Moody's Corporation Reports Results for Second Quarter 2019

• 2Q19 Moody's Corporation revenue of $1.2 billion up 3% from 2Q18
• Strong 2Q19 Moody's Analytics revenue of $475.2 million, up 12% from 2Q18; MIS revenue of $738.4 million, second highest quarter on record
• 2Q19 diluted EPS of $1.62 down 16% from 2Q18; adjusted diluted EPS of $2.07 up 1%¹ from 2Q18
• FY 2019 diluted EPS guidance range is now $7.15 to $7.35; adjusted diluted EPS guidance range is now $7.95 to $8.15

Moody's Corporation MCO today announced results for the second quarter of 2019, as well as updated its current outlook for full year 2019.

"Moody's second quarter performance reflected ongoing robust growth at Moody's Analytics with strength across all business lines, as well as resilience in Moody's Investors Service despite subdued issuance activity," said Raymond McDaniel, President and Chief Executive Officer of Moody's. "In light of first half performance exceeding our expectations, we are increasing our full year 2019 adjusted diluted EPS guidance range to $7.95 to $8.15."

MCO SECOND QUARTER REVENUE UP 3%

Moody's Corporation reported record revenue of $1.2 billion for the three months ended June 30, 2019, up 3% from the prior-year period.

U.S. revenue was $637.9 million, up 2%, and non-U.S. revenue was $575.7 million, up 5%. Revenue generated outside the U.S. constituted 47% of total revenue, consistent with the prior-year period. Foreign currency translation unfavorably impacted Moody's revenue by 2%.

Moody's Investors Service (MIS) Second Quarter Revenue Down 2%

Revenue for MIS for the second quarter of 2019 was $738.4 million, down 2% from the prior-year period, compared to a 14% decline in issuance activity². U.S. revenue was $436.2 million, down 3%. Non-U.S. revenue was $302.2 million, approximately flat to the prior-year period, and represented 41% of MIS revenue, up from 40% in the second quarter of 2018. Excluding the impact of foreign currency translation, MIS revenue was flat to the prior-year period. The MIS adjusted operating margin was 60.2%.

Corporate finance revenue was $387.4 million, down 1% from the prior-year period. This result reflected a strong contribution from global fixed-rate bond issuance, offset by a decline in U.S. floating-rate bank loan activity. U.S. corporate finance revenue was down 5%, while non-U.S. revenue was up 7%.

Structured finance revenue was $112.1 million, down 13% from the prior-year period. This result was driven by a decline in global collateralized loan obligation (CLO) activity due to wider spreads. U.S. and non-U.S. structured finance revenues were down 11% and 16%, respectively.

Financial institutions revenue was $125.2 million, up 4% from the prior-year period. This result reflected strong contribution from EMEA banking issuers, partially offset by a decline in the U.S. insurance sector as compared to an elevated prior-year period. U.S. financial institutions revenue was down 4%, while non-U.S. revenue was up 10%.

Public, project and infrastructure finance revenue was $108.6 million, approximately flat to the prior-year period. U.S. public, project and infrastructure finance revenue was up 14%, while non-U.S. revenue was down 17%.

Moody's Analytics (MA) Second Quarter Revenue Up 12%

Revenue for MA for the second quarter of 2019 was $475.2 million, up 12% from the prior-year period. U.S. revenue was $201.7 million, up 16%. Non-U.S. revenue was $273.5 million, up 10%, and represented 58% of MA revenue, down from 59% in the second quarter of 2018. Foreign currency translation unfavorably impacted MA revenue by 3%. Organic MA revenue for the second quarter of 2019, which excluded revenue from the recent acquisitions of Reis and Omega Performance, was $465.3 million, up 10% from the prior-year period. The MA adjusted operating margin was 28.2%.

