Copeland Capital Management LLC Has $986,000 Position in MSCI Inc $MSCI

Key Points

• Copeland Capital Management sharply reduced its MSCI stake by 92.3% in the first quarter, selling 21,912 shares and ending with 1,829 shares valued at about $986,000.
• Despite that sale, MSCI continues to attract strong institutional interest, with 89.97% of shares held by hedge funds and institutions and several large investors adding or maintaining positions.
• Analysts remain upbeat on MSCI: recent reports included Buy/Overweight ratings and higher price targets, while the stock also beat quarterly earnings and revenue estimates in its latest report.

Copeland Capital Management LLC reduced its stake in shares of MSCI Inc (NYSE:MSCI - Free Report) by 92.3% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,829 shares of the technology company's stock after selling 21,912 shares during the period. Copeland Capital Management LLC's holdings in MSCI were worth $986,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank purchased a new position in MSCI in the fourth quarter valued at about $528,560,000. Bamco Inc. NY increased its position in MSCI by 15.1% in the 4th quarter. Bamco Inc. NY now owns 2,755,747 shares of the technology company's stock worth $1,581,055,000 after purchasing an additional 361,630 shares during the last quarter. Banque Pictet & Cie SA raised its stake in shares of MSCI by 103.3% during the 4th quarter. Banque Pictet & Cie SA now owns 523,035 shares of the technology company's stock worth $300,081,000 after purchasing an additional 265,750 shares in the last quarter. Generation Investment Management LLP purchased a new stake in shares of MSCI during the 4th quarter worth about $130,380,000. Finally, T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of MSCI by 13.2% during the 4th quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,446,291 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $829,781,000 after buying an additional 168,405 shares during the last quarter. 89.97% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MSCI has been the subject of several recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company raised MSCI from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and boosted their price target for the company from $650.00 to $700.00 in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of MSCI from $719.00 to $727.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of MSCI in a research report on Friday. They issued a "buy" rating and a $760.00 target price for the company. Barclays increased their price target on shares of MSCI from $700.00 to $735.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, July 10th. Finally, Rothschild & Co Redburn set a $690.00 price target on shares of MSCI in a report on Thursday, June 18th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and eleven have assigned a Buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $713.50.

MSCI Stock Performance

MSCI opened at $628.83 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $45.78 billion, a PE ratio of 35.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 1.24. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $596.88 and a 200-day moving average of $576.90. MSCI Inc has a 52-week low of $501.08 and a 52-week high of $644.77.

MSCI (NYSE:MSCI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 21st. The technology company reported $4.55 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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 the consensus estimate of $830.91 million. During the same period last year, the business earned $4.00 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 14.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts predict that MSCI Inc will post 19.84 earnings per share for the current year.

MSCI Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 29th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 15th were issued a dividend of $2.05 per share. This represents a $8.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 15th. MSCI's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 46.83%.

Insider Activity at MSCI

In other news, insider Alvise J. Munari sold 10,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, April 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $592.04, for a total value of $5,920,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 23,548 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,941,357.92. The trade was a 29.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 3.76% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

MSCI News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting MSCI this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Jefferies initiated coverage on MSCI with a Buy rating and a $760 price target, implying meaningful upside from current levels and signaling continued confidence in the company’s long-term growth profile.
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts heading into MSCI’s Q2 report are pointing to double-digit revenue growth, supported by strong index demand, record asset-based fees, and AI-driven product launches, which could reinforce the company’s earnings momentum.
• Neutral Sentiment: Several articles discuss the upcoming MSCI India index review and possible additions/removals that could trigger about $2.3 billion in passive flows. These headlines are about MSCI’s index methodology and market impact, but they are not a direct operating update for MSCI itself.
• Neutral Sentiment: Technical commentary on Direxion MSCI Emerging Markets ETFs highlights trading interest tied to the MSCI Emerging Markets Index, but this appears to be more about market products linked to MSCI benchmarks than a fundamental change in MSCI’s business.
• Negative Sentiment: Investors may also be holding back ahead of MSCI’s Q2 earnings release, since the stock is trading near recent highs and expectations are already elevated, leaving room for volatility if results or guidance disappoint.

MSCI Company 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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