JPMorgan Chase & Co. Purchases 47,936 Shares of MSCI Inc (NYSE:MSCI)

Key Points

• JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its stake in MSCI Inc by 8.4%, now owning 615,770 shares valued at approximately $348 million.
• Recent analyst ratings for MSCI show a consensus of ten "buy" ratings and three "hold" ratings, with a price target range from $533 to $700.
• MSCI announced a quarterly dividend of $1.80 per share, equating to an annual yield of 1.3%, with a payout ratio of 47.68%.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its position in MSCI Inc (NYSE:MSCI - Free Report) by 8.4% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 615,770 shares of the technology company's stock after purchasing an additional 47,936 shares during the quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. owned 0.80% of MSCI worth $348,218,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in MSCI. Menard Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in MSCI during the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Olde Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in MSCI during the 1st quarter valued at about $27,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in MSCI by 136.4% during the 1st quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 52 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the period. Johnson Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in MSCI by 293.8% during the 4th 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. Finally, Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. lifted its position in MSCI by 50.0% during the 1st quarter. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. now owns 66 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 22 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.97% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at MSCI

In other news, CEO Henry A. Fernandez bought 9,916 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 24th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $544.70 per share, with a total value of $5,401,245.20. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer owned 1,279,867 shares of the company's stock, valued at $697,143,554.90. This represents a 0.78% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Over the last three months, insiders have purchased 12,400 shares of company stock worth $6,731,599. 3.31% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

MSCI Stock Performance

MSCI stock traded down $0.95 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $566.48. 362,921 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,038,627. The firm has a market cap of $43.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.52, a P/E/G ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 1.29. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $562.08 and its 200 day simple moving average is $562.09. MSCI Inc has a 1-year low of $486.73 and a 1-year high of $642.45.

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

MSCI Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 29th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 15th will be paid a dividend of $1.80 per share. This represents a $7.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 15th. MSCI's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 47.68%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MSCI has been the topic of a number of research reports. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of MSCI from $578.00 to $533.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an "outperform" rating and set a $675.00 target price on shares of MSCI in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of MSCI from $655.00 to $700.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of MSCI from $650.00 to $680.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, July 21st. Finally, Raymond James Financial upgraded shares of MSCI from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $650.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 25th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $654.73.

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.