MSCI Inc (NYSE:MSCI) Given Average Rating of “Buy” by Analysts

MSCI Inc (NYSE:MSCI) has been given an average recommendation of “Buy” by the twelve research firms that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year target price among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $709.50.

A number of brokerages have commented on MSCI. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on MSCI in a report on Friday, July 17th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $760.00 price objective on the stock. Barclays raised their price target on shares of MSCI from $700.00 to $735.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, July 10th. Bank of America boosted their price objective on shares of MSCI from $715.00 to $730.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 10th. Evercore set a $722.00 price target on shares of MSCI in a research report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $655.00 price target on shares of MSCI in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On MSCI

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of MSCI. Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of MSCI by 341.7% during the 4th quarter. Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC now owns 53 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of MSCI in the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of MSCI in the 4th quarter valued at $34,000. Elyxium Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of MSCI during the 4th quarter worth $34,000. Finally, Compound Global Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of MSCI during the 2nd quarter worth $34,000. 89.97% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

MSCI Price Performance

NYSE:MSCI opened at $562.17 on Monday. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $592.22 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $575.59. The company has a market cap of $40.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.75, a P/E/G ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 1.23. MSCI has a one year low of $501.08 and a one year high of $644.77.

MSCI (NYSE:MSCI) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 21st. The technology company reported $4.94 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.99 by ($0.05). The company had revenue of $867.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $870.71 million. MSCI had a negative return on equity of 55.19% and a net margin of 40.74%.The business’s quarterly revenue was up 12.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $4.17 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that MSCI will post 19.61 earnings per share for the current year.

MSCI Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 28th. Investors of record on Friday, August 14th will be given a $2.05 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 14th. This represents a $8.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.5%. MSCI’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 44.86%.

About MSCI

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.