Fundsmith LLP Trims Holdings in MSCI Inc $MSCI

Fundsmith LLP lowered its stake in shares of MSCI Inc (NYSE:MSCI) by 17.3% in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 53,580 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 11,208 shares during the period. MSCI makes up approximately 0.2% of Fundsmith LLP’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 25th largest position. Fundsmith LLP owned 0.07% of MSCI worth $30,007,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Ancora Advisors LLC acquired a new position in MSCI during the second quarter worth $27,000. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of MSCI in the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. Elyxium Wealth LLC acquired a new position in MSCI during the 4th quarter worth about $34,000. Compound Global Advisors LLC acquired a new position in MSCI during the 2nd quarter worth about $34,000. Finally, Strategic Wealth Investment Group LLC acquired a new position in MSCI during the 2nd quarter worth about $36,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.97% of the company’s stock.

MSCI Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MSCI opened at $571.20 on Monday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $579.52 and its two-hundred day moving average is $573.23. MSCI Inc has a 1-year low of $501.08 and a 1-year high of $644.77. The company has a market cap of $41.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.18 and a beta of 1.23.

MSCI (NYSE:MSCI) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 21st. The technology company reported $4.94 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.99 by ($0.05). The company had revenue of $867.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $870.71 million. MSCI had a net margin of 40.74% and a negative return on equity of 55.19%. MSCI’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $4.17 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that MSCI Inc will post 19.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MSCI Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 28th. Investors of record on Friday, August 14th were issued a $2.05 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 14th. This represents a $8.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.4%. MSCI’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 44.86%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have weighed in on MSCI shares. Weiss Ratings downgraded MSCI from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Raymond James Financial increased their price target on shares of MSCI from $730.00 to $760.00 and gave the stock a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of MSCI from $700.00 to $742.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, July 20th. Bank of America lifted their price objective on shares of MSCI from $715.00 to $730.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 10th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $700.00 target price on shares of MSCI in a research note on Tuesday, July 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and eleven have given a Buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $709.50.

MSCI Profile

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.