Oct 22 (Reuters) - Ratings agency Moody's raised

its full-year adjusted profit forecast above Wall Street

estimates and posted a nearly 31% rise in third-quarter earnings

on Tuesday, on strong demand for its research and analytics

products.

WHY IT'S IMPORTANT

Growing expectations of a soft landing for the U.S. economy as

the Federal Reserve began its rate cut cycle in September have

spurred investors to spend more on analytics and data-related

products to enable better investments.

This has helped firms such as Moody's to perform well.

KEY QUOTE

"Moody's record-breaking revenue performance in the third

quarter is a testament to our unwavering status as the Agency of

Choice for our customers and our actions to prime the business

for durable future growth," said CEO Robert Fauber in a

statement.

BY THE NUMBERS

Revenue in Moody's analytics unit, which provides financial

intelligence and analytical tools, grew 7% to $831 million in

the quarter ended Sept. 30 from a year earlier, while revenue in

the investor service arm rose nearly 41% to $982 million.

Total revenue for the company came in at $1.81 billion, up

from $1.47 billion a year earlier.

Adjustable net income was $585 million, or $3.21 per share,

compared with $447 million, or $2.43 per share, a year earlier.

Moody's expects fiscal year 2024 adjusted earnings per share

to be between $11.90 and $12.10, largely above analysts' average

estimate of $11.69, according to data compiled by LSEG. Its

previous forecast was in the range of $11 to $11.40.

MARKET REACTION

Shares of Moody's were up 2% in trading before the bell.

They have gained about 25% so far this year.

(Reporting by Pritam Biswas in Bengaluru; Editing by Shinjini

Ganguli)