MSCI Inc (NYSE:MSCI) Receives Consensus Rating of “Buy” from Brokerages

MSCI Inc (NYSE:MSCI) has earned a consensus recommendation of “Buy” from the eleven analysts that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat reports. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price target among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $697.70.

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of MSCI from $710.00 to $720.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $655.00 price target on shares of MSCI in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Raymond James Financial reissued a “strong-buy” rating and set a $730.00 price target on shares of MSCI in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Bank of America assumed coverage on shares of MSCI in a research report on Tuesday, February 17th. They set a “buy” rating and a $700.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of MSCI from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price target for the company from $650.00 to $700.00 in a research report on Wednesday, May 27th.

MSCI Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MSCI opened at $599.14 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $43.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.22, a P/E/G ratio of 2.26 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $584.93 and a 200-day moving average price of $570.38. MSCI has a 1 year low of $501.08 and a 1 year high of $644.68.

MSCI (NYSE:MSCI) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 21st. The technology company reported $4.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.38 by $0.17. MSCI had a net margin of 40.74% and a negative return on equity of 65.48%. The firm had revenue of $850.80 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $830.91 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $4.00 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 14.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that MSCI will post 19.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MSCI Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 29th. Investors of record on Friday, May 15th were given a dividend of $2.05 per share. This represents a $8.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 15th. MSCI’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 46.83%.

Insider Transactions at MSCI

In related news, insider Alvise J. Munari sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $592.04, for a total transaction of $5,920,400.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 23,548 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,941,357.92. This trade represents a 29.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Andrew C. Wiechmann sold 450 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $560.00, for a total transaction of $252,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 22,544 shares in the company, valued at $12,624,640. The trade was a 1.96% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 3.76% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of MSCI

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC raised its position in MSCI by 341.7% in the fourth quarter. Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC now owns 53 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 41 shares during the period. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd bought a new stake in MSCI in the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC bought a new stake in MSCI in the fourth quarter worth about $34,000. Elyxium Wealth LLC bought a new stake in MSCI in the fourth quarter worth about $34,000. Finally, SHP Wealth Management bought a new stake in MSCI in the fourth quarter worth about $36,000. Institutional investors own 89.97% of the company’s stock.

MSCI Company 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.