Moelis & Company (NYSE:MC) Downgraded by UBS Group to “Strong Sell”

UBS Group cut shares of Moelis & Company (NYSE:MC) from a hold rating to a strong sell rating in a research report report published on Tuesday morning,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other research analysts have also weighed in on the company. Weiss Ratings lowered Moelis & Company from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 26th. Zacks Research lowered shares of Moelis & Company from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on shares of Moelis & Company from $90.00 to $83.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Moelis & Company from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 2nd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price target on shares of Moelis & Company from $70.00 to $62.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 1st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Moelis & Company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $72.11.

Moelis & Company Trading Down 7.6%

Shares of Moelis & Company stock opened at $64.50 on Tuesday. Moelis & Company has a twelve month low of $51.06 and a twelve month high of $78.22. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.07 billion, a PE ratio of 23.20, a P/E/G ratio of 0.84 and a beta of 1.85. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $66.52 and its 200 day moving average price is $65.85.

Moelis & Company (NYSE:MC) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The asset manager reported $0.50 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.59 by ($0.09). The firm had revenue of $319.78 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $321.51 million. Moelis & Company had a net margin of 14.46% and a return on equity of 38.94%. Moelis & Company’s revenue was up 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.64 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Moelis & Company will post 3.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Moelis & Company Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 18th. Investors of record on Monday, May 11th were issued a $0.65 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 11th. This represents a $2.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.0%. Moelis & Company’s dividend payout ratio is currently 93.53%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Moelis & Company

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. V Square Quantitative Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Moelis & Company during the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Hantz Financial Services Inc. increased its stake in Moelis & Company by 64.4% during the fourth quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 416 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 163 shares during the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP raised its position in Moelis & Company by 153.9% in the third quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 419 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 254 shares during the period. Root Financial Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Moelis & Company by 292.2% in the 1st quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 455 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 339 shares during the last quarter. Finally, eCIO Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Moelis & Company in the 4th quarter valued at $33,000. 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. The company was founded by Kenneth David Moelis, Navid Mahmoodzadegan, Jeffrey Raich and Elizabeth Ann Crain in July 2007 and is headquartered in New York, NY.