NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Moody’s Corporation (NYSE:MCO) announced today that it has made a minority investment in Rockport VAL, LLC, a provider of cloud-based commercial real estate (CRE) valuation and cash flow modeling tools.

Moody's investment is intended to accelerate and broaden Rockport VAL’s product roadmap and drive its adoption among CRE market participants. In collaboration with Rockport VAL, Moody's Analytics will expand its offering of CRE solutions, which include CMBS and related economic data, probability of default models and loan underwriting software.

This investment underscores the continued commitment to innovation of Moody’s Analytics’ Emerging Business Unit (EBU). The EBU aims to identify, research, and develop new business opportunities that are enabled by emerging technologies.

Rockport VAL was founded earlier this year by CRE industry veteran Richard “Rick” Trepp to provide both cloud and Excel-based CRE property valuation and cash flow modeling tools to real estate investors, appraisers, brokers and lenders. The company’s product strategy focuses on providing streamlined and intuitive tools with dynamic functionality. Previously, Rick Trepp founded leading CRE data and analytics companies, including Trepp LLC and Rockport LLC.

“Rockport VAL’s innovative technology and insight into the commercial real estate market will allow Moody’s to deepen its presence in this important sector. We are pleased to partner with Rick Trepp, a highly regarded pioneer in the CRE data and analytics industry. With Rick’s track record, we believe our collaboration with Rockport VAL will bring the power of innovative technologies to the CRE market,” said Keith Berry, Executive Director of Moody's Analytics’ EBU.

“Together with Moody’s Analytics, we have the presence and commitment to fundamentally change how the CRE valuation industry transacts on a day-to-day basis. I am enthusiastic about the transformative possibilities of this opportunity and what we are developing,” said Rick Trepp, Founder and CEO of Rockport VAL.

Under the terms of the investment, Moody's will have a minority ownership stake in Rockport VAL and a representative on the company’s board of directors. The investment was funded through U.S. cash on hand and will not have a material impact on Moody’s 2017 financial results.

To learn more about Rockport VAL, please visit www.rockportval.com

ABOUT MOODY'S CORPORATION

Moody's is an essential component of the global capital markets, providing credit ratings, research, tools and analysis that contribute to transparent and integrated financial markets. Moody’s Corporation (NYSE: MCO) 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 corporation, which reported revenue of $3.6 billion in 2016, employs approximately 11,700 people worldwide and maintains a presence in 41 countries. Further information is available at www.moodys.com.