Core Insights - The third quarter of 2025 was marked by strong performance in US equities, driven by optimism regarding the Federal Reserve's dovish stance and a boom in artificial intelligence (AI) [1] - Mar Vista U.S. Quality Premier Strategy achieved a return of +6.41% net of fees, underperforming the Russell 1000 Index and S&P 500 Index, which returned +8.00% and +8.12% respectively [1] Company Overview: Moody's Corporation (NYSE:MCO) - Moody's Corporation is a leading integrated risk assessment firm, with a market capitalization of $87.902 billion as of October 8, 2025 [2] - The stock experienced a one-month return of -3.16% and a 52-week gain of 3.60% [2] Performance Analysis - Moody's stock decline in the third quarter was attributed to concerns over increasing competition in the AI sector, as reported by FactSet [3] - The company is actively investing in AI, aiming to enhance its ecosystem for clients in banking, insurance, and asset management, which is expected to strengthen its competitive advantage [3] Investment Sentiment - Moody's Corporation is not among the top 30 most popular stocks among hedge funds, with 82 hedge fund portfolios holding the stock at the end of the second quarter, unchanged from the previous quarter [4] - While Moody's has potential as an investment, there are AI stocks perceived to offer greater upside with less downside risk [4]