Asset Management One Co. Ltd. Buys 21,179 Shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS)

Asset Management One Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Free Report) by 3.7% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 593,201 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 21,179 shares during the period. Asset Management One Co. Ltd.'s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $69,209,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Minot DeBlois Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Morgan Stanley during the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. IAG Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley in the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Garde Capital Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley in the first quarter valued at $30,000. Curio Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley during the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, Ancora Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 104.7% during 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. Institutional investors own 84.19% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Morgan Stanley

In other news, insider Andrew M. Saperstein sold 40,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $120.00, for a total transaction of $4,800,000.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 335,765 shares in the company, valued at approximately $40,291,800. The trade was a 10.64% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Eric F. Grossman sold 10,068 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $111.65, for a total transaction of $1,124,092.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 199,274 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $22,248,942.10. The trade was a 4.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 50,868 shares of company stock worth $6,019,548. Insiders own 0.19% of the company's stock.

Morgan Stanley Trading Up 1.4%

Shares of Morgan Stanley stock traded up $1.88 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $137.78. The company's stock had a trading volume of 5,675,090 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,684,476. The company has a quick ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.11. Morgan Stanley has a 52-week low of $90.94 and a 52-week high of $142.03. The firm's 50-day moving average is $124.66 and its two-hundred day moving average is $125.28. The company has a market cap of $221.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.17, a PEG ratio of 1.22 and a beta of 1.29.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 11th. The financial services provider reported $2.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.21 by $0.39. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 14.98% and a net margin of 12.98%. The firm had revenue of $17.74 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $16.81 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.02 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 17.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 earnings per share for the current year.

Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 30th were paid a dividend of $0.925 per share. This represents a $3.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.69%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, April 30th. Morgan Stanley's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 43.43%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MS has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. JMP Securities reaffirmed a "market perform" rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a report on Monday, April 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $121.00 to $136.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 10th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $130.00 to $120.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Citigroup reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $130.00 price objective (up previously from $125.00) on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research report on Wednesday, June 18th. Finally, Bank of America reduced their target price on Morgan Stanley from $150.00 to $144.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Eleven 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's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $133.62.

Morgan Stanley 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.