83,419 Shares in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) Acquired by Banque Cantonale Vaudoise

Key Points

• Banque Cantonale Vaudoise acquired 83,419 shares of Morgan Stanley, valued at approximately $9.7 million, as reported in a recent Form 13F filing with the SEC.
• Insider transactions revealed that CFO Sharon Yeshaya sold 25,583 shares for over $3.5 million, indicating a 16.59% decrease in her stake.
• Morgan Stanley announced a stock buyback program of $20 billion, along with a quarterly dividend increase to $1.00 per share, reflecting confidence in the company's valuation.

Banque Cantonale Vaudoise bought a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 83,419 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $9,733,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Omnia Family Wealth LLC grew its position in Morgan Stanley by 2.5% during the 4th quarter. Omnia Family Wealth LLC now owns 3,140 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $395,000 after purchasing an additional 77 shares in the last quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC grew its position in Morgan Stanley by 2.5% during the 4th quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 3,638 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $457,000 after purchasing an additional 87 shares in the last quarter. Insight Inv LLC grew its position in Morgan Stanley by 0.5% during the 1st quarter. Insight Inv LLC now owns 18,378 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,144,000 after purchasing an additional 88 shares in the last quarter. Vivaldi Capital Management LP grew its position in Morgan Stanley by 1.8% during the 4th quarter. Vivaldi Capital Management LP now owns 5,096 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $696,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jacobsen Capital Management grew its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 4.2% during the 1st quarter. Jacobsen Capital Management now owns 2,212 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $258,000 after acquiring an additional 90 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 84.19% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Morgan Stanley

In related news, insider Michael A. Pizzi sold 18,000 shares of Morgan Stanley 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 sale, the insider owned 136,407 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $19,181,552.34. This trade represents a 11.66% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Sharon Yeshaya sold 25,583 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $139.81, for a total transaction of $3,576,759.23. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 128,662 shares in the company, valued at $17,988,234.22. This trade represents a 16.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 188,949 shares of company stock valued at $25,737,084. 0.19% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently commented on MS. Bank of America lowered their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $150.00 to $144.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Evercore ISI reduced their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $150.00 to $138.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $125.00 to $122.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Erste Group Bank raised shares of Morgan Stanley from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, May 24th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $120.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Morgan Stanley presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $138.25.

Morgan Stanley Price Performance

Shares of Morgan Stanley stock opened at $142.46 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.78, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.11. The stock has a market capitalization of $228.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.13, a P/E/G ratio of 1.80 and a beta of 1.30. Morgan Stanley has a 1-year low of $90.94 and a 1-year high of $145.16. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $135.60 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $127.88.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 16th. The financial services provider reported $2.13 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.98 by $0.15. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 13.06% and a return on equity of 15.33%. The business had revenue of $16.79 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.15 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.82 earnings per share. Morgan Stanley's revenue for the quarter was up 11.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley declared that its board has authorized a stock buyback program 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 reacquire up to 8.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally a sign that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Morgan Stanley Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 31st will be given a dividend of $1.00 per share. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.81%. This is a boost from Morgan Stanley's previous quarterly dividend of $0.93. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 31st. Morgan Stanley's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 45.30%.

About Morgan Stanley

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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