BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S Sells 3,188 Shares of Morgan Stanley $MS

Key Points

• BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S reduced its stake in Morgan Stanley by 6.1%, selling 3,188 shares and leaving it with 48,685 shares valued at $5.68 million.
• Recent analyst reports indicate a mix of upgrades and target price hikes for Morgan Stanley, with Wells Fargo raising its price objective from $120.00 to $145.00, and Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgrading to an "outperform" rating.
• Morgan Stanley declared a new quarterly dividend of $1.00, an increase from its previous dividend of $0.93, and approved a $20 billion share buyback program to repurchase up to 8.9% of its stock.

BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S reduced its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Free Report) by 6.1% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 48,685 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 3,188 shares during the quarter. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S's holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $5,680,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Meridian Wealth Management LLC increased its position in Morgan Stanley by 34.3% during the 1st quarter. Meridian Wealth Management LLC now owns 23,869 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,785,000 after purchasing an additional 6,092 shares during the period. Headlands Technologies LLC purchased a new position in Morgan Stanley during the 1st quarter valued at $57,000. AGF Management Ltd. increased its position in Morgan Stanley by 55.9% during the 1st quarter. AGF Management Ltd. now owns 327,978 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $38,265,000 after purchasing an additional 117,615 shares during the period. Tlwm increased its position in Morgan Stanley by 1.8% during the 1st quarter. Tlwm now owns 13,863 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,617,000 after purchasing an additional 248 shares during the period. Finally, Alley Investment Management Company LLC increased its position in Morgan Stanley by 75.0% during the 1st quarter. Alley Investment Management Company LLC now owns 62,469 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $7,288,000 after purchasing an additional 26,763 shares during the period. 84.19% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Morgan Stanley Stock Up 2.7%

Morgan Stanley stock traded up $3.8940 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $147.9340. The stock had a trading volume of 6,759,549 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,598,055. The company has a market capitalization of $236.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.75, a PEG ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 1.32. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $141.29 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $128.99. Morgan Stanley has a one year low of $94.09 and a one year high of $149.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.30, a current ratio of 0.78 and a quick ratio of 0.78.

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

Morgan Stanley Increases Dividend

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

Morgan Stanley declared that its board has initiated a stock buyback plan 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 stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often a sign that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have issued reports on MS. 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. Citigroup reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $130.00 target price (up from $125.00) on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research report on Wednesday, June 18th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised shares of Morgan Stanley from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and upped their target price for the stock from $127.00 to $160.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. Wells Fargo & Company upped 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. Finally, 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 research report on Tuesday, June 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $138.25.

Insider Buying and Selling at Morgan Stanley

In other Morgan Stanley news, insider Daniel A. Simkowitz sold 29,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $141.13, for a total transaction of $4,092,770.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 399,105 shares in the company, valued at approximately $56,325,688.65. This represents a 6.77% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Charles A. Smith sold 20,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $140.30, for a total transaction of $2,806,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 119,239 shares in the company, valued at $16,729,231.70. This represents 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 worth $20,841,628. 0.19% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.