MSCI Inc $MSCI Shares Bought by Amundi

Key Points

• Amundi increased its MSCI stake by 21% in the first quarter, acquiring 59,866 additional shares and bringing its holdings to 345,088 shares worth approximately $186 million. Institutional investors collectively own 89.97% of MSCI.
• MSCI reported quarterly revenue of $867 million, up 12.2% year over year, but earnings of $4.94 per share fell slightly short of analysts’ $4.99 estimate. The stock opened at $575.92, down 1.2%.
• MSCI declared a quarterly dividend of $2.05 per share, equivalent to an annualized $8.20 and a 1.4% yield. Analysts maintain a consensus “Buy” rating with an average price target of $709.50.

Amundi grew its position in shares of MSCI Inc (NYSE:MSCI - Free Report) by 21.0% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 345,088 shares of the technology company's stock after buying an additional 59,866 shares during the quarter. Amundi owned 0.47% of MSCI worth $186,006,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Empowered Funds LLC increased its position in MSCI by 7.6% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 2,003 shares of the technology company's stock worth $1,133,000 after purchasing an additional 142 shares during the period. Woodline Partners LP lifted its holdings in shares of MSCI by 39.0% in the 1st quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 6,585 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $3,724,000 after buying an additional 1,846 shares during the period. Sivia Capital Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of MSCI by 20.9% in the 2nd quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,052 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $607,000 after buying an additional 182 shares during the period. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina boosted its stake in shares of 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 buying an additional 344 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Osterweis Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of MSCI in the second quarter valued at approximately $88,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.97% of the company's stock.

MSCI Stock Down 1.2%

NYSE:MSCI opened at $575.92 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $41.87 billion, a PE ratio of 31.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 1.24. MSCI Inc has a 52-week low of $501.08 and a 52-week high of $644.77. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $596.33 and a 200-day simple moving average of $576.63.

MSCI (NYSE:MSCI - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 21st. The technology company reported $4.94 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.99 by ($0.05). MSCI had a negative return on equity of 55.19% and a net margin of 40.74%.The business had revenue of $867.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $870.71 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $4.17 earnings per share. MSCI's quarterly revenue was up 12.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that MSCI Inc will post 19.61 earnings per share for the current year.

MSCI Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 14th will be paid a dividend of $2.05 per share. This represents a $8.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 14th. MSCI's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 44.86%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on MSCI. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on MSCI from $700.00 to $690.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Evercore set a $722.00 target price on MSCI in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. UBS Group set a $615.00 target price on shares of MSCI in a research report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Barclays upped 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, Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of MSCI in a report on Friday, July 17th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $760.00 price target for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and eleven have issued a Buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $709.50.

About MSCI

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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding MSCI? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for MSCI Inc (NYSE:MSCI - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.