Research, data and analytics (RD&A) revenue was $315.3 million, up 14% from the prior-year period. U.S. and non-U.S. RD&A revenues were up 17% and 13%, respectively. Organic RD&A revenue, which excluded revenue from Reis, was $306.5 million, up 11%, driven by strong sales of credit research and ratings data feeds, as well as sales growth at Bureau van Dijk.

Enterprise risk solutions (ERS) revenue was $117.7 million, up 7% from the prior-year period. This result was driven by strong demand for subscription products, particularly from insurance companies. U.S. and non-U.S. ERS revenues were up 8% and 7%, respectively.

Professional services revenue was $42.2 million, up 13% from the prior-year period. U.S. and non-U.S. professional services revenues were up 33% and 2%, respectively. Organic professional services revenue, which excluded revenue from Omega Performance, was $41.1 million, up 10% from the prior-year period, driven by strong global demand for training solutions.

SECOND QUARTER OPERATING EXPENSES AND INCOME

Second quarter 2019 operating expenses for Moody's Corporation totaled $730.1 million, up 14% from the prior-year period. Ten percentage points of this increase were attributable to a restructuring charge of $53.8 million and an $8.7 million non-tax-deductible impairment charge related to the planned divestiture of Moody's Analytics Knowledge Services ("MAKS Impairment Charge"). Other drivers of expense growth included additional compensation expense for hiring activity and merit increases, as well as operating expenses attributable to the recent acquisitions of Reis and Omega Performance. This growth was partially offset by beneficial impacts of the restructuring plan and cost control initiatives. Foreign currency translation favorably impacted operating expenses by 2%.

Operating income of $483.5 million was down 9% from the second quarter of 2018. Adjusted operating income, which excluded a restructuring charge, depreciation and amortization, the MAKS Impairment Charge and non-recurring expenses associated with the Bureau van Dijk acquisition ("Acquisition-Related Expenses") of $599.0 million, was up 2% from the prior-year period. Foreign currency translation unfavorably impacted operating income and adjusted operating income by 1% and 2%, respectively. Moody's operating margin was 39.8% and the adjusted operating margin was 49.4%.

Moody's effective tax rate for the second quarter of 2019 was 28.0%, up from 23.7% for the prior-year period. This increase was primarily due to taxes related to the planned divestiture of MAKS.

FIRST HALF REVENUE UP 2%

Moody's Corporation reported revenue of $2.4 billion for the first half of 2019, up 2% from the prior-year period. U.S. revenue was $1.3 billion, up 2%, and non-U.S. revenue was $1.1 billion, up 3%. Foreign currency translation unfavorably impacted Moody's revenue by 2%.

MIS revenue totaled $1.4 billion for the first half of 2019, down 4% from the prior-year period, as compared to a 13% decline in issuance activity³. U.S. revenue was $847.4 million, down 4%. Non-U.S. revenue was $561.1 million, down 5%, and represented 40% of MIS revenue, consistent with the first half of 2018. Foreign currency translation unfavorably impacted MIS revenue by 2%. The MIS adjusted operating margin was 57.7%.

MA revenue totaled $947.2 million for the first half of 2019, up 14% from the prior-year period. U.S. revenue of $402.6 million was up 19%. Non-U.S. revenue was $544.6 million, up 11%, and represented 57% of MA revenue, down from 59% in the first half of 2018. Foreign currency translation unfavorably impacted MA revenue by 3%. Organic MA revenue for the first half of 2019, which excluded revenue from the recent acquisitions of Reis and Omega Performance, was $925.4 million, up 12% from the prior-year period. The MA adjusted operating margin was 28.1%.

FIRST HALF OPERATING EXPENSES UP 10%

Operating expenses for Moody's Corporation in the first half of 2019 totaled $1.4 billion, up 10% from the prior-year period. Five percentage points of this increase were attributable to restructuring charges and the MAKS Impairment Charge. Other drivers of expense growth primarily reflected additional compensation expense for hiring activity and merit increases, as well as operating expenses attributable to the recent acquisitions of Reis and Omega Performance. This growth was partially offset by beneficial impacts of the restructuring plan and cost control initiatives. Foreign currency translation favorably impacted operating expenses by 2%.

