Nuveen LLC Makes New Investment in Moelis & Company $MC

Key Points

• Nuveen LLC has acquired 335,185 shares of Moelis & Company, valued at approximately $19.6 million, representing about 0.43% of the company at the end of the first quarter.
• Moelis & Company recently reported strong earnings, with $0.53 earnings per share for the quarter, surpassing estimates of $0.32, and a revenue of $365.38 million, up 38.1% year-over-year.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.65 per share, with a yield of 3.7%, although its dividend payout ratio is relatively high at 102.36%.

Nuveen LLC bought a new position in shares of Moelis & Company (NYSE:MC - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 335,185 shares of the asset manager's stock, valued at approximately $19,561,000. Nuveen LLC owned about 0.43% of Moelis & Company as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB lifted its position in Moelis & Company by 1,551.3% during the first quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 644 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 605 shares during the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its position in Moelis & Company by 1,460.8% during the first quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 796 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 745 shares during the last quarter. NBC Securities Inc. bought a new position in Moelis & Company during the first quarter valued at $59,000. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in Moelis & Company by 38.9% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,632 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $95,000 after purchasing an additional 457 shares during the last quarter. Finally, New Age Alpha Advisors LLC bought a new position in Moelis & Company during the first quarter valued at $107,000. Institutional investors own 91.53% of the company's stock.

Moelis & Company Stock Up 4.6%

MC stock traded up $3.2220 during trading on Friday, hitting $72.6020. The company had a trading volume of 829,003 shares, compared to its average volume of 751,375. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.58 and a beta of 1.70. Moelis & Company has a 52-week low of $47.00 and a 52-week high of $82.89. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $67.66 and a 200-day simple moving average of $62.70.

Moelis & Company (NYSE:MC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 24th. The asset manager reported $0.53 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.32 by $0.21. The company had revenue of $365.38 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $269.57 million. Moelis & Company had a net margin of 14.31% and a return on equity of 42.72%. The firm's revenue was up 38.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.18 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Moelis & Company will post 2.97 earnings per share for the current year.

Moelis & Company Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 18th. Investors of record on Monday, August 4th will be paid a $0.65 dividend. This represents a $2.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 4th. Moelis & Company's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 102.36%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, General Counsel Osamu R. Watanabe sold 6,340 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.64, for a total value of $460,537.60. Following the transaction, the general counsel owned 131 shares of the company's stock, valued at $9,515.84. This trade represents a 97.98% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 6.40% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MC has been the subject of several research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on shares of Moelis & Company from $69.00 to $89.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, July 14th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Moelis & Company from $50.00 to $64.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, July 11th. Zacks Research raised shares of Moelis & Company from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday, August 18th. Morgan Stanley raised shares of Moelis & Company from an "underweight" rating to an "overweight" rating and increased their target price for the company from $42.00 to $68.00 in a research note on Monday, June 23rd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on shares of Moelis & Company from $56.00 to $63.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 15th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $66.00.

Moelis & Company Profile

Moelis & Co operates as a holding company. It engages in the provision of financial advisory, capital raising and asset management services to a client base including corporations, governments, sovereign wealth funds and financial sponsors. The firm focuses on clients including large public multinational corporations, middle market private companies, financial sponsors, entrepreneurs and governments.