KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS Has $15.80 Million Stock Position in MSCI Inc $MSCI

Key Points

• KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS increased its stake in MSCI Inc by 1.9% in the second quarter, now owning 27,400 shares valued at approximately $15.80 million.
• CEO Henry A. Fernandez purchased 84 shares of MSCI at an average price of $548.69 per share, raising his total ownership to 1,279,951 shares, valued at around $702.3 million.
• MSCI has received favorable analyst ratings, with price targets set as high as $700.00, indicating confidence in the company’s growth prospects.

KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS grew its stake in shares of MSCI Inc (NYSE:MSCI - Free Report) by 1.9% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 27,400 shares of the technology company's stock after purchasing an additional 500 shares during the period. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS's holdings in MSCI were worth $15,803,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Meitav Investment House Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of MSCI by 43.2% during the second quarter. Meitav Investment House Ltd. now owns 5,453 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $3,145,000 after purchasing an additional 1,645 shares during the period. SteelPeak Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of MSCI during the second quarter valued at about $623,000. Wormser Freres Gestion acquired a new position in shares of MSCI during the second quarter valued at about $145,000. PUREfi Wealth LLC raised its holdings in shares of MSCI by 16.4% during the second quarter. PUREfi Wealth LLC now owns 697 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $402,000 after purchasing an additional 98 shares during the period. Finally, Valeo Financial Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of MSCI by 7.3% during the second quarter. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC now owns 665 shares of the technology company's stock worth $384,000 after acquiring an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.97% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at MSCI

In other news, CEO Henry A. Fernandez acquired 84 shares of MSCI stock in a transaction on Friday, July 25th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $548.69 per share, with a total value of $46,089.96. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 1,279,951 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $702,296,314.19. This trade represents a 0.01% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Over the last ninety days, insiders have bought 12,400 shares of company stock valued at $6,731,599. Corporate insiders own 3.31% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MSCI has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Raymond James Financial upgraded MSCI from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $650.00 price target for the company in a research note on Friday, July 25th. Weiss Ratings reissued a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of MSCI in a research note on Wednesday. Seaport Res Ptn raised MSCI to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on MSCI from $625.00 to $655.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 10th. Finally, UBS Group increased their price objective on MSCI from $655.00 to $700.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $649.70.

MSCI Stock Performance

Shares of MSCI stock opened at $566.95 on Thursday. MSCI Inc has a 52-week low of $486.73 and a 52-week high of $642.45. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $564.28 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $559.55. The company has a market capitalization of $43.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.55, a PEG ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 1.33.

MSCI (NYSE:MSCI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 22nd. The technology company reported $4.17 earnings per share (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 business had revenue of $772.68 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $763.06 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $3.64 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 9.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that MSCI Inc will post 16.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

MSCI Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 29th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 15th were given 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 was Friday, August 15th. MSCI's dividend payout ratio is presently 47.68%.

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.

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