Operating income of $945.2 million was down 8% from the first half of 2018. Adjusted operating income of $1.1 billion was down 1% from the prior-year period. Foreign currency translation unfavorably impacted operating income and adjusted operating income by 1% and 2%, respectively. Moody's operating margin was 40.1% and the adjusted operating margin was 47.5%.

The effective tax rate for the first half of 2019 was 18.8%, down from 19.4% in the prior-year period. This decrease was primarily due to regulations issued in the first quarter of 2019 relating to the U.S. Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, as well as lower non-U.S. taxes on certain software development, partially offset by taxes related to the planned divestiture of MAKS.

Diluted EPS of $3.56 was down 8% from the first half of 2018. Adjusted diluted EPS of $4.14 was up 2%. Both first half 2019 diluted EPS and adjusted diluted EPS included a $0.20 per share tax benefit related to employee share-based compensation, compared to an $0.18 per share tax benefit in the first half of 2018.

CAPITAL ALLOCATION AND LIQUIDITY

Capital Returned to Shareholders

During the second quarter of 2019, Moody's repurchase activities reduced shares outstanding by 0.8 million shares. Moody's also issued 0.3 million shares as part of its employee stock-based compensation plans and returned $94.6 million to its shareholders via dividend payments during the second quarter of 2019.

Over the first half of 2019, Moody's repurchased 3.5 million shares at a total cost of $615.2 million, or an average cost of $176.95 per share, and issued a net 1.3 million shares as part of its employee stock-based compensation plans. The net amount includes shares withheld for employee payroll taxes.

Moody's returned $189.0 million to its shareholders via dividend payments during the first half of 2019 and on July 9^th, the Board of Directors declared a regular quarterly dividend of $0.50 per share of Moody's common stock. This dividend will be payable on September 10, 2019 to stockholders of record at the close of business on August 20, 2019.

Outstanding shares as of June 30, 2019 totaled 189.2 million, down 1% from June 30, 2018. As of June 30, 2019, Moody's had approximately $710 million of share repurchase authority remaining.

Sources of Capital and Cash Flow Generation

At quarter-end, Moody's had $5.4 billion of outstanding debt and approximately $870 million of additional borrowing capacity under its revolving credit facility. Total cash, cash equivalents and short-term investments at quarter-end were $1.3 billion, down from $1.8 billion on December 31, 2018.

Cash flow from operations for the first half of 2019 was $754.5 million and free cash flow was $715.8 million.

ASSUMPTIONS AND OUTLOOK FOR FULL YEAR 2019

Moody's outlook for 2019 is based on assumptions about many geopolitical conditions and macroeconomic and capital market factors, including interest rates, foreign currency exchange rates, corporate profitability and business investment spending, mergers and acquisitions, consumer borrowing and securitization, and the amount of debt issued. These assumptions are subject to uncertainty, and results for the year could differ materially from our current outlook. Our guidance assumes foreign currency translation at end-of-quarter exchange rates. Specifically, our forecast for the remainder of 2019 reflects exchange rates for the British pound (£) of $1.27 to £1 and for the euro (€) of $1.14 to €1.

A full summary of Moody's guidance as of July 31, 2019, is included in Table 13 – 2019 Outlook table at the end of this press release.

CONFERENCE CALL

Moody's will hold a conference call to discuss second quarter 2019 results as well as its 2019 outlook on July 31, 2019, at 11:30 a.m. Eastern Time ("ET"). Individuals within the U.S. and Canada can access the call by dialing +1-877-400-0505. Other callers should dial +1-720-452-9084. Please dial into the call by 11:20 a.m. ET. The passcode for the call is 5201705.

The teleconference will also be webcast with an accompanying slide presentation which can be accessed through Moody's Investor Relations website, http://ir.moodys.com under "Featured and Upcoming Events & Presentations". The webcast will be available until 3:30 p.m. ET on August 29, 2019.

