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MSCI: Capturing Investment Waves

MSCI is a high-quality compounder that has near monopoly position in the international index business. It benefits from several secular tailwinds that will provide mid-teens earnings growth for the next decade. MSCI’s market position in ESG research has potential upside as large as the passive investing trend we saw over the last 2 decades. While ESG makes up just 6% of the business today and is overshadowed by a wonderful core index business, it is the fastest growing segment that saw accelerated growth recently. Further, it should generate operating margins somewhere between that of a ratings agency and an index provider (50 – 70+% margin). I believe the market undervalues the earnings power of the MSCI due to ESG segment’s relative size and lower visibility as well as the company’s extremely long-term reinvestment horizon.

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