Moelis & Company (NYSE:MC) Director Kenneth Shropshire Sells 2,551 Shares

Moelis & Company (NYSE:MC) Director Kenneth Shropshire sold 2,551 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.30, for a total value of $184,437.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 6,940 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $501,762. The trade was a 26.88 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website.

Moelis & Company Stock Performance

Shares of MC stock traded down $2.20 on Friday, hitting $71.37. The company had a trading volume of 1,220,221 shares, compared to its average volume of 776,971. The firm has a market cap of $5.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.55 and a beta of 1.40. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $75.73 and its two-hundred day moving average is $71.58. Moelis & Company has a twelve month low of $46.24 and a twelve month high of $82.89.

Moelis & Company (NYSE:MC) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The asset manager reported $1.18 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.39 by $0.79. Moelis & Company had a return on equity of 38.49% and a net margin of 11.39%. Equities research analysts predict that Moelis & Company will post 2.97 EPS for the current year.

Moelis & Company Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 27th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be issued a $0.65 dividend. This is an increase from Moelis & Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. This represents a $2.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.64%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 18th. Moelis & Company’s payout ratio is presently 147.73%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on Moelis & Company from $79.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $92.00 target price (up previously from $86.00) on shares of Moelis & Company in a report on Thursday, February 6th. StockNews.com cut Moelis & Company from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Moelis & Company from $77.00 to $83.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, JMP Securities reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Moelis & Company in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Moelis & Company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $78.83.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Moelis & Company

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Reston Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Moelis & Company in the third quarter worth approximately $26,000. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC increased its holdings in Moelis & Company by 52.5% in the fourth quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 398 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 137 shares in the last quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new stake in Moelis & Company in the fourth quarter worth approximately $31,000. R Squared Ltd bought a new stake in Moelis & Company in the fourth quarter worth approximately $47,000. Finally, Jones Financial Companies Lllp increased its holdings in Moelis & Company by 148.3% in the fourth quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 822 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $61,000 after purchasing an additional 491 shares in the last quarter. 91.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Moelis & Company

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.