Pacer Advisors Inc. Cuts Stake in MSCI Inc (NYSE:MSCI)

Key Points

• Pacer Advisors Inc. decreased its holdings in MSCI Inc. by 27.1% in the first quarter, bringing its total shares to 7,097 valued at approximately $4 million.
• MSCI reported a quarterly EPS of $4.17, exceeding expectations of $4.12, with revenue growth of 9.1% year-over-year, totaling $772.68 million.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $1.80 per share, with an annualized yield of 1.29%, reflecting a dividend payout ratio of 47.68%.

Pacer Advisors Inc. cut its stake in shares of MSCI Inc (NYSE:MSCI - Free Report) by 27.1% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 7,097 shares of the technology company's stock after selling 2,635 shares during the quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc.'s holdings in MSCI were worth $4,013,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of MSCI. Sunbelt Securities Inc. boosted its stake in MSCI by 15.4% during the 1st quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 142 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $80,000 after purchasing an additional 19 shares during the last quarter. Optivise Advisory Services LLC boosted its position in shares of MSCI by 3.8% during the first quarter. Optivise Advisory Services LLC now owns 540 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $306,000 after buying an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Quotient Wealth Partners LLC grew its holdings in MSCI by 5.9% during the first quarter. Quotient Wealth Partners LLC now owns 361 shares of the technology company's stock worth $204,000 after buying an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC raised its position in MSCI by 16.8% in the 1st quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC now owns 146 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $83,000 after buying an additional 21 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Salvus Wealth Management LLC raised its position in MSCI by 2.6% in the 1st quarter. Salvus Wealth Management LLC now owns 824 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $466,000 after buying an additional 21 shares during the last quarter. 89.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

MSCI Stock Down 1.4%

MSCI traded down $8.11 during trading on Friday, reaching $553.25. 423,061 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 597,371. MSCI Inc has a 12-month low of $486.73 and a 12-month high of $642.45. The company's 50-day moving average is $563.67 and its two-hundred day moving average is $565.49. The company has a market cap of $42.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.67, a P/E/G ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 1.32.

MSCI (NYSE:MSCI - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results 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. The firm had revenue of $772.68 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $763.06 million. MSCI had a net margin of 39.46% and a negative return on equity of 143.13%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $3.64 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that MSCI Inc will post 16.86 earnings per share for the current year.

MSCI Announces Dividend

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

Insider Buying and Selling at MSCI

In other MSCI news, CEO Henry A. Fernandez acquired 9,916 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 24th. The shares were bought at an average price of $544.70 per share, for a total transaction of $5,401,245.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 1,279,867 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $697,143,554.90. This represents a 0.78% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, COO Cd Baer Pettit sold 5,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $552.59, for a total value of $2,762,950.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 289,787 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $160,133,398.33. The trade was a 1.70% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders bought 12,400 shares of company stock worth $6,731,599. Insiders own 3.31% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently issued reports on MSCI shares. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $675.00 target price on shares of MSCI in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Evercore ISI cut their price target on shares of MSCI from $673.00 to $631.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Oppenheimer reiterated a "market perform" rating on shares of MSCI in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Bank of America started coverage on MSCI in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $585.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Barclays decreased their price target on MSCI from $675.00 to $650.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 4th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, MSCI currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $654.73.

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.