Moody's MCO reported fourth-quarter 2019 adjusted earnings of $2.00 per share, which outpaced the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.92. Also, the figure improved 23% from the year-ago quarter.Results were largely driven by impressive global issuance volume and improving operating scenario, which led to rise in revenues. However, higher operating expenses posed an undermining factor. After taking into consideration certain non-recurring items, net income was $361 million or $1.88 per share, up from $254 million or $1.29 per share in the prior-year quarter.In 2019, adjusted earnings per share of $8.29 beat the consensus estimate of $8.20 and increased 12% year over year. Net income (GAAP basis) was $1.43 billion or $7.42 per share, up from $1.32 billion or $6.74 per share in 2018.Revenues & Costs RiseRevenues of $1.23 billion beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.21 billion. Also, the top line grew 16% year over year. Foreign currency translation impact was negligible.In 2019, revenues of $4.83 billion beat the consensus estimate of $4.80 billion and improved 9% year over year. Foreign currency translation unfavorably impacted revenues by 1%.Total expenses were $729 million, up 7% year over year. The rise was mainly due to increase in compensation expenses, partially offset by beneficial impact of the restructuring plan and cost control initiatives. Notably, foreign currency translation impact was negligible.Adjusted operating income of $559 million increased 17% year over year. Adjusted operating margin was 45.3%, up from 45%.Quarterly Segment PerformanceMoody’s Investors Service revenues grew 21% year over year to $720 million attributable to rise in issuance activity. Foreign currency translation unfavorably impacted the segment’s revenues by 1%.Corporate finance revenues increased driven by robust bond issuances. Also, financial institutions’ revenues grew, primarily backed by rise in activity from infrequent U.S. insurance and non-U.S. banking issuers.Further, public, project and infrastructure finance revenues increased, reflecting strong U.S. public finance issuance. However, structured finance revenues witnessed a fall, mainly due to lower global collateralized loan obligation activity.Moody’s Analytics revenues grew 10% year over year to $513 million, mainly driven by higher U.S. and international revenues. Foreign currency translation impact on the segment’s revenues was negligible.The segment recorded growth in research, data and analytics revenues, and Enterprise Risk Solutions revenues, while professional services revenues declined.Strong Balance SheetAs of Dec 31, 2019, Moody’s had total cash, cash equivalents and short-term investments of $1.9 billion, up from $1.8 billion as of Dec 31, 2018. Further, it had $5.6 billion of outstanding debt and $1 billion in additional borrowing capacity under its revolving credit facility.Share Repurchases UpdateDuring the fourth quarter, the company repurchased 1.2 million shares for $263 million.Dividend HikeConcurrently, Moody's announced a quarterly dividend of 56 cents per share, representing a 12% increase from the prior payout. The dividend will be paid out on Mar 18 to stockholders of record as on Feb 25.2020 GuidanceMoody’s expects adjusted earnings in the range of $9.10-$9.30 per share. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2020 is $9.05, which is below the lower end of the adjusted earnings guidance.On GAAP basis, earnings are expected to be $8.60-$8.80 per share.Moody’s projects revenues to rise in the mid-single-digit percent range. Operating expenses are expected to increase in the low-single-digit percent range.Our TakeThough the company remains well positioned for growth on the back of strong market position, strength in its diverse operations and strategic acquisitions, steadily increasing operating expenses will hurt its financials to some extent.Moody's Corporation Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise Moody's Corporation price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart | Moody's Corporation QuoteCurrently, Moody’s carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.Earnings Release Dates of Other Finance StocksLendingClub Corporation LC, FS KKR Capital Corp. FSK and Capitala Finance Corp. CPTA are scheduled to announce results on Feb 18, Feb 28 and Mar 2, respectively.Today's Best Stocks from ZacksWould you like to see the updated picks from our best market-beating strategies? From 2017 through 2019, while the S&P 500 gained and impressive +53.6%, five of our strategies returned +65.8%, +97.1%, +118.0%, +175.7% and even +186.7%.This outperformance has not just been a recent phenomenon. From 2000 – 2019, while the S&P averaged +6.0% per year, our top strategies averaged up to +54.7% per year.See their latest picks free >>Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report Moody's Corporation (MCO): Free Stock Analysis Report LendingClub Corporation (LC): Free Stock Analysis Report Capitala Finance Corp. (CPTA): Free Stock Analysis Report FS KKR Capital Corp. (FSK): Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here. Zacks Investment Research