MSCI Inc (NYSE:MSCI) is GCQ FUNDS MANAGEMENT PTY Ltd's 4th Largest Position

GCQ FUNDS MANAGEMENT PTY Ltd boosted its position in MSCI Inc (NYSE:MSCI - Free Report) by 29.4% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 87,989 shares of the technology company's stock after buying an additional 19,970 shares during the period. MSCI makes up approximately 12.2% of GCQ FUNDS MANAGEMENT PTY Ltd's investment portfolio, making the stock its 4th largest holding. GCQ FUNDS MANAGEMENT PTY Ltd owned 0.11% of MSCI worth $49,758,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Menard Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of MSCI during the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Johnson Financial Group Inc. raised its position in MSCI by 293.8% during the fourth quarter. Johnson Financial Group Inc. now owns 63 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 47 shares in the last quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC raised its position in MSCI by 122.6% during the fourth quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC now owns 69 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. HWG Holdings LP acquired a new position in MSCI in the first quarter valued at approximately $44,000. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its holdings in MSCI by 147.2% in the first quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 89 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $50,000 after acquiring an additional 53 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.97% of the company's stock.

MSCI Stock Performance

Shares of MSCI traded up $1.90 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $583.24. 466,742 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 510,267. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $558.03 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $570.41. MSCI Inc has a 12-month low of $486.74 and a 12-month high of $642.45. The company has a market cap of $45.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 1.32.

MSCI (NYSE:MSCI - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The technology company reported $4.00 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.88 by $0.12. The company had revenue of $745.83 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $746.45 million. MSCI had a net margin of 39.08% and a negative return on equity of 145.52%. On average, research analysts expect that MSCI Inc will post 16.86 earnings per share for the current year.

MSCI Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 30th. Investors of record on Friday, May 16th were given a dividend of $1.80 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 16th. This represents a $7.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.23%. MSCI's payout ratio is presently 49.48%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently weighed in on MSCI. Barclays cut their target price on shares of MSCI from $675.00 to $650.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 4th. Evercore ISI dropped their price target on shares of MSCI from $673.00 to $631.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Bank of America started coverage on shares of MSCI in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $585.00 price objective for the company. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $675.00 target price on shares of MSCI in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, Oppenheimer reissued a "market perform" rating on shares of MSCI in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $645.36.

Insider Transactions at MSCI

In other MSCI news, COO Cd Baer Pettit sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $552.59, for a total value of $2,762,950.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer owned 289,787 shares in the company, valued at approximately $160,133,398.33. This represents a 1.70% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 3.31% of the company's stock.

MSCI Profile

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.