Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) Stake Cut by Beacon Harbor Wealth Advisors Inc.

Key Points

• Beacon Harbor Wealth Advisors Inc. sold 9,756 shares of Morgan Stanley, reducing its holdings by 14.4%, and now owns 58,030 shares valued at approximately $6.77 million.
• Several analysts have recently updated their ratings on Morgan Stanley, with target prices ranging from $122.00 to $160.00 and a consensus rating of "Hold."
• Morgan Stanley announced a quarterly dividend of $1.00 per share, increasing from the previous $0.93 and representing an annual yield of 2.8%.

Beacon Harbor Wealth Advisors Inc. trimmed its position in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Free Report) by 14.4% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 58,030 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 9,756 shares during the period. Morgan Stanley accounts for about 1.6% of Beacon Harbor Wealth Advisors Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 28th biggest holding. Beacon Harbor Wealth Advisors Inc.'s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $6,770,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 6.9% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 117,769,345 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $13,740,149,000 after acquiring an additional 7,636,547 shares during the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors increased its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 44.8% in the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 21,794,873 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,740,051,000 after acquiring an additional 6,744,333 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its stake in Morgan Stanley by 21.2% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 17,056,916 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,990,030,000 after buying an additional 2,989,122 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its stake in Morgan Stanley by 15.5% during the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 14,112,508 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,774,225,000 after buying an additional 1,890,245 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp grew its stake in Morgan Stanley by 20.0% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 13,403,197 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,685,050,000 after buying an additional 2,233,589 shares during the last quarter. 84.19% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently commented on the company. JMP Securities restated a "market perform" rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research note on Monday, April 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on 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 upgraded Morgan Stanley from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, May 24th. Citigroup restated a "neutral" rating and set a $130.00 price objective (up from $125.00) on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research note on Wednesday, June 18th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded Morgan Stanley from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $127.00 to $160.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Nine research 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, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $138.25.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Michael A. Pizzi sold 18,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction 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 completion of the sale, the insider owned 136,407 shares in the company, valued at $19,181,552.34. This represents a 11.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Charles A. Smith sold 20,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $140.30, for a total value of $2,806,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 119,239 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $16,729,231.70. This trade represents a 14.36% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 148,149 shares of company stock valued at $20,841,628. 0.19% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Morgan Stanley Stock Performance

MS stock traded up $2.31 during trading on Friday, reaching $143.23. 3,942,908 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,415,230. The company has a quick ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.30. The firm has a market cap of $228.64 billion, a PE ratio of 16.22, a P/E/G ratio of 1.76 and a beta of 1.32. The company's fifty day moving average price is $138.24 and its 200-day moving average price is $128.52. Morgan Stanley has a 1-year low of $93.54 and a 1-year high of $145.48.

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

Morgan Stanley Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 31st will be issued a $1.00 dividend. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.8%. This is a positive change from Morgan Stanley's previous quarterly dividend of $0.93. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 31st. Morgan Stanley's payout ratio is currently 45.30%.

Morgan Stanley declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback program on Tuesday, July 1st that authorizes the company to repurchase $20.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the financial services provider to buy up to 8.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are generally a sign that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

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.