MSCI Inc. (NYSE:MSCI) Shares Acquired by EULAV Asset Management

EULAV Asset Management boosted its stake in MSCI Inc. (NYSE:MSCI) by 8.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 203,958 shares of the technology company’s stock after acquiring an additional 15,501 shares during the period. MSCI accounts for about 2.9% of EULAV Asset Management’s holdings, making the stock its 4th biggest position. EULAV Asset Management owned approximately 0.26% of MSCI worth $122,377,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. LRI Investments LLC increased its stake in shares of MSCI by 120.0% during the third quarter. LRI Investments LLC now owns 44 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 24 shares during the period. True Wealth Design LLC acquired a new position in MSCI during the third quarter worth $38,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in shares of MSCI during the 3rd quarter worth $40,000. Planning Capital Management Corp increased its holdings in shares of MSCI by 35.1% in the 3rd quarter. Planning Capital Management Corp now owns 77 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $45,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Private Trust Co. NA grew its position in MSCI by 35.1% during the third quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 77 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $45,000 after buying an additional 20 shares during the period. 89.97% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at MSCI

In other MSCI news, CEO Henry A. Fernandez purchased 2,900 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 5th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $612.80 per share, with a total value of $1,777,120.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 330,379 shares in the company, valued at approximately $202,456,251.20. This trade represents a 0.89 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 3.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

MSCI Stock Down 1.4 %

Shares of MSCI stock opened at $579.13 on Friday. MSCI Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $439.95 and a fifty-two week high of $642.45. The business’s fifty day moving average is $605.76 and its two-hundred day moving average is $584.53. The firm has a market cap of $45.39 billion, a PE ratio of 41.19, a P/E/G ratio of 2.72 and a beta of 1.11.

MSCI (NYSE:MSCI) last released its earnings results 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 negative return on equity of 156.08% and a net margin of 38.83%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.68 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that MSCI Inc. will post 16.85 EPS for the current year.

MSCI Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th will be given a $1.80 dividend. This is a positive change from MSCI’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.60. This represents a $7.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.24%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. MSCI’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 51.21%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MSCI has been the subject of a number of research reports. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of MSCI from $570.00 to $600.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, October 11th. UBS Group decreased their target price on MSCI from $695.00 to $680.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded MSCI from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price target for the company from $617.00 to $723.00 in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $675.00 price objective on shares of MSCI in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Barclays cut their target price on shares of MSCI from $700.00 to $675.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, MSCI presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $649.23.

MSCI 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.