Versor Investments LP Makes New $1.43 Million Investment in Moelis & Company $MC

Key Points

• Versor Investments LP has acquired a new stake in Moelis & Company by purchasing 24,539 shares valued at approximately $1.43 million during the first quarter.
• Several hedge funds, including Bank of Montreal and Barclays PLC, have also increased their holdings in Moelis & Company, with institutional ownership currently at 91.53%.
• Moelis & Company recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.65 per share, representing a 3.6% yield, despite a high payout ratio of 102.36%.

Versor Investments LP 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 filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 24,539 shares of the asset manager's stock, valued at approximately $1,432,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB grew its stake in shares of 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 worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 605 shares in the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its holdings in Moelis & Company by 1,460.8% in 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 in the last quarter. NBC Securities Inc. acquired a new position in Moelis & Company in the first quarter valued at approximately $59,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in Moelis & Company by 38.9% in 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 in the last quarter. Finally, New Age Alpha Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Moelis & Company in the first quarter valued at approximately $107,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.53% of the company's stock.

Moelis & Company Stock Up 4.6%

Shares of NYSE MC traded up $3.2220 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $72.6020. 829,003 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 751,375. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $67.66 and a 200-day simple moving average of $62.82. Moelis & Company has a 1-year low of $47.00 and a 1-year high of $82.89. The firm has a market cap of $5.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.58 and a beta of 1.70.

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

Moelis & Company Announces Dividend

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 issued a dividend of $0.65 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 4th. This represents a $2.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.6%. Moelis & Company's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 102.36%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Moelis & Company

In related news, General Counsel Osamu R. Watanabe sold 6,340 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, July 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.64, for a total transaction of $460,537.60. Following the completion of the sale, the general counsel directly owned 131 shares of the company's stock, valued at $9,515.84. This trade represents a 97.98% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 6.40% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

Moelis & Company 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.