MSCI (NYSE:MSCI) Issues Earnings Results

Key Points

• Earnings beat: MSCI reported Q1 EPS of $4.55, beating estimates by $0.17, and revenue of $850.8M versus $830.9M consensus, with a net margin of 38.36%.
• Dividend increase: The company raised its quarterly dividend to $2.05 (from $1.80), implying an $8.20 annualized payout, a 1.4% yield and a 52.26% payout ratio.
• Market sentiment and insider moves: Analysts hold a consensus "Moderate Buy" with a $665.89 price target, while CEO Henry Fernandez bought 6,000 shares at about $524.18 and the CFO sold 450 shares.

MSCI (NYSE:MSCI - Get Free Report) posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday. The technology company reported $4.55 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $4.38 by $0.17, FiscalAI reports. MSCI had a negative return on equity of 82.59% and a net margin of 38.36%.The firm had revenue of $850.80 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $830.91 million.

MSCI Trading Down 0.1%

MSCI stock opened at $567.72 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $547.52 and a 200-day moving average price of $561.39. MSCI has a 1-year low of $501.08 and a 1-year high of $626.28. The firm has a market cap of $41.71 billion, a PE ratio of 36.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.30.

MSCI Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 13th were given a $2.05 dividend. This is a boost from MSCI's previous quarterly dividend of $1.80. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 13th. This represents a $8.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.4%. MSCI's dividend payout ratio is 52.26%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on MSCI shares. Raymond James Financial raised MSCI from an "outperform" rating to a "strong-buy" rating and set a $710.00 target price on the stock in a report on Tuesday, March 17th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $715.00 target price on shares of MSCI in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Evercore raised their target price on MSCI from $655.00 to $690.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, January 29th. UBS Group set a $638.00 target price on MSCI in a report on Wednesday, January 28th. Finally, Barclays reaffirmed an "overweight" rating on shares of MSCI in a report on Thursday, January 29th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, MSCI presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $665.89.

Insider Activity

In other MSCI news, CEO Henry A. Fernandez acquired 6,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 13th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $524.18 per share, with a total value of $3,145,080.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 1,493,047 shares in the company, valued at approximately $782,625,376.46. The trade was a 0.40% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Andrew C. Wiechmann sold 450 shares of MSCI stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $560.00, for a total value of $252,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 22,544 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $12,624,640. This trade represents a 1.96% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Company insiders own 3.76% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of MSCI

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MSCI. Generation Investment Management LLP bought a new stake in MSCI in the 4th quarter valued at about $130,380,000. Bank of America Corp DE increased its position in MSCI by 27.6% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 724,618 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $417,916,000 after buying an additional 156,891 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its position in MSCI by 61.4% in the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 360,030 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $206,561,000 after buying an additional 136,918 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its position in MSCI by 36.5% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 300,219 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $170,347,000 after buying an additional 80,251 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC increased its position in MSCI by 87.7% in the 2nd quarter. Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC now owns 154,778 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $89,267,000 after buying an additional 72,305 shares in the last quarter. 89.97% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About MSCI

MSCI Inc is a global provider of investment decision support tools and services for the financial industry. The company is best known for its family of market indexes, which are widely used as benchmarks by asset managers and as the basis for exchange-traded funds and other passive products. In addition to index construction and licensing, MSCI offers portfolio analytics, risk models, factor and performance attribution tools, and a suite of data and technology solutions designed to support portfolio management and trading.

Beyond traditional indexing and risk analytics, MSCI has expanded into environmental, social and governance (ESG) research and ratings, offering data, scores and screening tools that help investors integrate sustainability considerations into investment processes.

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