of ET&A membership.

Other published measures

Price / Book
Members
Historical dataValuation history, how our view has changed, and the share-price history.

Valuation history

Members see how the valuation compares with its history. See membership

Share-price history

Use the 5Y and Max ranges on the price chart at the top of the page.

ForecastsWhat analysts expect — market consensus, not ET&A estimates.

Forecasts

Forward EPS (next year, consensus)
$18.93
Expected EPS growth, next year
13.4%
Expected revenue growth, next year
7.3%

Forecasts are market consensus or calculated from forward EPS — not ET&A estimates, and they can be wrong.

MethodologyHow ET&A values a company and reaches a view.

How we value Moody’s Corporation

  1. 1. The right method for the business. Each business is valued on the method that suits its economics — earnings for most companies, book value and returns for banks and insurers, cash flows or dividends where earnings mislead.
  2. 2. What the business deserves. ET&A builds a fair multiple from the company's own quality, sustainable growth, earnings predictability and risk. History, peers and the market are checked against it, but they don't set it.
  3. 3. Fair Value. The earnings (or other basis) per share multiplied by that fair multiple, cross-checked against independent methods.
  4. 4. Preferred Entry. A price below Fair Value that leaves room for the return ET&A requires for the company's risk.
  5. 5. Is it expensive? Today’s price is placed on ET&A’s Valuation Attractiveness scale — the same measure the ET&A Score uses. Cheap is the Preferred Entry; above Fair Value the shares are Expensive, and Very Expensive once they are more than 25% above it.

Powered by the ET&A Valuation FrameworkHow Fair Value & Preferred Entry work →

Read the full ET&A methodology →

How we reach a view

The ET&A View combines our assessment of the business with where today’s price sits against our Preferred Entry and Fair Value. It is a considered judgement, not a mechanical score.

  • Business quality
  • Financial performance
  • Growth outlook
  • Debt and financial strength
  • Valuation
  • Risk
  • What could drive it higher
Buy
ET&A sees significant upside from the current price with an attractive risk/reward profile.
Accumulate
ET&A likes the company but would prefer investors to build exposure gradually.
Hold
ET&A sees limited reason to buy aggressively or sell at the current price.
Reduce
ET&A believes the current valuation or risk profile makes a smaller position more appropriate.
Sell
ET&A believes the downside risk materially outweighs the potential return at the current price.

ET&A Score: ET&A's overall assessment of business quality, valuation, growth and risk, out of 10. It weighs business quality, financial strength, growth, valuation, risk, future prospects.

Powered by the ET&A Company Assessment FrameworkSee the full framework →

Scoring calculationsBehind the ET&A Score and the Business Health ratings.

Behind the ET&A Score

The automatic, rules-based scores that feed our research. The ET&A Score blends these with our own analysis of the business and its value. How the framework works →

ET&A Quant Score

7.7/ 10Strong

Highly profitable · Sound · Neutral

Profitability & margins · Highly profitable10.0
Balance sheet · Sound6.2
Price momentum · Neutral5.3

Context — not part of the score

  • Valuation multiplesExpensive
  • Share-price steadinessHigh volatility
  • IncomeLow yield

Valuation and share-price swings describe the shares, not the company, so they are judged in the ET&A Score and View instead.

Annualised volatility
Members
Max drawdown (1y)
Members
12-month return
Members
3-month return
Members
P/E
Members
Price / Sales
Members
EV / EBITDA
Members
EBITDA margin
Members
Net debt / EBITDA
Members
Dividend yield
Members
The detailed figures behind these scores — price swings, past falls, returns, valuation and margins — are part of ET&A membership. View plans

Based on the factors that could be measured (45% of the model).

Business Health ratings

Each area is scored from 0 to 10 on ET&A’s methodology scales — the same ones our research uses — then given a word: Excellent from 8.5, Strong from 7, Good from 5.5, Average from 4.5, Below Average from 3, Weak below 3. The overall answer is the average of the areas we could rate (at least three); the dividend isn’t part of it.

