AlphaQuest LLC Has $1.85 Million Holdings in MSCI Inc $MSCI

Key Points

• AlphaQuest LLC increased its MSCI stake by 668.3% in the fourth quarter, ending with 3,227 shares worth about $1.85 million.
• Wall Street sentiment on MSCI remains bullish, with a consensus Buy rating and an average price target of $697.70; several firms recently raised targets or reaffirmed positive views.
• MSCI reported better-than-expected quarterly results, including EPS of $4.55 versus $4.38 expected and revenue growth of 14.1% year over year, while also declaring a $2.05 quarterly dividend.

AlphaQuest LLC grew its holdings in shares of MSCI Inc (NYSE:MSCI - Free Report) by 668.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,227 shares of the technology company's stock after purchasing an additional 2,807 shares during the period. AlphaQuest LLC's holdings in MSCI were worth $1,851,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Root Financial Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of MSCI during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $28,000. Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of MSCI by 341.7% during the 4th quarter. Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC now owns 53 shares of the technology company's stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of MSCI during the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. Elyxium Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of MSCI during the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. Finally, Strategic Wealth Investment Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of MSCI during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $36,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.97% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently issued reports on MSCI shares. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of MSCI from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research report on Monday, May 18th. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of MSCI from $710.00 to $720.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Evercore increased their price target on shares of MSCI from $655.00 to $690.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Barclays reiterated an "overweight" rating on shares of MSCI in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Finally, Bank of America started coverage on shares of MSCI in a research report on Tuesday, February 17th. They set a "buy" rating and a $700.00 price target on the stock. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and ten have assigned a Buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $697.70.

Insider Buying and Selling at MSCI

In other news, CFO Andrew C. Wiechmann sold 450 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $560.00, for a total transaction of $252,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 22,544 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,624,640. This represents a 1.96% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Alvise J. Munari sold 10,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, April 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $592.04, for a total transaction of $5,920,400.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 23,548 shares of the company's stock, valued at $13,941,357.92. This trade represents a 29.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 3.76% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

MSCI Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:MSCI opened at $602.95 on Thursday. The company has a fifty day moving average of $567.24 and a 200-day moving average of $566.38. The company has a market capitalization of $43.89 billion, a PE ratio of 34.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 1.24. MSCI Inc has a 52-week low of $501.08 and a 52-week high of $626.28.

MSCI (NYSE:MSCI - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 21st. The technology company reported $4.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.38 by $0.17. The company had revenue of $850.80 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $830.91 million. MSCI had a net margin of 40.74% and a negative return on equity of 65.48%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 14.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $4.00 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that MSCI Inc will post 19.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

MSCI Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 29th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 15th will be issued a dividend of $2.05 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 15th. This represents a $8.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.4%. MSCI's dividend payout ratio is 46.83%.

MSCI Profile

MSCI Inc is a global provider of investment decision support tools and services for the financial industry. The company is best known for its family of market indexes, which are widely used as benchmarks by asset managers and as the basis for exchange-traded funds and other passive products. In addition to index construction and licensing, MSCI offers portfolio analytics, risk models, factor and performance attribution tools, and a suite of data and technology solutions designed to support portfolio management and trading.

Beyond traditional indexing and risk analytics, MSCI has expanded into environmental, social and governance (ESG) research and ratings, offering data, scores and screening tools that help investors integrate sustainability considerations into investment processes.

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