Westwind Capital Has $13.34 Million Stake in MSCI Inc $MSCI

Key Points

• Westwind Capital increased its stock position in MSCI Inc by 2.9% during the 2nd quarter, now holding 23,125 shares valued at approximately $13.34 million.
• MSCI reported a quarterly earnings per share of $4.17, beating analysts' expectations of $4.12, and recorded a 9.1% increase in revenue compared to the previous year.
• Several hedge funds, including Vanguard Group and AQR Capital Management, have significantly increased their holdings in MSCI, reflecting strong interest from institutional investors.

Westwind Capital raised its holdings in MSCI Inc (NYSE:MSCI - Free Report) by 2.9% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 23,125 shares of the technology company's stock after buying an additional 652 shares during the quarter. MSCI comprises 2.7% of Westwind Capital's holdings, making the stock its 15th largest position. Westwind Capital's holdings in MSCI were worth $13,337,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

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

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Henry A. Fernandez acquired 9,916 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated 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 acquisition, the chief executive officer owned 1,279,867 shares in the company, valued at $697,143,554.90. This trade represents a 0.78% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In the last quarter, insiders have bought 12,400 shares of company stock worth $6,731,599. Insiders own 3.31% of the company's stock.

MSCI Stock Performance

Shares of MSCI traded up $9.47 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $569.22. 838,663 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 621,365. MSCI Inc has a 12 month low of $486.73 and a 12 month high of $642.45. The stock has a market capitalization of $44.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.70, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 1.34. The business's 50-day moving average price is $562.65 and its 200-day moving average price is $558.83.

MSCI (NYSE:MSCI - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 22nd. The technology company reported $4.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.12 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $772.68 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $763.06 million. MSCI had a net margin of 39.46% and a negative return on equity of 143.13%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 9.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $3.64 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that MSCI Inc will post 16.86 EPS for the current year.

MSCI Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 29th. Investors of record on Friday, August 15th were given a dividend of $1.80 per share. This represents a $7.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 15th. MSCI's payout ratio is currently 47.68%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MSCI has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on MSCI from $578.00 to $533.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on MSCI from $625.00 to $655.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 10th. Raymond James Financial upgraded MSCI from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $650.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 25th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price target on MSCI from $655.00 to $700.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $652.45.

About MSCI

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.