AreaBased onScoreRating
Revenue
  • Revenue growth, 3-year average 12.2% → 7.4

Rated on 3-year average revenue growth, on ET&A's growth scale.

7.4 / 10Strong
Earnings
  • Earnings growth, 3-year average 21.4% → 9.1

Rated on 3-year average earnings growth, on ET&A's growth scale.

9.1 / 10Excellent
Margins
  • Operating margin 49.5% → 9.5
  • Net margin 34.3% → 9.0

The average of operating and net margin, each scored on ET&A's margin scales. A negative margin scores 1 (Weak).

9.3 / 10Excellent
Cash generation
  • Free-cash-flow margin 31.6% → 9.5

Free cash flow as a share of sales, on ET&A's cash-generation scale.

9.5 / 10Excellent
Balance sheet
  • Net debt ÷ EBITDA 1.5× → 7.0

Net debt ÷ EBITDA — roughly how many years of operating earnings would repay the debt — on ET&A's leverage scale.

7.0 / 10Strong
Dividend
  • Dividend yield 0.9% → 2.8

Dividend yield on ET&A's income scale. Not part of the overall health rating.

2.8 / 10Weak
OverallAverage of the 5 rated areas8.5 / 10Excellent

ET&A's scales

Where each band starts on the scales above. They are fixed and identical for every company we cover; they come straight from ET&A’s methodology, so a company is judged the same way here as in our research.

MeasureExcellentStrongGoodAverageBelow AverageWeak
GrowthStructural Growth (Fundamental Conviction)18%+10%+5.0%+1.7%+−2.5%+below −2.5%
Operating marginCompetitive Position (Fundamental Conviction)29%+20%+13%+7.5%+0%+below 0% (loss)
Net marginEarnings Durability (Fundamental Conviction)23%+15%+9.8%+6.0%+0%+below 0% (loss)
Free-cash-flow marginCapital Allocation (Fundamental Conviction)15%+8.5%+3.8%+1.3%+−2.5%+below −2.5%
Net debt ÷ EBITDAStructural Risk (Fundamental Conviction)net cash≤ 1.5×≤ 2.8×≤ 3.6×≤ 5.0×above 5.0×
Return on equity (banks & insurers)Bank and insurer quality16%+12%+9.0%+6.7%+2.7%+below 2.7%
Equity ÷ assetsBank capital7.5%+6.0%+4.7%+4.0%+any—
Dividend yieldIncome factor (ET&A Quant Score)5.8%+4.0%+2.5%+1.8%+1.0%+below 1.0%

Band floors: Excellent 8.5 · Strong 7 · Good 5.5 · Average 4.5 · Below Average 3 (scores out of 10). Utilities and property companies’ structural debt is scored 6.5, as in ET&A’s risk model.

Valuation model outputsFair Value, the 12-Month Price Target, Preferred Entry and the expected return — and how each was calculated.
Members see how we calculate the Fair Value and Preferred Entry. See membership
Peer calculationsThe comparable companies the valuation model used, with their multiples and returns.
Members see the peer set behind our valuation. See membership
Detailed assumptionsEvery input the valuation model used, with its source.
Members see the assumptions behind our valuation. See membership
Research notesNo research notes published yet.

No research notes have been published for Moody’s Corporation yet.

Need deeper analysis on Moody’s Corporation? ET&A Professional includes full company notes, valuations and models — or commission bespoke research.

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All insights →
Is Nigeria’s Economic Reform Story Finally Becoming Investable?
INSIGHTAfrica & Emerging MarketsInsight

Is Nigeria’s Economic Reform Story Finally Becoming Investable?

After three years of painful reforms, Nigeria is beginning to show the macroeconomic characteristics international investors have been waiting for. Moody’s latest outlook revision adds to evidence of improving reserves, stronger growth and greater policy credibility. The question is whether stabilization has gone far enough to turn Nigeria from an interesting reform story into an investable one.

ET&A Research · 2 September 2026 · 9 min read