A replay of the teleconference will be available from 3:30 p.m. ET, July 31, 2019 until 3:30 p.m. ET, August 29, 2019. The replay can be accessed from within the United States and Canada by dialing +1-888-203-1112. Other callers can access the replay at +1-719-457-0820. The replay confirmation code is 5201705.

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ABOUT MOODY'S CORPORATION

Moody's is an essential component of the global capital markets, providing credit ratings, research, tools and analysis that contribute to transparent and integrated financial markets. Moody's Corporation MCO is the parent company of Moody's Investors Service, which provides credit ratings and research covering debt instruments and securities, and Moody's Analytics, which offers leading-edge software, advisory services and research for credit and economic analysis and financial risk management. The corporation, which reported revenue of $4.4 billion in 2018, employs approximately 13,200 people worldwide and maintains a presence in 44 countries. Further information is available at www.moodys.com.

"Safe Harbor" Statement under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995

Certain statements contained in this release are forward-looking statements and are based on future expectations, plans and prospects for the Company's business and operations that involve a number of risks and uncertainties. Such statements may include, among other words, "believe", "expect", "anticipate", "intend", "plan", "will", "predict", "potential", "continue", "strategy", "aspire", "target", "forecast", "project", "estimate", "should", "could", "may" and similar expressions or words and variations thereof that convey the prospective nature of events or outcomes generally indicative of forward-looking statements. The forward-looking statements and other information in this release are made as of the date hereof (except where noted otherwise), and the Company undertakes no obligation (nor does it intend) to publicly supplement, update or revise such statements on a going-forward basis, whether as a result of subsequent developments, changed expectations or otherwise, except as required by applicable law or regulation. In connection with the "safe harbor" provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, the Company is identifying examples of factors, risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ, perhaps materially, from those indicated by these forward-looking statements. Those factors, risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, credit market disruptions or economic slowdowns, which could affect the volume of debt and other securities issued in domestic and/or global capital markets; other matters that could affect the volume of debt and other securities issued in domestic and/or global capital markets, including regulation, credit quality concerns, changes in interest rates and other volatility in the financial markets such as that due to uncertainty as companies transition away from LIBOR and the U.K.'s pending withdrawal from the EU; the level of merger and acquisition activity in the U.S. and abroad; the uncertain effectiveness and possible collateral consequences of U.S. and foreign government actions affecting credit markets, international trade and economic policy, including those related to tariffs and trade barriers; concerns in the marketplace affecting our credibility or otherwise affecting market perceptions of the integrity or utility of independent credit agency ratings; the introduction of competing products or technologies by other companies; pricing pressure from competitors and/or customers; the level of success of new product development and global expansion; the impact of regulation as an NRSRO, the potential for new U.S., state and local legislation and regulations, including provisions in the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act ("Dodd-Frank") and regulations resulting from Dodd-Frank; the potential for increased competition and regulation in the EU and other foreign jurisdictions; exposure to litigation related to our rating opinions, as well as any other litigation, government and regulatory proceedings, investigations and inquires to which the Company may be subject from time to time; provisions in the Dodd-Frank Act legislation modifying the pleading standards, and EU regulations modifying the liability standards, applicable to credit rating agencies in a manner adverse to credit rating agencies; provisions of EU regulations imposing additional procedural and substantive requirements on the pricing of services and the expansion of supervisory remit to include non-EU ratings used for regulatory purposes; the possible loss of key employees; failures or malfunctions of our operations and infrastructure; any vulnerabilities to cyber threats or other cybersecurity concerns; the outcome of any review by controlling tax authorities of the Company's global tax planning initiatives; exposure to potential criminal sanctions or civil remedies if the Company fails to comply with foreign and U.S. laws and regulations that are applicable in the jurisdictions in which the Company operates, including data protection and privacy laws, sanctions laws, anti-corruption laws, and local laws prohibiting corrupt payments to government officials; the impact of mergers, acquisitions or other business combinations and the ability of the Company to successfully integrate such acquired businesses; currency and foreign exchange volatility; the level of future cash flows; the levels of capital investments; and a decline in the demand for credit risk management tools by financial institutions. These factors, risks and uncertainties as well as other risks and uncertainties that could cause Moody's actual results to differ materially from those contemplated, expressed, projected, anticipated or implied in the forward-looking statements are described in greater detail under "Risk Factors" in Part I, Item 1A of the Company's annual report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2018, and in other filings made by the Company from time to time with the SEC or in materials incorporated herein or therein. Stockholders and investors are cautioned that the occurrence of any of these factors, risks and uncertainties may cause the Company's actual results to differ materially from those contemplated, expressed, projected, anticipated or implied in the forward-looking statements, which could have a material and adverse effect on the Company's business, results of operations and financial condition. New factors may emerge from time to time, and it is not possible for the Company to predict new factors, nor can the Company assess the potential effect of any new factors on it.

