Caxton Associates LLP Takes Position in MSCI Inc $MSCI

Key Points

• Caxton Associates LLP has purchased a new stake in MSCI Inc, acquiring 3,380 shares valued at approximately $1.9 million.
• MSCI Inc reported earnings of $4.17 per share for the last quarter, surpassing analysts' expectations, with revenue reaching $772.68 million.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $1.80 per share, reflecting an annualized yield of 1.3% and a payout ratio of 47.68%.

Caxton Associates LLP purchased a new stake in shares of MSCI Inc (NYSE:MSCI - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 3,380 shares of the technology company's stock, valued at approximately $1,911,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Voleon Capital Management LP boosted its stake in shares of MSCI by 378.2% during the first quarter. Voleon Capital Management LP now owns 3,376 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $1,909,000 after purchasing an additional 2,670 shares in the last quarter. Everstar Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of MSCI during the first quarter valued at about $6,373,000. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of MSCI by 3.2% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 388,501 shares of the technology company's stock worth $219,697,000 after acquiring an additional 11,877 shares during the period. Kestra Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of MSCI by 31.1% in the first quarter. Kestra Investment Management LLC now owns 1,138 shares of the technology company's stock worth $644,000 after acquiring an additional 270 shares during the period. Finally, Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd lifted its stake in shares of MSCI by 28.1% in the first quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd now owns 1,870 shares of the technology company's stock worth $1,057,000 after acquiring an additional 410 shares during the period. 89.97% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

MSCI Stock Performance

Shares of MSCI stock opened at $574.12 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $44.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.02, a PEG ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 1.34. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $564.65 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $559.28. MSCI Inc has a fifty-two week low of $486.73 and a fifty-two week high of $642.45.

MSCI (NYSE:MSCI - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, July 22nd. The technology company reported $4.17 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $4.12 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $772.68 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $763.06 million. MSCI had a negative return on equity of 143.13% and a net margin of 39.46%.The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $3.64 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that MSCI Inc will post 16.86 earnings per share for the current year.

MSCI Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 29th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 15th were given a dividend of $1.80 per share. This represents a $7.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 15th. MSCI's dividend payout ratio is presently 47.68%.

Insider Buying and Selling at MSCI

In other news, CEO Henry A. Fernandez bought 9,916 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 24th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $544.70 per share, with a total value of $5,401,245.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 1,279,867 shares of the company's stock, valued at $697,143,554.90. This trade represents a 0.78% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders purchased 12,400 shares of company stock worth $6,731,599 over the last quarter. 3.31% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on MSCI from $578.00 to $533.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. Raymond James Financial raised MSCI from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $650.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Friday, July 25th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on MSCI from $655.00 to $700.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on MSCI from $650.00 to $680.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, July 21st. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $654.73.

MSCI Profile

MSCI Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides critical decision support tools and solutions for the investment community to manage investment processes worldwide. The Index segment provides indexes for use in various areas of the investment process, including indexed financial product, such as ETFs, mutual funds, annuities, futures, options, structured products, and over-the-counter derivatives; performance benchmarking; portfolio construction and rebalancing; and asset allocation, as well as licenses GICS and GICS Direct.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding MSCI? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for MSCI Inc (NYSE:MSCI - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.