MSCI Inc $MSCI Shares Sold by Pictet Asset Management Holding SA

Key Points

• Pictet Asset Management Holding SA cut its MSCI stake by 8.1% in the first quarter, selling 3,222 shares and ending with 36,328 shares worth about $19.6 million.
• MSCI reported better-than-expected quarterly results, with EPS of $4.55 versus $4.38 estimated and revenue of $850.8 million, up 14.1% year over year.
• The company also announced a quarterly dividend of $2.05 per share, implying an annualized payout of $8.20 and a yield of 1.4%, while analysts largely remain bullish with a consensus Buy rating.

Pictet Asset Management Holding SA lowered its stake in shares of MSCI Inc (NYSE:MSCI - Free Report) by 8.1% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 36,328 shares of the technology company's stock after selling 3,222 shares during the period. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA's holdings in MSCI were worth $19,581,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

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

MSCI Stock Up 4.0%

NYSE MSCI opened at $582.55 on Thursday. MSCI Inc has a 12-month low of $501.08 and a 12-month high of $644.68. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $591.84 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $573.18. The stock has a market capitalization of $42.41 billion, a PE ratio of 33.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 1.25.

MSCI (NYSE:MSCI - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 21st. The technology company reported $4.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.38 by $0.17. The company had revenue of $850.80 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $830.91 million. MSCI had a net margin of 40.74% and a negative return on equity of 65.48%. The business's revenue was up 14.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $4.00 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that MSCI Inc will post 19.62 EPS for the current year.

MSCI Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 29th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 15th were given a $2.05 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 15th. This represents a $8.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.4%. MSCI's payout ratio is 46.83%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Alvise J. Munari sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, April 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $592.04, for a total transaction of $5,920,400.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 23,548 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,941,357.92. This represents a 29.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 3.76% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have issued reports on MSCI. Weiss Ratings cut shares of MSCI from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a report on Monday, June 15th. Morgan Stanley raised 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. Rothschild & Co Redburn set a $690.00 price objective on MSCI in a report on Thursday, June 18th. Raymond James Financial reissued a "strong-buy" rating and set a $730.00 target price on shares of MSCI in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. Finally, UBS Group increased their price target on MSCI from $710.00 to $720.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and ten have issued a Buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $697.00.

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.

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