MSCI Inc. (NYSE:MSCI) Shares Sold by Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC

Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC trimmed its position in shares of MSCI Inc. (NYSE:MSCI - Free Report) by 80.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 3,743 shares of the technology company's stock after selling 15,633 shares during the period. Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC's holdings in MSCI were worth $2,246,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Johnson Financial Group Inc. raised its position in shares of MSCI by 293.8% during the 4th quarter. Johnson Financial Group Inc. now owns 63 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 47 shares in the last quarter. Compagnie Lombard Odier SCmA purchased a new stake in MSCI during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $41,000. Y.D. More Investments Ltd lifted its stake in shares of MSCI by 122.7% in the 4th quarter. Y.D. More Investments Ltd now owns 98 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $59,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares during the last quarter. Picton Mahoney Asset Management bought a new stake in shares of MSCI in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $60,000. Finally, Private Trust Co. NA boosted its holdings in shares of MSCI by 46.8% in the 4th quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 113 shares of the technology company's stock worth $68,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares during the period. 89.97% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have commented on the stock. Bank of America assumed coverage on shares of MSCI in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $585.00 price objective for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of MSCI from $680.00 to $650.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of MSCI from $675.00 to $650.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 4th. Oppenheimer reaffirmed a "market perform" rating on shares of MSCI in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on MSCI from $532.00 to $530.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $645.36.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, COO Cd Baer Pettit sold 5,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $524.25, for a total value of $2,621,250.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 294,787 shares in the company, valued at $154,542,084.75. This represents a 1.67 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Henry A. Fernandez bought 5,300 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 24th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $574.51 per share, for a total transaction of $3,044,903.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer now owns 1,269,951 shares of the company's stock, valued at $729,599,549.01. This trade represents a 0.42 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 3.31% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

MSCI Price Performance

NYSE:MSCI traded up $5.69 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $558.36. 526,057 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 528,192. MSCI Inc. has a 52-week low of $472.38 and a 52-week high of $642.45. The stock has a market capitalization of $43.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.71, a PEG ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 1.33. The company's 50 day moving average price is $549.79 and its 200-day moving average price is $580.49.

MSCI (NYSE:MSCI - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The technology company reported $4.00 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.88 by $0.12. MSCI had a negative return on equity of 156.08% and a net margin of 38.83%. The firm had revenue of $745.83 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $746.45 million. On average, equities analysts predict that MSCI Inc. will post 16.86 earnings per share for the current year.

MSCI Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 16th will be paid a $1.80 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 16th. This represents a $7.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.29%. MSCI's payout ratio is currently 49.48%.

About MSCI

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.