MSCI Inc. (NYSE:MSCI) Given Consensus Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" by Brokerages

Shares of MSCI Inc. (NYSE:MSCI - Get Free Report) have received a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" from the fourteen research firms that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1-year price target among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $649.23.

Several research firms have recently issued reports on MSCI. Evercore ISI began coverage on shares of MSCI in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. They set an "outperform" rating and a $690.00 target price for the company. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $675.00 price objective on shares of MSCI in a research report on Thursday. Redburn Atlantic raised MSCI from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $680.00 target price for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on MSCI from $700.00 to $680.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. Finally, Wolfe Research raised MSCI from a "peer perform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th.

MSCI Stock Performance

Shares of MSCI traded down $2.69 on Thursday, reaching $590.36. The stock had a trading volume of 494,088 shares, compared to its average volume of 468,343. The firm has a market capitalization of $46.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $606.80 and a 200-day simple moving average of $581.51. MSCI has a 12-month low of $439.95 and a 12-month high of $642.45.

MSCI (NYSE:MSCI - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The technology company reported $4.18 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.96 by $0.22. MSCI had a net margin of 43.06% and a negative return on equity of 162.06%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $3.68 EPS. On average, analysts expect that MSCI will post 14.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

MSCI Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be issued a dividend of $1.80 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $7.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.22%. This is an increase from MSCI's previous quarterly dividend of $1.60. MSCI's payout ratio is currently 51.21%.

Insider Transactions at MSCI

In related news, CEO Henry A. Fernandez purchased 2,900 shares of MSCI stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 5th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $612.80 per share, for a total transaction of $1,777,120.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer now owns 330,379 shares in the company, valued at approximately $202,456,251.20. The trade was a 0.89 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 3.20% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On MSCI

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Marshall Wace LLP bought a new position in shares of MSCI during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $870,000. Mackenzie Financial Corp increased its stake in MSCI by 37.7% during the second quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 11,295 shares of the technology company's stock worth $5,441,000 after acquiring an additional 3,092 shares during the last quarter. Creative Planning lifted its holdings in shares of MSCI by 31.7% in the 2nd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 9,591 shares of the technology company's stock worth $4,620,000 after acquiring an additional 2,311 shares during the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC grew its holdings in MSCI by 40.3% during the 2nd quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 8,466 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $4,079,000 after purchasing an additional 2,430 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. grew its holdings in MSCI by 511.9% during the 2nd quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 2,888 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $1,391,000 after purchasing an additional 2,416 shares during the last quarter. 89.97% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About MSCI

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.