MSCI Inc. (NYSE:MSCI) Given Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of MSCI Inc. (NYSE:MSCI) have earned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the fourteen analysts that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 1 year target price among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $649.23.

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of MSCI from $700.00 to $680.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $675.00 price target on shares of MSCI in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of MSCI from $662.00 to $695.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Barclays cut their price target on shares of MSCI from $700.00 to $675.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised shares of MSCI from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $617.00 to $723.00 in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Henry A. Fernandez purchased 5,300 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 24th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $574.51 per share, with a total value of $3,044,903.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,269,951 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $729,599,549.01. This represents a 0.42 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 3.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On MSCI

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MSCI. Menard Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in MSCI during the 4th quarter worth $26,000. LRI Investments LLC increased its stake in MSCI by 120.0% during the 3rd quarter. LRI Investments LLC now owns 44 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 24 shares during the period. True Wealth Design LLC purchased a new stake in MSCI during the 3rd quarter worth $38,000. Johnson Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in MSCI by 293.8% during the 4th quarter. Johnson Financial Group Inc. now owns 63 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $38,000 after buying an additional 47 shares during the period. Finally, Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in MSCI during the 3rd quarter worth $40,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.97% of the company’s stock.

MSCI Trading Up 1.5 %

NYSE MSCI opened at $590.15 on Monday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $593.74 and its 200 day moving average price is $589.33. MSCI has a twelve month low of $439.95 and a twelve month high of $642.45. The company has a market capitalization of $45.83 billion, a PE ratio of 41.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 1.11.

MSCI (NYSE:MSCI) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The technology company reported $4.18 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.96 by $0.22. MSCI had a net margin of 38.83% and a negative return on equity of 156.08%. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $3.68 EPS. Equities analysts predict that MSCI will post 16.86 EPS for the current year.

MSCI Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th were paid a $1.80 dividend. This represents a $7.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.22%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. This is an increase from MSCI’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.60. MSCI’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 51.21%.

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.