Clark Capital Management Group Inc. Has $190.44 Million Position in Morgan Stanley $MS

Key Points

• Clark Capital Management Group increased its Morgan Stanley stake by 10.2% in the fourth quarter, bringing its holdings to 1,072,718 shares valued at about $190.44 million.
• Morgan Stanley posted better-than-expected quarterly results, with EPS of $3.43 versus estimates of $3.02 and revenue of $20.58 billion versus expectations of $19.23 billion.
• Wall Street sentiment remains constructive: analysts have issued a Moderate Buy consensus with an average price target of $206.35, while the stock recently traded near its 52-week high.

Clark Capital Management Group Inc. raised its position in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Free Report) by 10.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,072,718 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 99,078 shares during the quarter. Morgan Stanley makes up about 1.2% of Clark Capital Management Group Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 15th largest holding. Clark Capital Management Group Inc. owned 0.07% of Morgan Stanley worth $190,440,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MS. Motiv8 Investments LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley during the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Olistico Wealth LLC bought a new position in Morgan Stanley in the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. Lodestone Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Morgan Stanley in the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Nvest Wealth Strategies Inc. bought a new position in Morgan Stanley in the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. Finally, Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 1,855.6% in the 4th quarter. Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC now owns 176 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 167 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.19% of the company's stock.

More Morgan Stanley News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley said the bull market remains intact and could broaden further as investors rotate into cyclical sectors. The ‘Bull Market Is Intact,’ Says Morgan Stanley
• Positive Sentiment: The firm also highlighted stocks that can keep the rally going, reinforcing Morgan Stanley’s influence on market positioning and investor sentiment. These stocks have been beating the S&P 500 and could keep the bull market going, says Morgan Stanley
• Neutral Sentiment: Morgan Stanley was also in the news for stock-specific research calls, including upgrades and target hikes on names tied to AI infrastructure, data storage, and industrials, which reflects active and influential equity research coverage. Morgan Stanley (MS) Pounds the Table on These Data Storage Names

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have weighed in on the stock. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $190.00 to $220.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, April 20th. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $219.00 to $230.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, April 16th. Evercore increased their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $190.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, April 16th. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $170.00 to $194.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, May 8th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group cut shares of Morgan Stanley from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, March 9th. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $206.35.

Morgan Stanley Trading Up 1.2%

Shares of MS stock opened at $220.65 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.52. The stock has a market cap of $348.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 1.23. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $195.85 and a 200 day simple moving average of $181.71. Morgan Stanley has a 1 year low of $129.66 and a 1 year high of $222.30.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 15th. The financial services provider reported $3.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.02 by $0.41. The business had revenue of $20.58 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $19.23 billion. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 17.70% and a net margin of 14.65%.The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 16.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.60 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that Morgan Stanley will post 11.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley Announces Dividend

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

Insider Activity at Morgan Stanley

In other news, insider Daniel A. Simkowitz sold 14,690 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $189.24, for a total value of $2,779,935.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 365,802 shares in the company, valued at approximately $69,224,370.48. The trade was a 3.86% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Andrew M. Saperstein sold 51,668 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $188.59, for a total transaction of $9,744,068.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 282,142 shares of the company's stock, valued at $53,209,159.78. The trade was a 15.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 77,476 shares of company stock worth $14,644,762. Company insiders own 0.17% of the company's stock.

About Morgan Stanley

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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding MS? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.