Jackson Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 4,060 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $474,000.
A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MS. Sierra Ocean LLC raised its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 40.8% during the first quarter. Sierra Ocean LLC now owns 718 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $84,000 after acquiring an additional 208 shares in the last quarter. Compton Wealth Advisory Group LLC increased its position in Morgan Stanley by 2.4% in the 1st quarter. Compton Wealth Advisory Group LLC now owns 13,412 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,565,000 after purchasing an additional 319 shares during the last quarter. Adell Harriman & Carpenter Inc. raised its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 0.8% during the 1st quarter. Adell Harriman & Carpenter Inc. now owns 37,841 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $4,415,000 after purchasing an additional 287 shares in the last quarter. HM Payson & Co. raised its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 10.8% during the 1st quarter. HM Payson & Co. now owns 8,040 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $938,000 after purchasing an additional 783 shares in the last quarter. Finally, World Investment Advisors grew its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 13.3% in the 1st quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 19,616 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,289,000 after buying an additional 2,297 shares in the last quarter. 84.19% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
Morgan Stanley Stock Performance
Shares of MS traded up $1.64 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $144.50. The company's stock had a trading volume of 3,974,691 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,693,141. The stock's 50-day moving average is $129.57 and its two-hundred day moving average is $126.09. The firm has a market capitalization of $231.82 billion, a PE ratio of 16.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.11, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a current ratio of 0.78. Morgan Stanley has a one year low of $90.94 and a one year high of $144.56.
Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 11th. The financial services provider reported $2.60 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.21 by $0.39. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 12.98% and a return on equity of 14.98%. The firm had revenue of $17.74 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.81 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.02 EPS. The business's revenue was up 17.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 EPS for the current year.
Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement
The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 30th were paid a dividend of $0.925 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, April 30th. This represents a $3.70 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.56%. Morgan Stanley's dividend payout ratio is 43.43%.
Morgan Stanley announced that its board has authorized a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, July 1st that authorizes the company to buyback $20.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the financial services provider to purchase up to 8.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically a sign that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.
Analyst Ratings Changes
A number of analysts have issued reports on MS shares. Bank of America reduced their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $150.00 to $144.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. JMP Securities reaffirmed a "market perform" rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $130.00 to $120.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on Morgan Stanley from $121.00 to $136.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 10th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $125.00 to $122.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $133.62.
View Our Latest Stock Analysis on MS
Insider Buying and Selling at Morgan Stanley
In related news, Director Robert H. Herz sold 800 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $119.32, for a total value of $95,456.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 96,760 shares of the company's stock, valued at $11,545,403.20. This trade represents a 0.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Eric F. Grossman sold 10,068 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on 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 directly owned 199,274 shares in the company, valued at $22,248,942.10. This trade represents a 4.81% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 50,868 shares of company stock valued at $6,019,548 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.19% of the company's stock.
Morgan Stanley Company Profile
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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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