Moelis & Company (NYSE:MC) Reaches New 1-Year High at $70.06

Moelis & Company (NYSE:MC) shares hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $70.06 and last traded at $69.61, with a volume of 117198 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $68.30.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have commented on MC shares. Wells Fargo & Company initiated coverage on shares of Moelis & Company in a research note on Thursday, September 12th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $70.00 target price for the company. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Moelis & Company from $51.00 to $61.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Moelis & Company from $50.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 25th. UBS Group raised their price target on Moelis & Company from $47.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 9th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and set a $60.00 price objective (up previously from $54.00) on shares of Moelis & Company in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and six have given a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $58.33.

Moelis & Company Stock Up 2.5 %

The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $64.73 and a 200 day simple moving average of $58.06. The company has a market capitalization of $5.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -367.84 and a beta of 1.33.

Moelis & Company (NYSE:MC) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The asset manager reported $0.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.11 by $0.07. Moelis & Company had a net margin of 1.38% and a return on equity of 4.38%. The firm had revenue of $264.59 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $227.90 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned ($0.04) EPS. The company’s revenue was up 47.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast that Moelis & Company will post 1.09 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Moelis & Company Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 26th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 5th will be given a $0.60 dividend. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.40%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 5th. Moelis & Company’s payout ratio is currently -1,263.16%.

Insider Activity at Moelis & Company

In other Moelis & Company news, Director Kenneth Shropshire sold 495 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.29, for a total transaction of $34,298.55. Following the transaction, the director now owns 9,372 shares in the company, valued at $649,385.88. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other Moelis & Company news, CEO Kenneth Moelis sold 5,308 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $68.87, for a total value of $365,561.96. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 86 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,922.82. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Kenneth Shropshire sold 495 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.29, for a total value of $34,298.55. Following the sale, the director now owns 9,372 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $649,385.88. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 12,526 shares of company stock worth $830,133. 6.40% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Moelis & Company

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in Moelis & Company by 0.7% during the 2nd quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC now owns 7,190,221 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $408,836,000 after buying an additional 47,365 shares during the last quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP increased its stake in Moelis & Company by 4.9% during the first quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 3,417,643 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $194,020,000 after purchasing an additional 159,797 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Moelis & Company by 11.0% during the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 3,374,385 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $189,404,000 after purchasing an additional 334,620 shares during the period. Madison Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Moelis & Company by 4.5% during the fourth quarter. Madison Asset Management LLC now owns 1,399,649 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $78,562,000 after purchasing an additional 60,455 shares during the period. Finally, Lord Abbett & CO. LLC lifted its position in shares of Moelis & Company by 5.2% in the 1st quarter. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC now owns 1,118,245 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $63,483,000 after buying an additional 55,402 shares during the last quarter. 91.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Moelis & Company Company Profile

Moelis & Company operates as an investment banking advisory firm. It offers advisory services in the areas of mergers and acquisitions, recapitalizations and restructurings, capital markets transactions, and other corporate finance matters, as well as strategic, capital structure, and private funds advisory.