Forsta AP Fonden Reduces Holdings in MSCI Inc. (NYSE:MSCI)

Forsta AP Fonden reduced its position in MSCI Inc. (NYSE:MSCI - Free Report) by 5.8% in the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 22,800 shares of the technology company's stock after selling 1,400 shares during the quarter. Forsta AP Fonden's holdings in MSCI were worth $10,984,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of MSCI. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of MSCI by 0.4% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 8,719,381 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $4,886,777,000 after acquiring an additional 36,043 shares during the last quarter. Capital International Investors lifted its position in MSCI by 0.5% during the first quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 1,734,519 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $972,111,000 after purchasing an additional 9,304 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in MSCI by 74.9% in the 2nd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,456,194 shares of the technology company's stock worth $701,522,000 after buying an additional 623,712 shares in the last quarter. Sustainable Growth Advisers LP grew its stake in MSCI by 1.8% in the 1st quarter. Sustainable Growth Advisers LP now owns 1,323,058 shares of the technology company's stock worth $741,508,000 after buying an additional 23,217 shares in the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. increased its holdings in shares of MSCI by 1.3% in the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,047,960 shares of the technology company's stock worth $504,855,000 after buying an additional 13,620 shares during the last quarter. 89.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

MSCI Price Performance

MSCI traded up $2.18 during trading on Friday, hitting $561.93. 383,653 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 561,524. The firm has a market capitalization of $44.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.06 and a beta of 1.11. MSCI Inc. has a 12-month low of $439.95 and a 12-month high of $617.39. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $541.33 and a 200 day moving average of $522.13.

MSCI (NYSE:MSCI - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The technology company reported $3.64 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.55 by $0.09. MSCI had a net margin of 43.86% and a negative return on equity of 143.09%. The company had revenue of $707.90 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $696.41 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $3.26 earnings per share. MSCI's revenue for the quarter was up 14.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that MSCI Inc. will post 14.79 EPS for the current fiscal year.

MSCI Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 16th were given a $1.60 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 16th. This represents a $6.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.14%. MSCI's dividend payout ratio is currently 43.69%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $638.00 price objective on shares of MSCI in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on MSCI from $526.00 to $590.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. Wells Fargo & Company raised MSCI to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 13th. Argus upped their target price on MSCI from $520.00 to $600.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of MSCI from $615.00 to $640.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 24th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, MSCI presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $588.36.

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.