5,636 Shares in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) Purchased by Harfst & Associates Inc.

Key Points

• Harfst & Associates Inc. acquired 5,636 shares of Morgan Stanley, valued at approximately $658,000, marking a new position in the financial services provider during Q1.
• Morgan Stanley reported strong Q2 earnings, with earnings per share of $2.13, exceeding expectations, and revenue of $16.79 billion, up 11.8% year-over-year.
• The company has initiated a $20.00 billion stock repurchase plan and announced an increased quarterly dividend of $1.00 per share, reflecting confidence in its stock valuation.

Harfst & Associates Inc. bought a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 5,636 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $658,000.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Minot DeBlois Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Morgan Stanley during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Morgan Stanley in the 1st quarter worth about $27,000. Garde Capital Inc. purchased a new position in Morgan Stanley in the 1st quarter worth about $30,000. Hopwood Financial Services Inc. increased its stake in Morgan Stanley by 50.0% in the 1st quarter. Hopwood Financial Services Inc. now owns 264 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 88 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ancora Advisors LLC increased its stake in Morgan Stanley by 104.7% in the 4th quarter. Ancora Advisors LLC now owns 264 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 135 shares in the last quarter. 84.19% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Morgan Stanley Stock Up 0.4%

Shares of MS stock opened at $147.83 on Thursday. Morgan Stanley has a 12 month low of $94.09 and a 12 month high of $149.08. The firm has a market cap of $235.99 billion, a PE ratio of 16.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.84 and a beta of 1.32. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $139.31 and a 200-day moving average of $128.71. 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 (NYSE:MS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 16th. The financial services provider reported $2.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.98 by $0.15. The business had revenue of $16.79 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $16.15 billion. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 15.20% and a net margin of 13.06%. Morgan Stanley's quarterly revenue was up 11.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.82 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 EPS for the current year.

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

Morgan Stanley Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 31st will be issued a dividend of $1.00 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 31st. This is a boost from Morgan Stanley's previous quarterly dividend of $0.93. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.7%. Morgan Stanley's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 45.30%.

Insider Activity at Morgan Stanley

In other news, insider Daniel A. Simkowitz sold 29,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $141.13, for a total transaction of $4,092,770.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 399,105 shares in the company, valued at approximately $56,325,688.65. This represents a 6.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Charles A. Smith sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $140.30, for a total value of $2,806,000.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 119,239 shares in the company, valued at $16,729,231.70. The trade was a 14.36% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 148,149 shares of company stock valued at $20,841,628. 0.19% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the company. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Morgan Stanley from $120.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded Morgan Stanley from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $127.00 to $160.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $121.00 to $136.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 10th. Citigroup restated a "neutral" rating and set a $130.00 price objective (up from $125.00) on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research report on Wednesday, June 18th. Finally, Erste Group Bank upgraded Morgan Stanley from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, May 24th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently 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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