BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S Acquires 15,973 Shares of Morgan Stanley $MS

Key Points

• BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S increased its Morgan Stanley stake by 16% in the first quarter, buying 15,973 additional shares and bringing its total holdings to 115,590 shares worth about $19.0 million.
• Morgan Stanley reported better-than-expected Q1 results, with EPS of $3.43 and revenue of $20.58 billion, both above analyst estimates. Revenue rose 16% from a year earlier.
• The company also paid a $1.00 quarterly dividend, equal to an annualized yield of 1.8%, while analysts currently hold a consensus rating of Moderate Buy with a price target of $206.35.

BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S raised its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Free Report) by 16.0% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 115,590 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 15,973 shares during the quarter. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S's holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $19,023,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Purpose Unlimited Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley during the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Motiv8 Investments LLC bought a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley in the fourth quarter worth approximately $25,000. Olistico Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley in the fourth quarter worth approximately $27,000. Lodestone Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Morgan Stanley in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Finally, WFA of San Diego LLC purchased a new stake in Morgan Stanley in the second quarter valued at approximately $28,000. 84.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Daniel A. Simkowitz sold 14,690 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $189.24, for a total transaction of $2,779,935.60. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 365,802 shares in the company, valued at approximately $69,224,370.48. This represents a 3.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Eric F. Grossman sold 11,118 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $190.75, for a total value of $2,120,758.50. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 169,403 shares in the company, valued at $32,313,622.25. The trade was a 6.16% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 77,476 shares of company stock valued at $14,644,762 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.17% of the company's stock.

Morgan Stanley Stock Performance

NYSE:MS opened at $223.69 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $352.82 billion, a PE ratio of 20.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 1.23. Morgan Stanley has a fifty-two week low of $130.90 and a fifty-two week high of $230.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.52, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a current ratio of 0.77. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $199.10 and a 200-day moving average price of $182.78.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 15th. The financial services provider reported $3.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.02 by $0.41. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 14.65% and a return on equity of 17.70%. The firm had revenue of $20.58 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $19.23 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.60 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 16.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that Morgan Stanley will post 11.9 earnings per share for the current year.

Morgan Stanley Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 30th were issued a $1.00 dividend. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, April 30th. Morgan Stanley's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.23%.

More Morgan Stanley News

Here are the key news stories impacting Morgan Stanley this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley’s investment management arm, together with Ridgeback Group, agreed to acquire Metra Living, a UK private rental business, for about £1.045 billion. The deal expands MS into residential rental assets and highlights its ability to deploy capital into new fee-generating businesses. Morgan Stanley Buys Into UK Rentals With £1.045b Metra Living Deal
• Positive Sentiment: Investors are also reacting to Morgan Stanley’s strong recent operating results: the firm posted Q1 EPS of $3.43, topping estimates, and revenue of $20.58 billion, also ahead of expectations, with year-over-year revenue growth of 16%. That supports the view that fundamentals remain solid after the stock’s big run. Morgan Stanley stock performance and earnings background
• Positive Sentiment: News that Morgan Stanley is part of the bank group working on possible OpenAI and Anthropic IPOs adds another potential catalyst, since high-profile tech listings could boost advisory and capital markets fees if they move forward. OpenAI, Anthropic IPOs Spark Battle Between Goldman And Morgan Stanley
• Neutral Sentiment: Several commentary pieces also frame MS as a long-term momentum name and note that the stock has been trading near its highs, which may be attracting trend-following buyers rather than pointing to a single new catalyst. Why Morgan Stanley is a Top Momentum Stock for the Long-Term

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have commented on MS. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $186.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 16th. Bank of America raised their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $220.00 to $225.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 16th. Daiwa Securities Group lifted their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $175.00 to $198.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated a "sector perform" rating and issued a $207.00 target price on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research report on Thursday, April 16th. Finally, CICC Research upped their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $175.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 19th. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $206.35.

Morgan Stanley Profile

Morgan Stanley NYSE: MS is a global financial services firm headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1935 by Henry S. Morgan and Harold Stanley, the company provides a broad range of investment banking, securities, wealth management and investment management services to corporations, governments, institutions and individual investors. Leadership has been guided by a senior executive team and board of directors; James P. Gorman has served as the company's chief executive and chairman in recent years.

The firm's primary business activities are organized around three principal businesses: Institutional Securities, Wealth Management and Investment Management.

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