iShares MSCI World ETF (NYSEARCA:URTH) Sees Strong Trading Volume – Still a Buy?

iShares MSCI World ETF (NYSEARCA:URTH) saw unusually-high trading volume on Thursday . Approximately 379,817 shares were traded during trading, an increase of 49% from the previous session’s volume of 254,463 shares.The stock last traded at $149.72 and had previously closed at $154.63.

iShares MSCI World ETF Price Performance

The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $158.63 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $157.98. The company has a market cap of $4.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.05 and a beta of 0.98.

Institutional Trading of iShares MSCI World ETF

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in URTH. Bank of America Corp DE increased its position in shares of iShares MSCI World ETF by 258.3% during the 4th quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 742,267 shares of the company’s stock worth $115,423,000 after purchasing an additional 535,132 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its position in shares of iShares MSCI World ETF by 233.8% during the fourth quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 365,827 shares of the company’s stock valued at $56,886,000 after acquiring an additional 256,230 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of iShares MSCI World ETF by 219.2% in the 4th quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 279,894 shares of the company’s stock valued at $43,523,000 after acquiring an additional 192,199 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of iShares MSCI World ETF in the 4th quarter worth approximately $18,715,000. Finally, Banco Santander S.A. boosted its position in shares of iShares MSCI World ETF by 56.8% during the 4th quarter. Banco Santander S.A. now owns 264,780 shares of the company’s stock worth $41,173,000 after purchasing an additional 95,938 shares during the period.

About iShares MSCI World ETF

The iShares MSCI World ETF (URTH) is an exchange-traded fund that is based on the MSCI World index, a market-cap-weighted index of stocks that cover 85% of the developed world’s market capitalization. URTH was launched on Jan 10, 2012 and is managed by BlackRock.