Moelis & Company (NYSE:MC) Shares Gap Up on Strong Earnings

Shares of Moelis & Company (NYSE:MC) gapped up before the market opened on Thursday after the company announced better than expected quarterly earnings. The stock had previously closed at $70.89, but opened at $75.54. Moelis & Company shares last traded at $71.03, with a volume of 299,360 shares trading hands.

The asset manager reported $1.13 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.76 by $0.37. Moelis & Company had a net margin of 15.98% and a return on equity of 45.62%. The business had revenue of $487.94 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $430.17 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.18 EPS. Moelis & Company’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.2% on a year-over-year basis.

Moelis & Company Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 26th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 17th will be issued a $0.65 dividend. This represents a $2.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.6%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 17th. Moelis & Company’s payout ratio is 86.96%.

Key Moelis & Company News

Here are the key news stories impacting Moelis & Company this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 beat and buyback — Moelis reported Q4 revenue up ~11% to $487.9M and EPS above consensus; the board also approved a new $300M share repurchase program, a direct boost to shareholder returns. MC Gains on Q4 Earnings Beat as Revenues Rise, Announces Buyback Plan
• Positive Sentiment: Dividend declared — Moelis announced a $0.65 quarterly dividend (annualized yield ~3.7%), with an ex-dividend/record date in mid-February, increasing direct income for shareholders.
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst momentum — Recent analyst note(s) have raised near-term estimates and several firms maintain buy/overweight views and targets above current levels, supporting upside sentiment. Q3 EPS Estimate for Moelis & Company Boosted by Analyst
• Neutral Sentiment: Call/transcript and deeper analysis — Management discussed M&A momentum, capital markets expansion and strategic hires on the earnings call; read the transcript for details on pipeline and margins. Moelis and Company (MC) Q4 2025 Earnings Call Transcript
• Negative Sentiment: Underlying profitability and cash-flow concerns — While revenue beat, operating profit and net income were slightly down year-over-year, diluted EPS dipped vs. prior year, and operating cash flow and cash balances declined materially (notable uptick in capex). These trends could temper enthusiasm if persistent. Moelis & Company (MC) Stock Rises on Q4 2025 Earnings
• Negative Sentiment: Insider and institutional flows — Recent small insider sales and mixed institutional positioning (large adds and large trims reported) add some uncertainty around near-term ownership dynamics. Moelis & Company (MC) Stock Rises on Q4 2025 Earnings

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on MC shares. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Moelis & Company in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods downgraded shares of Moelis & Company from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $78.00 to $80.00 in a report on Tuesday, December 16th. Bank of America started coverage on shares of Moelis & Company in a report on Monday, January 26th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $81.00 price target for the company. Zacks Research lowered Moelis & Company from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, UBS Group raised their target price on Moelis & Company from $70.00 to $74.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 7th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $73.11.

Institutional Trading of Moelis & Company

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of MC. Azora Capital LP bought a new position in shares of Moelis & Company during the second quarter worth approximately $46,762,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its stake in Moelis & Company by 1,161.8% during the 2nd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 661,594 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $41,231,000 after acquiring an additional 609,162 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Moelis & Company in the 2nd quarter valued at $31,248,000. Wasatch Advisors LP grew its holdings in shares of Moelis & Company by 16.1% during the 3rd quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 3,304,180 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $235,654,000 after purchasing an additional 458,575 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Moelis & Company by 26.0% in the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,052,862 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $127,947,000 after purchasing an additional 424,138 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.53% of the company’s stock.

Moelis & Company Price Performance

The company has a market cap of $5.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.74, a PEG ratio of 0.58 and a beta of 1.87. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $71.29 and a 200 day moving average of $69.96.

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. The company was founded by Kenneth David Moelis, Navid Mahmoodzadegan, Jeffrey Raich and Elizabeth Ann Crain in July 2007 and is headquartered in New York, NY.