Moelis & Company (NYSE:MC) Receives Average Recommendation of "Reduce" from Brokerages

Shares of Moelis & Company (NYSE:MC - Get Free Report) have earned an average rating of "Reduce" from the seven research firms that are covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price objective among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $62.50.

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price objective on shares of Moelis & Company from $86.00 to $75.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, March 14th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods restated an "outperform" rating and set a $92.00 price objective (up from $86.00) on shares of Moelis & Company in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on Moelis & Company from $70.00 to $42.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 7th. JMP Securities reissued a "market perform" rating on shares of Moelis & Company in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Moelis & Company from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, March 13th.

Moelis & Company Trading Up 3.6 %

MC stock opened at $51.44 on Wednesday. Moelis & Company has a 1-year low of $46.24 and a 1-year high of $82.89. The business's 50-day moving average price is $60.49 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $69.32. The firm has a market cap of $3.86 billion, a PE ratio of 29.23 and a beta of 1.53.

Moelis & Company (NYSE:MC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The asset manager reported $1.18 EPS for the quarter, beating 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, analysts forecast that Moelis & Company will post 2.97 earnings per share for the current year.

Moelis & Company Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 27th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th were paid a $0.65 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 18th. This is a boost from Moelis & Company's previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. This represents a $2.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.05%. Moelis & Company's dividend payout ratio is currently 147.73%.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Christopher Callesano sold 1,282 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $74.00, for a total transaction of $94,868.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 1,227 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $90,798. This represents a 51.10 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, General Counsel Osamu R. Watanabe sold 5,661 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $74.00, for a total transaction of $418,914.00. Following the sale, the general counsel now owns 6,471 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $478,854. This represents a 46.66 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 22,721 shares of company stock worth $1,677,017. 6.40% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Moelis & Company

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of MC. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC raised its stake in Moelis & Company by 52.5% in the fourth quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 398 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 137 shares in the last quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new position in shares of Moelis & Company in the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. R Squared Ltd bought a new position in shares of Moelis & Company in the 4th quarter worth approximately $47,000. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB lifted its stake in shares of Moelis & Company by 1,551.3% in the 1st quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 644 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 605 shares during the period. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its position in shares of Moelis & Company by 1,460.8% during the first quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 796 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 745 shares in the last quarter. 91.53% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Moelis & Company 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.

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