MSCI Inc (NYSE:MSCI) Short Interest Down 14.3% in February

MSCI Inc (NYSE:MSCI) was the recipient of a large drop in short interest during the month of February. As of February 27th, there was short interest totaling 1,305,533 shares, a drop of 14.3% from the February 12th total of 1,523,454 shares. Currently, 1.8% of the shares of the company are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 698,824 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 1.9 days. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 698,824 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 1.9 days. Currently, 1.8% of the shares of the company are short sold.

Insider Activity at MSCI

In related news, CEO Henry A. Fernandez acquired 800 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 17th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $518.95 per share, with a total value of $415,160.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 1,493,847 shares in the company, valued at approximately $775,231,900.65. This represents a 0.05% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 3.31% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On MSCI

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in MSCI. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in MSCI by 6.6% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,777,749 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $1,008,745,000 after acquiring an additional 109,287 shares during the last quarter. Katamaran Capital LLP grew its position in shares of MSCI by 57.1% in the third quarter. Katamaran Capital LLP now owns 4,919 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $2,791,000 after purchasing an additional 1,788 shares in the last quarter. Dash Acquisitions Inc. grew its position in shares of MSCI by 103.6% in the third quarter. Dash Acquisitions Inc. now owns 14,958 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $8,490,000 after purchasing an additional 7,613 shares in the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of MSCI by 37.7% in the third quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 12,228 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $6,938,000 after purchasing an additional 3,346 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Canoe Financial LP lifted its position in MSCI by 12.6% during the third quarter. Canoe Financial LP now owns 209,831 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $119,060,000 after buying an additional 23,500 shares in the last quarter. 89.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

MSCI Trading Down 1.0%

Shares of NYSE:MSCI traded down $5.44 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $554.97. The stock had a trading volume of 247,892 shares, compared to its average volume of 645,725. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $567.54 and its 200 day simple moving average is $564.57. MSCI has a one year low of $486.73 and a one year high of $626.28. The company has a market capitalization of $40.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.37, a PEG ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 1.29.

MSCI (NYSE:MSCI) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 28th. The technology company reported $4.66 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.62 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $822.53 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $819.51 million. MSCI had a net margin of 38.36% and a negative return on equity of 82.59%. MSCI’s revenue was up 10.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $4.18 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that MSCI will post 16.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MSCI Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 27th. Investors of record on Friday, February 13th were given a dividend of $2.05 per share. This is a boost from MSCI’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.80. This represents a $8.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.5%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 13th. MSCI’s payout ratio is presently 52.26%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MSCI has been the subject of several analyst reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $715.00 target price on shares of MSCI in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Evercore increased their price objective on shares of MSCI from $655.00 to $690.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. UBS Group set a $638.00 price objective on shares of MSCI in a research note on Wednesday, January 28th. Bank of America initiated coverage on MSCI in a research note on Tuesday, February 17th. They set a “buy” rating and a $700.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded MSCI from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Friday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $674.00.

MSCI Company Profile

MSCI Inc is a global provider of investment decision support tools and services for the financial industry. The company is best known for its family of market indexes, which are widely used as benchmarks by asset managers and as the basis for exchange-traded funds and other passive products. In addition to index construction and licensing, MSCI offers portfolio analytics, risk models, factor and performance attribution tools, and a suite of data and technology solutions designed to support portfolio management and trading.

Beyond traditional indexing and risk analytics, MSCI has expanded into environmental, social and governance (ESG) research and ratings, offering data, scores and screening tools that help investors integrate sustainability considerations into investment processes.