Moody’s misses profit and revenue views, boosts dividend and sets $500 million ASR
Moody’s Corp. said Friday it was raising its dividend by 14% and announced a $500 million accelerated stock repurchase (ASR) program, while reporting fourth-quarter profit and revenue that missed expectations. The stock was indicated down nearly 1% in premarket trade. The credit ratings company said net income rose to $250.3 million, or $1.29 a share, from $25.5 million, or 13 cents a share, a year ago, which included tax reform-related charges, while adjusted earnings per share rose 8% to $1.63, but was below the FactSet consensus of $1.68. Revenue fell 9% to $1.06 billion, missing the FactSet consensus of $1.13 billion. Moody’s said it was raising its quarterly dividend to 50 cents a share from 44 cents, with the new dividend payable March 18 to shareholders of record on Feb. 25. The $500 million ASR is expected to be completed during the second quarter of 2019. Based on Thursday’s stock closing price of $163.73, the new dividend rate implies a dividend yield of 1.22%, compared with the implied yield for the S&P 500 of 2.06%, and the company could repurchase up to 3.05 million shares, or about 1.6% of the shares outstanding, as part of the ASR. Moody’s stock has run up 11% over the past three months, while the S&P 500 has gained 0.6%.
Source : MTV
