Capital Analysts LLC Purchases 2,726 Shares of Morgan Stanley $MS

Key Points

• Capital Analysts LLC has increased its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 2.4%, owning 118,081 shares valued at approximately $13.8 million as of its recent SEC filing.
• In the past quarter, several institutional investors have made new stakes or increased their positions in Morgan Stanley, reflecting a strong interest in the company from the investment community, which owns 84.19% of the stock.
• Morgan Stanley recently declared a quarterly dividend of $1.00 per share, up from $0.93, indicating confidence in its financial health following a strong quarterly earnings report.

Capital Analysts LLC boosted its holdings in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Free Report) by 2.4% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 118,081 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 2,726 shares during the quarter. Capital Analysts LLC's holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $13,776,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Meridian Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Morgan Stanley by 34.3% in 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 acquired a new stake in Morgan Stanley in the 1st quarter valued at $57,000. AGF Management Ltd. grew its position in Morgan Stanley by 55.9% in 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 grew its position in Morgan Stanley by 1.8% in 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 grew its position in Morgan Stanley by 75.0% in 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. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.19% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Morgan Stanley

In other news, insider Charles A. Smith sold 20,000 shares of Morgan Stanley stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $140.30, for a total transaction of $2,806,000.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 119,239 shares in the company, valued at $16,729,231.70. The trade was a 14.36% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Eric F. Grossman sold 12,000 shares of Morgan Stanley stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $141.12, for a total value of $1,693,440.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 186,420 shares in the company, valued at $26,307,590.40. The trade was a 6.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 148,149 shares of company stock worth $20,841,628. 0.19% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently issued reports on MS shares. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $121.00 to $136.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 10th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised shares of Morgan Stanley from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and lifted their price target for the company from $127.00 to $160.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. Erste Group Bank raised shares of Morgan Stanley from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Saturday, May 24th. Citigroup reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $130.00 price objective (up from $125.00) on shares of Morgan Stanley in a report on Wednesday, June 18th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $120.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $138.25.

Morgan Stanley Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MS traded up $3.8940 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $147.9340. 6,759,549 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,598,055. The firm has a market capitalization of $236.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.80 and a beta of 1.32. Morgan Stanley has a 52 week low of $94.09 and a 52 week 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. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $141.29 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $129.06.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 16th. The financial services provider reported $2.13 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 return on equity of 15.20% and a net margin of 13.06%.The business's revenue for the quarter was up 11.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.82 EPS. Analysts predict that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 EPS for the current year.

Morgan Stanley announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback plan on Tuesday, July 1st that permits the company to repurchase $20.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the financial services provider to repurchase up to 8.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

Morgan Stanley Increases Dividend

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