Analysts Set MSCI Inc. (NYSE:MSCI) PT at $570.53

MSCI Inc. (NYSE:MSCI) has been assigned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the seventeen brokerages that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, six have given a hold recommendation and ten have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year target price among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $570.53.

Several research firms have commented on MSCI. Wolfe Research began coverage on shares of MSCI in a report on Tuesday, March 26th. They issued a “peer perform” rating on the stock. Barclays decreased their price target on shares of MSCI from $700.00 to $600.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price target on shares of MSCI from $615.00 to $526.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 24th. Bank of America upgraded shares of MSCI from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and upped their price target for the company from $425.00 to $525.00 in a research note on Tuesday, April 30th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of MSCI from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and decreased their price target for the company from $613.00 to $569.00 in a research note on Wednesday, April 24th.

MSCI Price Performance

NYSE:MSCI opened at $488.79 on Wednesday. MSCI has a one year low of $439.95 and a one year high of $617.39. The company has a market cap of $38.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.36, a P/E/G ratio of 2.51 and a beta of 1.11. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $486.73 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $531.86.

MSCI (NYSE:MSCI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 23rd. The technology company reported $3.52 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.44 by $0.08. MSCI had a net margin of 44.55% and a negative return on equity of 121.86%. The firm had revenue of $680.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $685.47 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $3.14 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 14.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts expect that MSCI will post 14.66 earnings per share for the current year.

MSCI Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 17th were issued a $1.60 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 16th. This represents a $6.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.31%. MSCI’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 43.69%.

Insider Transactions at MSCI

In other news, insider Scott A. Crum sold 9,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $471.69, for a total value of $4,245,210.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 12,831 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,052,254.39. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, insider Scott A. Crum sold 9,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $471.69, for a total value of $4,245,210.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 12,831 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,052,254.39. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, COO Cd Baer Pettit acquired 7,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 25th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $459.41 per share, with a total value of $3,445,575.00. Following the acquisition, the chief operating officer now owns 291,038 shares in the company, valued at $133,705,767.58. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 3.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Optiver Holding B.V. acquired a new stake in MSCI during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Rise Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in MSCI during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Headinvest LLC acquired a new stake in MSCI during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Crewe Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in MSCI during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Finally, American National Bank increased its position in MSCI by 1,300.0% during the 4th quarter. American National Bank now owns 70 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 89.97% of the company’s stock.

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.