Clearbridge Investments LLC reduced its position in MSCI Inc (NYSE:MSCI - Free Report) by 18.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 331,016 shares of the technology company's stock after selling 73,518 shares during the quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC owned 0.45% of MSCI worth $189,914,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.
Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in MSCI. Empowered Funds LLC raised its holdings in shares of MSCI by 7.6% in the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 2,003 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $1,133,000 after acquiring an additional 142 shares in the last quarter. Woodline Partners LP raised its holdings in shares of MSCI by 39.0% in the first quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 6,585 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $3,724,000 after acquiring an additional 1,846 shares in the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of MSCI by 20.9% in the second quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,052 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $607,000 after acquiring an additional 182 shares in the last quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina grew its stake in MSCI by 1.0% in the second quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 35,130 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $20,261,000 after purchasing an additional 344 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Osterweis Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in MSCI in the second quarter valued at about $88,000. 89.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.
MSCI Stock Performance
Shares of MSCI stock opened at $616.28 on Monday. MSCI Inc has a fifty-two week low of $501.08 and a fifty-two week high of $644.68. The firm has a market capitalization of $44.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.20, a PEG ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 1.24. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $578.01 and its 200-day simple moving average is $568.93.
MSCI (NYSE:MSCI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 21st. The technology company reported $4.55 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $4.38 by $0.17. MSCI had a negative return on equity of 65.48% and a net margin of 40.74%.The business had revenue of $850.80 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $830.91 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $4.00 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 14.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts forecast that MSCI Inc will post 19.62 earnings per share for the current year.
MSCI Dividend Announcement
The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 29th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 15th were paid a dividend of $2.05 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 15th. This represents a $8.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.3%. MSCI's payout ratio is presently 46.83%.
Insider Transactions at MSCI
In related news, CFO Andrew C. Wiechmann sold 450 shares of MSCI stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $560.00, for a total transaction of $252,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 22,544 shares of the company's stock, valued at $12,624,640. The trade was a 1.96% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Alvise J. Munari sold 10,000 shares of MSCI stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $592.04, for a total value of $5,920,400.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 23,548 shares of the company's stock, valued at $13,941,357.92. This trade represents a 29.81% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 3.76% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.
Wall Street Analyst Weigh In
Several equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded MSCI from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and lifted their target price for the company from $650.00 to $700.00 in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on MSCI from $719.00 to $727.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. Raymond James Financial reiterated a "strong-buy" rating and issued a $730.00 target price on shares of MSCI in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. UBS Group lifted their target price on MSCI from $710.00 to $720.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. Finally, Bank of America initiated coverage on MSCI in a research note on Tuesday, February 17th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $700.00 target price on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and ten have assigned a Buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $697.70.
View Our Latest Analysis on MSCI
MSCI Profile
(
Free Report)
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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