Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI Lowers Holdings in MSCI Inc. (NYSE:MSCI)

Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI decreased its holdings in MSCI Inc. (NYSE:MSCI) by 2.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 725 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 20 shares during the quarter. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI’s holdings in MSCI were worth $435,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MSCI. Edgewood Management LLC lifted its stake in MSCI by 16.9% in the third quarter. Edgewood Management LLC now owns 2,195,639 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $1,279,904,000 after acquiring an additional 318,214 shares during the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in MSCI in the fourth quarter worth approximately $126,082,000. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its stake in MSCI by 14.3% in the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 1,587,723 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $925,531,000 after acquiring an additional 198,666 shares during the last quarter. Canoe Financial LP lifted its stake in MSCI by 700.4% in the fourth quarter. Canoe Financial LP now owns 186,131 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $111,680,000 after acquiring an additional 162,877 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fisher Funds Management LTD purchased a new position in MSCI in the fourth quarter worth approximately $82,722,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.97% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at MSCI

In other news, CEO Henry A. Fernandez acquired 5,300 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 24th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $574.51 per share, for a total transaction of $3,044,903.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,269,951 shares in the company, valued at approximately $729,599,549.01. This represents a 0.42 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 3.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

MSCI Price Performance

Shares of MSCI stock opened at $572.61 on Thursday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $591.88 and its 200-day simple moving average is $589.97. The stock has a market capitalization of $44.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.73, a PEG ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 1.19. MSCI Inc. has a 12 month low of $439.95 and a 12 month high of $642.45.

MSCI (NYSE:MSCI) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The technology company reported $4.18 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.96 by $0.22. MSCI had a net margin of 38.83% and a negative return on equity of 156.08%. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $3.68 EPS. Analysts anticipate that MSCI Inc. will post 16.86 earnings per share for the current year.

MSCI Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 28th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th were given a $1.80 dividend. This represents a $7.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.26%. This is a positive change from MSCI’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.60. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. MSCI’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 51.21%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on MSCI shares. Barclays decreased their price target on shares of MSCI from $700.00 to $675.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $675.00 price objective on shares of MSCI in a report on Thursday, January 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of MSCI from $700.00 to $680.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Wolfe Research raised shares of MSCI from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised shares of MSCI from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $617.00 to $723.00 in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $649.23.

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.