Keefe, Bruyette & Woods Has Lowered Expectations for Moelis & Company (NYSE:MC) Stock Price

Key Points

• Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut its price target on Moelis & Company from $80 to $64 and maintained a "market perform" rating, implying roughly an 11.3% upside from the current share price.
• Analyst views are mixed: the consensus is a "Hold" with an average target of $72.78, while individual targets range from UBS's $59 to Morgan Stanley's $90, reflecting divergent expectations.
• Moelis beat quarterly estimates (EPS $1.13 vs. $0.76 expected; revenue $487.9M vs. $430.2M) and shows strong profitability (ROE 41.7%, net margin 15.4%), though the stock trades around $57.51 within a 52-week range of $47.00–$78.22.

Moelis & Company (NYSE:MC - Get Free Report) had its price objective reduced by equities research analysts at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods from $80.00 to $64.00 in a report released on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a "market perform" rating on the asset manager's stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods' price objective would indicate a potential upside of 11.28% from the company's current price.

MC has been the topic of several other research reports. UBS Group cut their target price on Moelis & Company from $74.00 to $59.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, March 12th. Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Moelis & Company in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Moelis & Company from $89.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. Bank of America started coverage on Moelis & Company in a research note on Monday, January 26th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $81.00 price target on the stock. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Moelis & Company from $80.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $72.78.

Moelis & Company Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MC opened at $57.51 on Wednesday. Moelis & Company has a fifty-two week low of $47.00 and a fifty-two week high of $78.22. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.46 billion, a PE ratio of 19.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.60 and a beta of 1.87. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $60.82 and its 200-day simple moving average is $66.04.

Moelis & Company (NYSE:MC - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The asset manager reported $1.13 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.76 by $0.37. Moelis & Company had a return on equity of 41.67% and a net margin of 15.36%.The business had revenue of $487.94 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $430.17 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.18 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 11.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Moelis & Company will post 2.97 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Moelis & Company

In other Moelis & Company news, General Counsel Osamu R. Watanabe sold 2,765 shares of Moelis & Company stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.23, for a total value of $172,065.95. Following the transaction, the general counsel directly owned 4,981 shares in the company, valued at approximately $309,967.63. This trade represents a 35.70% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 6.40% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of MC. V Square Quantitative Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Moelis & Company in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Bessemer Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Moelis & Company by 89.8% in the 3rd quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 389 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 184 shares during the last quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. grew its stake in shares of Moelis & Company by 64.4% in the 4th quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 416 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 163 shares during the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP grew its stake in shares of Moelis & Company by 153.9% in the 3rd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 419 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 254 shares during the last quarter. Finally, eCIO Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Moelis & Company in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $33,000. 91.53% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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. The company was founded by Kenneth David Moelis, Navid Mahmoodzadegan, Jeffrey Raich and Elizabeth Ann Crain in July 2007 and is headquartered in New York, NY.

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