MSCI Inc. (NYSE:MSCI) Receives Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

MSCI Inc. (NYSE:MSCI) has earned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the sixteen analysts that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1-year price target among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $584.79.

A number of research analysts have recently commented on MSCI shares. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded MSCI to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 13th. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of MSCI from $575.00 to $585.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on shares of MSCI from $526.00 to $590.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 24th. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of MSCI from $600.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. Finally, Argus raised their target price on shares of MSCI from $520.00 to $600.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th.

MSCI Stock Down 0.3 %

NYSE:MSCI opened at $580.59 on Monday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $527.06 and its 200 day simple moving average is $521.45. The stock has a market cap of $45.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.16 and a beta of 1.10. MSCI has a twelve month low of $439.95 and a twelve month high of $617.39.

MSCI (NYSE:MSCI) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The technology company reported $3.64 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.55 by $0.09. MSCI had a net margin of 43.86% and a negative return on equity of 143.09%. The firm had revenue of $707.90 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $696.41 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $3.26 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts expect that MSCI will post 14.79 EPS for the current fiscal year.

MSCI Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 16th were paid a $1.60 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 16th. This represents a $6.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.10%. MSCI’s dividend payout ratio is presently 43.69%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On MSCI

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Legacy Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of MSCI by 2.8% during the 4th quarter. Legacy Advisors LLC now owns 664 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $376,000 after buying an additional 18 shares during the period. Conning Inc. boosted its position in MSCI by 4.1% in the second quarter. Conning Inc. now owns 479 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $231,000 after purchasing an additional 19 shares during the last quarter. Sompo Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its stake in shares of MSCI by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Sompo Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 2,080 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $1,177,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the period. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC increased its position in shares of MSCI by 3.8% during the 2nd quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 542 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $261,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of MSCI by 5.0% in the 2nd quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC now owns 423 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $204,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.97% of the company’s stock.

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.