Table 6 - Financial Information by Segment (Unaudited)

The table below presents revenue, adjusted operating income and operating income by reportable segment. The Company defines adjusted operating income as operating income excluding depreciation and amortization, restructuring, Acquisition-Related Expenses and a non-recurring impairment charge pursuant to the planned divestiture of MAKS.

Table 7 - Transaction and Relationship Revenue (Unaudited)

The tables below summarize the split between transaction and relationship revenue. In the MIS segment, excluding MIS Other, transaction revenue represents the initial rating of a new debt issuance as well as other one-time fees while relationship revenue represents the recurring monitoring of a rated debt obligation and/or entities that issue such obligations, as well as revenue from programs such as commercial paper, medium-term notes and shelf registrations. In MIS Other, transaction revenue represents revenue from professional services and outsourcing engagements and relationship revenue represents subscription-based revenues. In the MA segment, transaction revenue represents perpetual software license fees and revenue from software implementation services, risk management advisory projects, training and certification services, and research and analytical engagements. Relationship revenue in MA represents subscription-based revenues and software maintenance revenue.

Table 8 - Adjusted Operating Income and Adjusted Operating Margin (Unaudited)

The Company presents Adjusted Operating Income because management deems this metric to be a useful measure of assessing the operating performance of Moody's. Adjusted Operating Income excludes depreciation and amortization, restructuring, Acquisition-Related Expenses and a non-recurring impairment charge pursuant to the planned divestiture of MAKS. Depreciation and amortization are excluded because companies utilize productive assets of different ages and use different methods of acquiring and depreciating productive assets. Restructuring charges are excluded as the frequency and magnitude of these charges may vary widely across periods and companies. Acquisition-Related Expenses consist of expenses incurred to complete and integrate the acquisition of Bureau van Dijk and are excluded due to the material nature of these expenses on an annual basis in both the current and prior years, which are not expected to recur at this dollar magnitude subsequent to the completion of the multi-year integration effort. Acquisition-related expenses from other acquisitions were not material. The impairment charge pursuant to the planned divestiture of MAKS is excluded as the frequency and magnitude of divestiture activity may vary widely from period to period and across companies. Management believes that the exclusion of the aforementioned items, as detailed in the reconciliation below, allows for an additional perspective on the Company's operating results from period to period and across companies. The Company defines Adjusted Operating Margin as Adjusted Operating Income divided by revenue.

Table 9 - Free Cash Flow (Unaudited)

The table below reflects a reconciliation of the Company's net cash flows from operating activities to free cash flow. The Company defines free cash flow as net cash provided by operating activities minus payments for capital additions. Management deems capital expenditures essential to the Company's product and service innovations and maintenance of Moody's operational capabilities. Accordingly, capital expenditures are deemed to be a recurring use of Moody's cash flow. Management believes that free cash flow is a useful metric in assessing the Company's cash flows to service debt, pay dividends and to fund acquisitions and share repurchases.