Cookson Peirce & Co. Inc. Has $1.78 Million Stock Position in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS)

Key Points

• Cookson Peirce & Co. Inc. increased its stake in Morgan Stanley by 97.9%, owning 15,273 shares valued at $1.78 million by the end of the 1st quarter.
• Morgan Stanley reported $2.13 earnings per share, surpassing analysts' expectations of $1.98, with revenues totaling $16.79 billion, indicating a year-over-year increase of 11.8%.
• The company's recent dividend increase to $1.00 per share marks a boost from the previous $0.93, with an annualized yield of 2.7% and a payout ratio of 45.30%.

Cookson Peirce & Co. Inc. grew its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Free Report) by 97.9% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 15,273 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 7,554 shares during the period. Cookson Peirce & Co. Inc.'s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $1,782,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of MS. Minot DeBlois Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Morgan Stanley during the fourth quarter worth approximately $25,000. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley during the first quarter worth approximately $27,000. Garde Capital Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley in the first quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Hopwood Financial Services Inc. raised its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 50.0% in the first quarter. Hopwood Financial Services Inc. now owns 264 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 88 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ancora Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 104.7% in the fourth quarter. Ancora Advisors LLC now owns 264 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 135 shares in the last quarter. 84.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Morgan Stanley Stock Performance

NYSE MS opened at $147.83 on Thursday. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $139.31 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $128.71. The stock has a market cap of $235.99 billion, a PE ratio of 16.74, a PEG ratio of 1.84 and a beta of 1.32. Morgan Stanley has a fifty-two week low of $94.09 and a fifty-two week high of $149.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.30, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a current ratio of 0.78.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 16th. The financial services provider reported $2.13 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.98 by $0.15. The firm 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%. The company's revenue was up 11.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.82 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, July 1st that allows the company to repurchase $20.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the financial services provider to reacquire up to 8.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Morgan Stanley Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 31st will be paid a dividend of $1.00 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 31st. This is a boost from Morgan Stanley's previous quarterly dividend of $0.93. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.7%. Morgan Stanley's payout ratio is presently 45.30%.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Charles A. Smith sold 20,000 shares of the business'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 sale, the insider owned 119,239 shares of the company's stock, valued at $16,729,231.70. The trade was a 14.36% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Andrew M. Saperstein sold 43,566 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $140.97, for a total transaction of $6,141,499.02. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 294,250 shares in the company, valued at approximately $41,480,422.50. This represents a 12.90% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 148,149 shares of company stock valued at $20,841,628. 0.19% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. 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. Erste Group Bank upgraded shares of Morgan Stanley from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, May 24th. Citigroup reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $130.00 price target (up from $125.00) on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research report on Wednesday, June 18th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded 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. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $120.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $138.25.

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.

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