Citigroup Inc. Grows Stock Holdings in Moelis & Company $MC

Key Points

• Citigroup Inc. increased its stake in Moelis & Company by 28.1%, acquiring an additional 27,895 shares, bringing its total holdings to 127,213 shares valued at approximately $7.42 million.
• Several institutional investors have significantly boosted their positions in Moelis & Company, with Jennison Associates LLC increasing its holdings by 457.0% during the first quarter.
• Moelis & Company is scheduled to pay a quarterly dividend of $0.65 on September 18th, reflecting a dividend yield of 3.6% and a payout ratio of 102.36%.

Citigroup Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Moelis & Company (NYSE:MC - Free Report) by 28.1% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 127,213 shares of the asset manager's stock after purchasing an additional 27,895 shares during the period. Citigroup Inc. owned about 0.16% of Moelis & Company worth $7,424,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in MC. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB boosted its position in Moelis & Company by 1,551.3% during the 1st quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 644 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 605 shares during the period. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its position in shares of Moelis & Company by 1,460.8% in the 1st quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 796 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 745 shares during the period. NBC Securities Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Moelis & Company in the 1st quarter worth about $59,000. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in shares of Moelis & Company by 38.9% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,632 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $95,000 after purchasing an additional 457 shares during the period. Finally, New Age Alpha Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Moelis & Company in the 1st quarter worth about $107,000. Institutional investors own 91.53% of the company's stock.

Moelis & Company Stock Performance

Shares of MC stock traded down $0.8630 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $69.4570. The company had a trading volume of 619,362 shares, compared to its average volume of 791,510. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $67.33 and a 200-day moving average price of $62.86. Moelis & Company has a one year low of $47.00 and a one year high of $82.89. The firm has a market cap of $5.45 billion, a PE ratio of 27.35 and a beta of 1.70.

Moelis & Company (NYSE:MC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 24th. The asset manager reported $0.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.32 by $0.21. The company had revenue of $365.38 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $269.57 million. Moelis & Company had a net margin of 14.31% and a return on equity of 42.72%. The firm's revenue was up 38.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.18 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Moelis & Company will post 2.97 EPS for the current year.

Moelis & Company Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 18th. Investors of record on Monday, August 4th will be paid a dividend of $0.65 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 4th. This represents a $2.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.7%. Moelis & Company's dividend payout ratio is presently 102.36%.

Insider Transactions at Moelis & Company

In related news, General Counsel Osamu R. Watanabe sold 6,340 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, July 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.64, for a total transaction of $460,537.60. Following the sale, the general counsel owned 131 shares of the company's stock, valued at $9,515.84. This represents a 97.98% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 6.40% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on MC shares. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on shares of Moelis & Company from $56.00 to $63.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of Moelis & Company from $55.00 to $52.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Morgan Stanley raised shares of Moelis & Company from an "underweight" rating to an "overweight" rating and lifted their price target for the company from $42.00 to $68.00 in a research report on Monday, June 23rd. JMP Securities reissued a "market perform" rating on shares of Moelis & Company in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on shares of Moelis & Company from $69.00 to $89.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, July 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $66.00.

Moelis & Company Company Profile

Moelis & Co operates as a holding company. It engages in the provision of financial advisory, capital raising and asset management services to a client base including corporations, governments, sovereign wealth funds and financial sponsors. The firm focuses on clients including large public multinational corporations, middle market private companies, financial sponsors, entrepreneurs and governments.