MCO vs SPGI: How Moody's and S&P Global Compare (2026)

Same yardstick, side by side (as of July 2026). Valuation lined up like this is most meaningful for two names in the same corner of the market, which these are. Figures are approximate; verify before investing.

Reading it: SPGI is the cheaper of the two on forward earnings, but cheaper is not the same as better. Pair the valuation with growth (how far the forward P/E sits below the trailing P/E) and risk (beta) before you decide.

The metrics above tell you which is the marginally better business. The bigger risk for most people is not picking the slightly worse stock, it is over-concentrating. MCO and SPGI share themes, so owning both, or adding either to what you already hold, can quietly push a large share of your portfolio into one bet.

This is the part a generic comparison page cannot answer, because it depends on what you own. Connect your brokerage and Walnut shows your real, combined MCO and SPGI exposure, flags overlap with your existing positions, and tells you if adding one would tip you past a concentration you are comfortable with, read-only by default, with your login staying at your broker. Walnut is not an investment adviser.

Moody's is a global integrated risk-assessment company best known for credit ratings. It operates two main segments. Moody's Investors Service (MIS) rates the creditworthiness of bonds, loans, and other debt instruments issued by corporations, governments, and structured-finance vehicles, earning fees from issuers each time debt is rated. Moody's Analytics (MA) sells subscription software, data, research, and models for credit risk, economic forecasting, regulatory compliance, and increasingly ESG and supply-chain risk. Together with S&P Global, Moody's forms half of an effective duopoly in credit ratings, an industry protected by deep regulatory entrenchment, network effects, and the trust embedded in its ratings over more than a century. The ratings business is highly profitable and cyclical with debt-issuance volumes, while Moody's Analytics provides growing, recurring subscription revenue that smooths the cycle. Founded in 1909 and headquartered in New York, Moody's is a high-margin compounder tied to the global flow of capital and debt.

Full MCO guide

S&P Global is a financial-information and analytics company best known for two franchises: S&P Global Ratings, one of the big three credit-rating agencies, and S&P Dow Jones Indices, which owns benchmark stock indices including the S&P 500 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average. The company makes money from rating debt issuances (a fee tied to bond issuance activity), licensing its indices to ETFs and funds (collecting fees on the assets that track them), and selling market data, analytics, and commodity-price benchmarks. Its Market Intelligence segment provides data platforms and research to financial professionals, and S&P Global Commodity Insights (formerly Platts) sets energy and commodity price benchmarks. The 2022 merger with IHS Markit broadened its data, automotive, and analytics offerings. S&P Global benefits from durable, recurring, subscription-like revenue and high margins. Headquartered in New York City, it serves banks, asset managers, corporations, and governments worldwide.

Full SPGI guide

Both fit overlapping themes, but they are not interchangeable. The useful comparison is which set of drivers and risks you want exposure to.

• MCO drivers: Ratings duopoly and pricing power; Moody's Analytics recurring revenue.
• SPGI drivers: Index licensing and passive investing; Credit ratings and a wide moat.

A faster-growing, richer-valued name usually swings harder, so it suits a longer horizon and a higher tolerance for volatility; a steadier, more cash-generative business suits a more conservative or income-minded investor. The honest test is which set of risks you could hold through a drawdown: The ratings segment is cyclical: debt issuance falls sharply when interest rates rise quickly or credit markets freeze, directly pressuring MIS revenue. For SPGI, ratings revenue is cyclical and tied to debt-issuance volumes, which fall when interest rates rise sharply or credit markets freeze.

Growth-minded investors who believe the theme has years to run tend to accept the richer multiple for more upside; value-minded investors lean toward the cheaper forward earnings and steadier profile. Pick MCO if you believe its drivers more; SPGI if you believe its. Many investors hold both, but since they share themes, that is a concentrated bet, not diversification. Decide deliberately and check overlap. For the full detail, see the MCO and SPGI guides.

MCO. Moody's trades at a premium to the market, reflecting its position in a protected ratings duopoly, high margins, capital-light economics, and the recurring revenue of Moody's Analytics. The valuation embeds steady mid-to-high-single-digit growth and assumes durable issuance volumes over time. The multiple has historically compressed during sharp debt-issuance downturns and re-rated as markets reopened.

SPGI. S&P Global trades at a premium valuation that reflects its wide moats, high margins, and durable recurring revenue. The qualitative profile is a high-quality compounder: oligopoly ratings, dominant indices, and growing data subscriptions. The premium multiple leaves the stock sensitive to slowdowns in bond issuance or passive-fund inflows.

Headline figures (approximate, early 2026): MCO shows revenue (ttm) ~$7.5 billion, operating margin ~45%, net income (ttm) ~$2.5 billion, eps (ttm) ~$13.50; SPGI shows revenue (ttm) ~$14 billion, revenue growth high-single-digit to low-double-digit, operating margin ~45% on an adjusted basis, recurring revenue mix the majority of revenue is subscription or asset-linked.

MCO and SPGI are related but distinct: same themes, different businesses and risks. Neither wins in the abstract; the right pick is whichever thesis you actually believe, sized so you are not over-concentrated in one theme. Walnut can show your combined MCO and SPGI exposure against your real portfolio. It is not an investment adviser.