Moelis & Company (NYSE:MC) to Issue $0.65 Quarterly Dividend

Key Points

• Moelis & Company will pay a quarterly dividend of $0.65 per share (annualized $2.60) to holders of record on May 11, payable June 18, implying a dividend yield of about 4.0%.
• The firm missed Q1 estimates, reporting $0.50 EPS versus $0.53 expected and revenue of $319.8M versus $410.8M expected, and the stock was down roughly 2.8%.
• Moelis currently has a high payout ratio of 92.5%, but analysts project $4.29 EPS next year, which would reduce the payout ratio to about 60.6% and likely support the $2.60 annual dividend.

Moelis & Company (NYSE:MC - Get Free Report) announced a quarterly dividend on Wednesday, April 29th. Investors of record on Monday, May 11th will be given a dividend of 0.65 per share by the asset manager on Thursday, June 18th. This represents a c) annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 11th.

Moelis & Company has decreased its dividend payment by an average of 0.1%annually over the last three years and has increased its dividend every year for the last 1 years. Moelis & Company has a payout ratio of 92.5% meaning its dividend is currently covered by earnings, but may not be in the future if the company's earnings fall. Equities analysts expect Moelis & Company to earn $4.29 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $2.60 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 60.6%.

Moelis & Company Stock Down 2.8%

Shares of NYSE:MC opened at $65.16 on Thursday. Moelis & Company has a 52-week low of $51.06 and a 52-week high of $78.22. The stock has a market cap of $5.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.67, a PEG ratio of 0.80 and a beta of 1.87. The business has a fifty day moving average of $59.94 and a two-hundred day moving average of $65.72.

Moelis & Company (NYSE:MC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The asset manager reported $0.50 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.53 by ($0.03). Moelis & Company had a net margin of 15.36% and a return on equity of 41.67%. The firm had revenue of $319.78 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $410.83 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.64 EPS. The company's revenue was up 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Moelis & Company will post 3.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Moelis & Company

In other news, General Counsel Osamu R. Watanabe sold 2,765 shares of Moelis & Company stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.23, for a total value of $172,065.95. Following the completion of the transaction, the general counsel 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 filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 6.40% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. acquired a new stake in shares of Moelis & Company in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $60,857,000. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Moelis & Company during the 4th quarter worth $42,919,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company lifted its holdings in shares of Moelis & Company by 1,161.8% in the 2nd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 661,594 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $41,231,000 after buying an additional 609,162 shares during the period. Wasatch Advisors LP boosted its stake in shares of Moelis & Company by 16.1% in the third quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 3,304,180 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $235,654,000 after buying an additional 458,575 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fort Washington Investment Advisors Inc. OH acquired a new position in Moelis & Company during the first quarter worth $21,701,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.53% of the company's stock.

About Moelis & Company

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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