55,424 Shares in Morgan Stanley $MS Acquired by Nightview Capital LLC

Key Points

• Nightview Capital LLC has acquired 55,424 shares of Morgan Stanley, valuing the investment at approximately $6.47 million, which represents about 4.2% of their portfolio.
• Insiders sold a total of 148,149 shares of Morgan Stanley stock over the last ninety days, indicating potential profit-taking by executives.
• Morgan Stanley reported a quarterly earnings per share of $2.13, exceeding analysts' estimates, and announced a new $20 billion stock buyback plan as well as an increase in its quarterly dividend to $1.00 per share.

Nightview Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund bought 55,424 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $6,466,000. Morgan Stanley comprises about 4.2% of Nightview Capital LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 7th biggest holding.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Meridian Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 34.3% in the 1st quarter. Meridian Wealth Management LLC now owns 23,869 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,785,000 after buying an additional 6,092 shares in the last quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new position in Morgan Stanley in the 1st quarter valued at $57,000. AGF Management Ltd. grew its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 55.9% in the 1st quarter. AGF Management Ltd. now owns 327,978 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $38,265,000 after buying an additional 117,615 shares in the last quarter. Tlwm grew its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 1.8% in the 1st quarter. Tlwm now owns 13,863 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,617,000 after buying an additional 248 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Alley Investment Management Company LLC grew its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 75.0% in the 1st quarter. Alley Investment Management Company LLC now owns 62,469 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $7,288,000 after buying an additional 26,763 shares in 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 Michael A. Pizzi sold 18,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $140.62, for a total value of $2,531,160.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 136,407 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $19,181,552.34. The trade was a 11.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Andrew M. Saperstein sold 43,566 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $140.97, for a total value of $6,141,499.02. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 294,250 shares in the company, valued at approximately $41,480,422.50. This trade represents a 12.90% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 148,149 shares of company stock valued at $20,841,628 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.19% of the company's stock.

Morgan Stanley Stock Performance

NYSE:MS opened at $150.43 on Friday. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $144.07 and its 200 day simple moving average is $129.74. The firm has a market capitalization of $240.14 billion, a PE ratio of 17.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 1.33. The company has a quick ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.30. Morgan Stanley has a twelve month low of $94.09 and a twelve month high of $150.75.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 16th. The financial services provider reported $2.13 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.98 by $0.15. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 15.20% and a net margin of 13.06%.The firm had revenue of $16.79 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.15 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.82 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 11.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts anticipate that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, July 1st that allows the company to repurchase $20.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the financial services provider to repurchase up to 8.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

Morgan Stanley Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 31st were given a dividend of $1.00 per share. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.7%. This is a positive change from Morgan Stanley's previous quarterly dividend of $0.93. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 31st. Morgan Stanley's dividend payout ratio is 45.30%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have commented on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised Morgan Stanley from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and upped their price objective for the company from $127.00 to $160.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Erste Group Bank raised Morgan Stanley from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Saturday, May 24th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Morgan Stanley from $120.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Citigroup reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $130.00 target price (up from $125.00) on shares of Morgan Stanley in a report on Wednesday, June 18th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on Morgan Stanley from $121.00 to $136.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $138.25.

Morgan Stanley Company Profile

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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