Proficio Capital Partners LLC Acquires Shares of 137,491 Moelis & Company (NYSE:MC)

Proficio Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Moelis & Company (NYSE:MC - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 137,491 shares of the asset manager's stock, valued at approximately $10,158,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC owned approximately 0.18% of Moelis & Company at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. R Squared Ltd purchased a new position in Moelis & Company in the 4th quarter worth about $47,000. Jones Financial Companies Lllp grew its stake in shares of Moelis & Company by 148.3% in the fourth quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 822 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $61,000 after acquiring an additional 491 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Moelis & Company by 368.2% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,016 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $75,000 after purchasing an additional 799 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in Moelis & Company by 18.1% during the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,175 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $87,000 after purchasing an additional 180 shares during the period. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. boosted its holdings in Moelis & Company by 47.7% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,597 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $109,000 after purchasing an additional 516 shares during the last quarter. 91.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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Moelis & Company Stock Performance

Shares of MC traded up $0.72 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $60.13. The stock had a trading volume of 712,726 shares, compared to its average volume of 865,827. The business has a fifty day moving average of $72.29 and a 200 day moving average of $71.68. The firm has a market cap of $4.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.16 and a beta of 1.43. Moelis & Company has a 12 month low of $46.24 and a 12 month high of $82.89.

Moelis & Company (NYSE:MC - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The asset manager reported $1.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.39 by $0.79. Moelis & Company had a return on equity of 38.49% and a net margin of 11.39%. On average, research analysts forecast that Moelis & Company will post 2.97 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Moelis & Company Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 27th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be given a dividend of $0.65 per share. This is a positive change from Moelis & Company's previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $2.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.32%. Moelis & Company's dividend payout ratio is currently 147.73%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on MC shares. StockNews.com lowered shares of Moelis & Company from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 13th. JMP Securities reissued a "market perform" rating on shares of Moelis & Company in a report on Thursday, February 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price target on Moelis & Company from $86.00 to $75.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, March 14th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $92.00 price target (up previously from $86.00) on shares of Moelis & Company in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reissued an "underweight" rating and issued a $70.00 price objective (down previously from $100.00) on shares of Moelis & Company in a report on Thursday, March 13th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $71.83.

Insider Buying and Selling at Moelis & Company

In other Moelis & Company news, insider Christopher Callesano sold 1,282 shares of Moelis & Company stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $74.00, for a total value of $94,868.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 1,227 shares of the company's stock, valued at $90,798. The trade was a 51.10 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Kenneth Shropshire sold 2,551 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.30, for a total value of $184,437.30. Following the transaction, the director now owns 6,940 shares of the company's stock, valued at $501,762. This represents a 26.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 22,721 shares of company stock worth $1,677,017. Insiders own 6.40% of the company's stock.

Moelis & Company Profile

Moelis & Co operates as a holding company. It engages in the provision of financial advisory, capital raising and asset management services to a client base including corporations, governments, sovereign wealth funds and financial sponsors. The firm focuses on clients including large public multinational corporations, middle market private companies, financial sponsors, entrepreneurs and governments.