Morgan Stanley Increases WisdomTree (NYSE:WT) Price Target to $12.50

Key Points

• Morgan Stanley raised its price target for WisdomTree (NYSE:WT) from $11.50 to $12.50, suggesting a potential downside of 8.07% from the stock's last close.
• Multiple analysts have given positive ratings for WisdomTree, with Oppenheimer setting a target price of $15.00 and the stock achieving an average rating of "Moderate Buy" with a consensus target price of $13.15.
• WisdomTree reported earnings of $0.18 EPS, meeting expectations, and its revenue of $112.60 million showed a year-over-year increase of 5.2%.

WisdomTree (NYSE:WT - Free Report) had its price objective hoisted by Morgan Stanley from $11.50 to $12.50 in a research note released on Monday,Benzinga reports. Morgan Stanley currently has an equal weight rating on the stock.

Several other brokerages have also recently issued reports on WT. Craig Hallum reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of WisdomTree in a report on Monday, August 4th. Oppenheimer upped their price objective on WisdomTree from $12.00 to $15.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group raised WisdomTree from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and raised their price objective for the company from $9.50 to $11.90 in a research note on Friday, June 27th. Finally, Northcoast Research raised WisdomTree from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $15.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 2nd. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, WisdomTree has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $13.15.

WisdomTree Price Performance

Shares of WT traded up $0.3050 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $13.2350. 2,483,675 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,133,122. The company has a market cap of $1.95 billion, a PE ratio of 33.94 and a beta of 1.16. WisdomTree has a 52-week low of $7.47 and a 52-week high of $13.79. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $12.48 and a two-hundred day moving average of $10.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a current ratio of 1.44.

WisdomTree (NYSE:WT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 31st. The company reported $0.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.18. The business had revenue of $112.60 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $110.66 million. WisdomTree had a return on equity of 25.17% and a net margin of 16.25%.The company's revenue for the quarter was up 5.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.16 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that WisdomTree will post 0.72 earnings per share for the current year.

WisdomTree Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 27th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 13th will be paid a $0.03 dividend. This represents a $0.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, August 13th. WisdomTree's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 30.77%.

Insider Buying and Selling at WisdomTree

In other news, COO R Jarrett Lilien sold 25,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $13.33, for a total value of $333,250.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 1,048,638 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,978,344.54. This represents a 2.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 9.30% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On WisdomTree

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Simcoe Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of WisdomTree by 23.5% in the second quarter. Simcoe Capital Management LLC now owns 4,924,550 shares of the company's stock worth $56,682,000 after buying an additional 935,505 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of WisdomTree by 110.0% in the first quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 4,266,947 shares of the company's stock worth $38,061,000 after buying an additional 2,235,413 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its holdings in shares of WisdomTree by 0.4% in the first quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 3,698,844 shares of the company's stock worth $32,994,000 after buying an additional 13,746 shares during the period. Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in shares of WisdomTree in the first quarter worth approximately $17,003,000. Finally, Two Sigma Investments LP raised its holdings in shares of WisdomTree by 10.5% in the fourth quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 1,500,371 shares of the company's stock worth $15,754,000 after buying an additional 142,226 shares during the period. 78.64% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About WisdomTree

WisdomTree, Inc, through its subsidiaries, operates as an exchange-traded funds (ETFs) sponsor and asset manager. It offers ETFs in equities, currency, fixed income, and alternatives asset classes. The company also licenses its indexes to third parties for proprietary products, as well as offers a platform to promote the use of WisdomTree ETFs in 401(k) plans.