Buffett's Berkshire lowers stake in Moody by 2.9 pct

The move follows another reduction in Berkshire Hathaway's stake in Moody's in July, when it cut its stake to 16.98 percent from 20.4 percent.

Omaha, Nebraska-based Berkshire sold 1.15 million shares, leaving it with with 38.07 million, according to the filing, still making it Moody's largest shareholder by far.

Moody's and its main rival McGraw-Hill Cos' Standard & Poor's were hit hard by a slump in debt issuance during the recession.

Moody's and other ratings agencies came under fire for assigning high ratings to mortgage-related securities that later defaulted.

(Reporting by Phil Wahba; Editing by Nick Macfie)