MCO

Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway liquidated its positions in a number of high-profile companies during the fourth quarter, but the Oracle of Omaha has hung on to his huge stake in Coca-Cola. And Coke's nearly 4% drop is a weight on Buffett's portfolio.

Federal prosecutors are looking into whether banks misled investors about their roles in mortgage-bond deals. Targeted banks include Citi, JPMorgan Chase, and UBS. At the same time, New York's Attorney General is launching a separate probe of whether some banks misled ratings agencies.

Warren Buffett dumps more of his Moody's shares. Moody's stock is up by about 5 percent over the last six months, compared with a 25 percent increase in the DJIA, and soon credit-ratings companies may face stricter regulation by Congress.

Just how much taxpayers will recoup of the $700 billion set aside last fall to bolster companies hard hit by the credit crisis has been a matter of debate for more than a year. And because American International Group (AIG), the deeply troubled insurer that's 80%-owned by the U.S. government, has...

A judge's refusal to dismiss a case against an investment bank and a few ratings agencies for their role in the structured investment vehicle collapse of 2007 raises the possibility that those defendants might actually be required to pay for wrapping toxic waste in golden paper. (SIVs are money...

As the S&P 500 ($INX) flirts with highs last seen in October 2008, the credit markets have been on edge, and the perceived risk of default is risen to its highest levels in a month -- a time when the S&P was 50 points lower. Since reaching a low point the first week of August, the cost of...

Warren Buffett might have slowed his stock purchases of late to focus on providing financing to certain distressed companies, but that doesn't mean the Oracle of Omaha's portfolio has been stagnant. Berkshire Hathaway's (BRK.A) equity portfolio rose to $48.95 billion according to an SEC filing,...

It is all but certain that ratings of mortgage-backed securities by S&P and Moody's (MCO) were influenced by the money that the issuers paid to the credit ratings agencies. This money was not for bribes, but it did fatten the wallets of the two operations. Congress has been all over the...

In a letter received by DailyFinance, Deven Sharma, president of Standard & Poor's, outlined how the ratings agency plans to change its practices in the wake of the massive global credit meltdown. Along with Moody's (MCO), S&P, a division of McGraw-Hill (MHP), has been blamed for enabling...

What could be better than taking waste and converting it into something of value? It's the goal of renewable energy, clean water and efficient recycling -- and it could also be a solution for toxic financial assets. This is the general idea behind Morgan Stanley's (MS) plan to take downgraded...