Moody's Corporation (MCO) will raise its quarterly dividend by 15.8 percent to $0.44 per share in 2018. Last year the dividend was not increased with the previous dividend hike dating back to December 2016.

The dividend will be payable on March 12, 2018 to stockholders of record at the close of business on February 20, 2018.

Moody's Corp provides credit ratings, research, tools and analysis that contribute to transparent and integrated financial markets. Moody’s Corporation 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 company went public in 1998 and has paid a dividend every year since 2000.