MSCI (NYSE:MSCI) Upgraded at Seaport Res Ptn

Key Points

• MSCI has been upgraded to a "strong-buy" rating by Seaport Res Ptn, indicating positive sentiment from analysts regarding the stock's potential.
• UBS Group has raised its price target for MSCI from $655.00 to $700.00, while Wells Fargo adjusted its target downward to $533.00.
• MSCI reported earnings of $4.17 per share for the last quarter, surpassing expectations and showing a 9.1% year-over-year revenue increase.

MSCI (NYSE:MSCI - Get Free Report) was upgraded by equities researchers at Seaport Res Ptn to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday,Zacks.com reports.

Other equities analysts have also issued reports about the company. UBS Group increased their price target on MSCI from $655.00 to $700.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on MSCI from $578.00 to $533.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Raymond James Financial raised MSCI from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $650.00 target price on the stock in a report on Friday, July 25th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of MSCI from $625.00 to $655.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $652.45.

MSCI Trading Down 2.6%

MSCI stock opened at $552.81 on Wednesday. MSCI has a 52 week low of $486.73 and a 52 week high of $642.45. The stock has a market cap of $42.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.61, a PEG ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 1.33. The company's 50-day moving average price is $563.04 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $559.63.

MSCI (NYSE:MSCI - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 22nd. The technology company reported $4.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.12 by $0.05. MSCI had a net margin of 39.46% and a negative return on equity of 143.13%. The business had revenue of $772.68 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $763.06 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted $3.64 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that MSCI will post 16.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Henry A. Fernandez acquired 84 shares of MSCI stock in a transaction on Friday, July 25th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $548.69 per share, with a total value of $46,089.96. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer owned 1,279,951 shares of the company's stock, valued at $702,296,314.19. This represents a 0.01% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders have bought 12,400 shares of company stock worth $6,731,599 over the last ninety days. 3.31% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On MSCI

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its stake in MSCI by 147.2% during the 1st quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 89 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $50,000 after purchasing an additional 53 shares during the period. NBC Securities Inc. purchased a new position in shares of MSCI during the first quarter valued at $607,000. Merit Financial Group LLC raised its position in MSCI by 144.0% during the first quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 7,301 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $4,129,000 after buying an additional 4,309 shares during the period. Sentry Investment Management LLC raised its position in MSCI by 96.5% during the first quarter. Sentry Investment Management LLC now owns 226 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $128,000 after buying an additional 111 shares during the period. Finally, Salvus Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in MSCI by 2.6% in the 1st quarter. Salvus Wealth Management LLC now owns 824 shares of the technology company's stock worth $466,000 after acquiring an additional 21 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.97% of the company's stock.

MSCI Company Profile

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.

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