Moody’s price target raised to $545 from $543 at Oppenheimer

Oppenheimer analyst Owen Lau raised the firm’s price target on Moody’s (MCO) to $545 from $543 and keeps an Outperform rating on the shares as part of a Q4 earnings preview. The weak Q4 issuance expectation didn’t appear to materialize, and Opco’s proprietary tracker indicates that issuance bettered expectations, the analyst tells investors in a research note. The firm forecast that S&P Global’s and Moody’s Q4 Ratings revenues grew 13% and 22% year-over-year, respectively, higher than the consensus estimates of 11% and 7%. It expects Moody’s Street estimates to rise going into the print. However, for the stocks to work on the print and in 2025, the 2025 guidance and results throughout the year have to exceed investor expectations, contends Oppenheimer.