Forsta AP Fonden Sells 13,400 Shares of MSCI Inc (NYSE:MSCI)

Key Points

• Forsta AP Fonden reduced its stake in MSCI Inc by 45.6% in the first quarter, now holding 16,000 shares worth approximately $9 million after selling 13,400 shares.
• Insider transactions included CEO Henry A. Fernandez purchasing 84 shares at an average price of $548.69, increasing his ownership to over $700 million.
• MSCI announced a quarterly dividend of $1.80 per share, set to be paid on August 29, with a yield of 1.3% and a payout ratio of 47.68%.

Forsta AP Fonden reduced its stake in MSCI Inc (NYSE:MSCI - Free Report) by 45.6% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 16,000 shares of the technology company's stock after selling 13,400 shares during the period. Forsta AP Fonden's holdings in MSCI were worth $9,048,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Menard Financial Group LLC bought a new position in shares of MSCI in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Olde Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of MSCI in the 1st quarter valued at $27,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of MSCI by 136.4% in the 1st quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 52 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of MSCI by 50.0% in the 1st quarter. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. now owns 66 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $37,000 after acquiring an additional 22 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Johnson Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in MSCI by 293.8% in the fourth quarter. Johnson Financial Group Inc. now owns 63 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 47 shares during the period. 89.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

MSCI Stock Performance

Shares of MSCI stock traded down $2.14 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $565.29. 185,473 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 605,960. MSCI Inc has a 12 month low of $486.73 and a 12 month high of $642.45. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $562.08 and a 200 day simple moving average of $562.09. The company has a market capitalization of $43.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.43, a P/E/G ratio of 2.69 and a beta of 1.29.

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

MSCI Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 29th. Investors of record on Friday, August 15th will be paid a $1.80 dividend. This represents a $7.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 15th. MSCI's dividend payout ratio is currently 47.68%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently weighed in on MSCI. Oppenheimer restated a "market perform" rating on shares of MSCI in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on MSCI from $650.00 to $680.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, July 21st. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $675.00 price target on shares of MSCI in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on MSCI from $578.00 to $533.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Finally, Evercore ISI decreased their price target on MSCI from $673.00 to $631.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $654.73.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Henry A. Fernandez bought 9,916 shares of MSCI stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 24th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $544.70 per share, with a total value of $5,401,245.20. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer directly owned 1,279,867 shares in the company, valued at $697,143,554.90. The trade was a 0.78% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders acquired a total of 12,400 shares of company stock valued at $6,731,599 over the last quarter. 3.31% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

About MSCI

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.