MSCI (NYSE:MSCI) CEO Buys $415,160.00 in Stock

MSCI Inc (NYSE:MSCI) CEO Henry Fernandez acquired 800 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $518.95 per share, with a total value of $415,160.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer directly owned 1,493,847 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $775,231,900.65. This represents a 0.05% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website.

MSCI Trading Down 0.9%

MSCI traded down $4.55 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $521.51. 790,705 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 669,084. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $572.98 and its two-hundred day moving average is $565.74. MSCI Inc has a 1-year low of $486.73 and a 1-year high of $626.28. The company has a market cap of $38.32 billion, a PE ratio of 33.24, a PEG ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 1.29.

MSCI (NYSE:MSCI) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The technology company reported $4.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.62 by $0.04. MSCI had a net margin of 38.36% and a negative return on equity of 82.59%. The business had revenue of $822.53 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $819.51 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $4.18 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 10.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts anticipate that MSCI Inc will post 16.86 earnings per share for the current year.

MSCI announced that its board has authorized a share repurchase program on Tuesday, October 28th that authorizes the company to buyback $3.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the technology company to reacquire up to 7.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

MSCI Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 13th will be paid a $2.05 dividend. This represents a $8.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.6%. This is a positive change from MSCI’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.80. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 13th. MSCI’s payout ratio is presently 52.26%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently commented on the company. UBS Group set a $638.00 target price on MSCI in a research note on Wednesday, January 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of MSCI from $655.00 to $680.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 29th. Evercore boosted their price target on shares of MSCI from $655.00 to $690.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $690.00 price objective on shares of MSCI in a research report on Monday, January 12th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on MSCI from $590.00 to $618.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $671.78.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On MSCI

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. purchased a new position in MSCI during the 3rd quarter worth $27,000. Root Financial Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of MSCI during the third quarter worth about $28,000. Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC increased its position in MSCI by 341.7% in the 4th quarter. Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC now owns 53 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 41 shares during the period. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd acquired a new position in MSCI in the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, Eagle Bay Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in MSCI during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $34,000. 89.97% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About MSCI

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.