Raymond James Financial Upgrades MSCI (NYSE:MSCI) to Strong-Buy

MSCI (NYSE:MSCI) was upgraded by investment analysts at Raymond James Financial from an “outperform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a note issued to investors on Tuesday, MarketBeat Ratings reports. The firm presently has a $710.00 price target on the technology company’s stock. Raymond James Financial’s price objective would suggest a potential upside of 29.12% from the company’s current price.

A number of other brokerages have also recently weighed in on MSCI. UBS Group set a $638.00 price target on shares of MSCI in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on MSCI from $590.00 to $618.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Barclays reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of MSCI in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $655.00 target price on shares of MSCI in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Finally, Bank of America initiated coverage on MSCI in a research report on Tuesday, February 17th. They set a “buy” rating and a $700.00 price target on the stock. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $674.00.

MSCI Stock Up 0.4%

Shares of MSCI stock opened at $549.88 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $40.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 1.29. MSCI has a fifty-two week low of $486.73 and a fifty-two week high of $626.28. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $568.05 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $564.62.

MSCI (NYSE:MSCI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 28th. The technology company reported $4.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.62 by $0.04. MSCI had a net margin of 38.36% and a negative return on equity of 82.59%. The company had revenue of $822.53 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $819.51 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $4.18 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 10.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that MSCI will post 16.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at MSCI

In other MSCI news, CEO Henry A. Fernandez bought 800 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 17th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $518.95 per share, with a total value of $415,160.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 1,493,847 shares in the company, valued at $775,231,900.65. The trade was a 0.05% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 3.31% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On MSCI

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of MSCI. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. purchased a new stake in MSCI during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $27,000. Root Financial Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of MSCI during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of MSCI by 341.7% during the fourth quarter. Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC now owns 53 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of MSCI during the fourth quarter worth approximately $30,000. Finally, Eagle Bay Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of MSCI in the fourth quarter worth $34,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.97% of the company’s stock.

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.