investment advisory service that publishes financial manuals analyzing corporate securities that are sold to the public. Moody's also rates the investment quality of commercial paper, and bonds and short-term tax-exempt notes issued by states and municipalities.
Moody's Investment Grade ratings assigned to municipal notes range from MIG1 (best quality) to MIG4 (adequate quality); all four are considered investment quality securities for banks. Moody's ratings on corporate bonds and preferred stocks, plus certain common stocks, are graded from Aaa (highest quality) to Caa (lowest quality). Securities rated Baa or better are considered investment quality.
financial services company headquartered with its parent, Dun & Bradstreet, in downtown Manhattan. Moody's is one of the four best known bond rating agencies in the country, the others being Fitch's, Standard & Poor's, and Duff & Phelps.
a well-respected, widely utilized source for credit ratings, research, and risk analysis. The firm publishes market-leading credit opinions, deal research, and commentary that reach more than 2,600 institutions and 16,500 users globally. Moody's ratings and analysis track more than $35 trillion of debt covering nearly 170,000 corporate, government, and structured finance securities, more than 100,000 public finance obligations, 10,000 corporate relationships, and 100 sovereign nations.
In recent years, Moody's has moved significantly beyond its traditional bond rating activities, assigning ratings to issuers of securities, insurance company obligations, bank loans, bank deposits and other bank debt, managed funds, and derivatives. The firm also has expanded into developing markets through affiliations with local rating agencies in Korea, India, Chile, the Czech Republic, Russia, Israel, and Egypt. Moody's maintains offices in most of the world's major financial centers and employs more than 2,000 people worldwide, including more than 1,000 analysts. Clients include investors, depositors, creditors, investment banks, commercial banks, other financial intermediaries, and a wide range of corporate and governmental issuers of securities. Moody's Investors Service is a subsidiary of Moody's Corporation, a publicly traded company. www.moodys.com
