Pacer Advisors Inc. Reduces Stock Position in MSCI Inc $MSCI

Key Points

• Pacer Advisors reduced its MSCI stake by 28.3% in the fourth quarter, selling 2,393 shares and leaving it with 6,055 shares valued at about $3.47 million.
• MSCI reported better-than-expected quarterly results, with EPS of $4.55 versus estimates of $4.38 and revenue of $850.8 million, up 14.1% from a year earlier.
• Analyst sentiment remains bullish overall, with an average Buy rating and a consensus price target of $697, while several firms recently raised targets or upgraded the stock.

Pacer Advisors Inc. cut its holdings in MSCI Inc (NYSE:MSCI - Free Report) by 28.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 6,055 shares of the technology company's stock after selling 2,393 shares during the quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc.'s holdings in MSCI were worth $3,474,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of MSCI. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in MSCI by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 3,320,761 shares of the technology company's stock worth $1,884,233,000 after buying an additional 39,450 shares during the period. Bamco Inc. NY raised its holdings in shares of MSCI by 15.1% during 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. Morgan Stanley raised its holdings in shares of MSCI by 2.2% during the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 2,467,556 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $1,415,713,000 after acquiring an additional 52,242 shares in the last quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in MSCI by 13.2% in 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 acquiring an additional 168,405 shares during the period. Finally, PineStone Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in MSCI by 4.1% in the fourth quarter. PineStone Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,000,942 shares of the technology company's stock worth $574,270,000 after acquiring an additional 39,099 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.97% of the company's stock.

MSCI Trading Up 0.1%

Shares of MSCI stock opened at $581.54 on Wednesday. The company's fifty day moving average price is $591.34 and its 200-day moving average price is $572.15. The stock has a market cap of $42.34 billion, a PE ratio of 33.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 1.24. MSCI Inc has a 12 month low of $501.08 and a 12 month high of $644.68.

MSCI (NYSE:MSCI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results 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. MSCI had a net margin of 40.74% and a negative return on equity of 65.48%. The company had revenue of $850.80 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $830.91 million. During the same period last year, the business earned $4.00 EPS. MSCI's quarterly revenue was up 14.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that MSCI Inc will post 19.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MSCI Dividend Announcement

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

MSCI has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of MSCI from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research report on Monday, June 15th. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of MSCI from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and raised their target price for the stock from $650.00 to $700.00 in a research report on Wednesday, May 27th. Rothschild & Co Redburn set a $690.00 target price on shares of MSCI in a research note on Thursday, June 18th. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $655.00 price target on shares of MSCI in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Finally, UBS Group increased their price target on shares of MSCI from $710.00 to $720.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and ten have assigned a Buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $697.00.

Key MSCI News

Here are the key news stories impacting MSCI this week:

• Positive Sentiment: MSCI’s annual classification review confirmed Bulgaria’s upgrade from Standalone to Frontier Market status, a sign of MSCI’s continued role in shaping global index flows and market access. MSCI Announces the Results of the MSCI 2026 Market Classification Review
• Neutral Sentiment: The review also kept attention on Indonesia and Turkey, noting concerns around shareholder transparency and coordinated trading but saying both markets have taken steps to address them. Investors are watching for possible future consultations, which adds uncertainty but no immediate major change. MSCI Announces the Results of the MSCI 2026 Market Classification Review
• Neutral Sentiment: Media coverage around the review has focused heavily on Indonesia’s emerging market status and South Korea’s MSCI watchlist, highlighting how MSCI’s index methodology can move large capital flows and spark short-term trading interest in related markets. Indonesia Faces Day of Reckoning in MSCI Review

Insider Buying and Selling at MSCI

In other MSCI news, insider Alvise J. Munari sold 10,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $592.04, for a total transaction of $5,920,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 23,548 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $13,941,357.92. This trade 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.

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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