Lighthouse Investment Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 112,096 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $14,093,000.
A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in MS. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Morgan Stanley during the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,910,200,000. Capital Research Global Investors increased its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 44.8% during the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 21,794,873 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,740,051,000 after purchasing an additional 6,744,333 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC grew its stake in Morgan Stanley by 11.9% during the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 25,561,560 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $3,213,599,000 after buying an additional 2,725,335 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley in the 4th quarter valued at $324,118,000. Finally, Schroder Investment Management Group raised its position in Morgan Stanley by 50.8% in the 4th quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 7,282,156 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $915,731,000 after purchasing an additional 2,453,470 shares during the last quarter. 84.19% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
Insider Activity at Morgan Stanley
In other Morgan Stanley news, insider Andrew M. Saperstein sold 40,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $120.00, for a total value of $4,800,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 335,765 shares in the company, valued at approximately $40,291,800. This trade represents a 10.64% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Eric F. Grossman sold 10,068 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $111.65, for a total transaction of $1,124,092.20. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 199,274 shares in the company, valued at approximately $22,248,942.10. The trade was a 4.81% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 50,868 shares of company stock valued at $6,019,548. 0.19% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.
Morgan Stanley Price Performance
MS stock traded up $1.39 during trading on Thursday, hitting $132.43. The company had a trading volume of 7,209,236 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,697,704. Morgan Stanley has a fifty-two week low of $90.94 and a fifty-two week high of $142.03. The firm has a market capitalization of $212.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.68, a P/E/G ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.30. The business has a 50 day moving average of $114.90 and a 200 day moving average of $124.98. The company has a current ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.14.
Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 11th. The financial services provider reported $2.60 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.21 by $0.39. The company had revenue of $17.74 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.81 billion. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 14.39% and a net margin of 12.48%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 17.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.02 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 earnings per share for the current year.
Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement
The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 30th will be paid a dividend of $0.925 per share. This represents a $3.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.79%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 30th. Morgan Stanley's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 43.43%.
Analyst Ratings Changes
Several brokerages have recently weighed in on MS. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $130.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Bank of America reduced their target price on Morgan Stanley from $150.00 to $144.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Citigroup reduced their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $135.00 to $125.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 24th. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $155.00 to $156.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price target on Morgan Stanley from $144.00 to $126.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 19th. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Morgan Stanley currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $132.46.
View Our Latest Stock Report on Morgan Stanley
Morgan Stanley Company Profile
(
Free Report)
Morgan Stanley, a financial holding company, provides various financial products and services to corporations, governments, financial institutions, and individuals in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and Asia. It operates through Institutional Securities, Wealth Management, and Investment Management segments.
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