Corient Private Wealth LLC Grows Stock Position in Morgan Stanley $MS

Key Points

• Corient Private Wealth LLC increased its Morgan Stanley stake by 16.9% in the fourth quarter, adding 217,691 shares to bring its total to 1,505,907 shares worth about $263.0 million.
• Institutional ownership remains very high, with hedge funds and other large investors holding 84.19% of Morgan Stanley’s stock, even as several smaller funds opened new positions in the company.
• Analyst sentiment is constructive: recent target hikes and upgrades leave Morgan Stanley with a Moderate Buy consensus and an average price target of $206.35, while the stock also topped first-quarter earnings and revenue estimates.

Corient Private Wealth LLC grew its holdings in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Free Report) by 16.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,505,907 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 217,691 shares during the quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC owned 0.09% of Morgan Stanley worth $263,047,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Motiv8 Investments LLC acquired a new position in Morgan Stanley during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Olistico Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley in the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Lodestone Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Nvest Wealth Strategies Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley during the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Finally, Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 1,855.6% during the fourth quarter. Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC now owns 176 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 167 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.19% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on Morgan Stanley from $190.00 to $220.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, April 20th. UBS Group lifted their price target on Morgan Stanley from $196.00 to $214.00 in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Rothschild & Co Redburn boosted their price target on Morgan Stanley from $171.00 to $183.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, April 17th. Citizens Jmp reissued a "market perform" rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a report on Thursday, April 16th. Finally, Erste Group Bank upgraded Morgan Stanley from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $206.35.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Andrew M. Saperstein sold 51,668 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction 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 sale, the insider owned 282,142 shares in the company, valued at approximately $53,209,159.78. This trade represents a 15.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Eric F. Grossman sold 11,118 shares of Morgan Stanley stock in a transaction on Monday, April 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $190.75, for a total transaction of $2,120,758.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 169,403 shares of the company's stock, valued at $32,313,622.25. The trade was a 6.16% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 77,476 shares of company stock valued at $14,644,762. Corporate insiders own 0.17% of the company's stock.

Morgan Stanley Trading Up 0.2%

Shares of NYSE:MS opened at $223.69 on Friday. Morgan Stanley has a 12-month low of $130.90 and a 12-month high of $230.47. The company has a market capitalization of $352.82 billion, a PE ratio of 20.26, a PEG ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 1.23. The business has a 50 day moving average of $199.10 and a two-hundred day moving average of $182.78. The company has a current ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.52.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 15th. The financial services provider reported $3.43 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.02 by $0.41. The business had revenue of $20.58 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $19.23 billion. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 17.70% and a net margin of 14.65%.The business's quarterly revenue was up 16.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.60 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Morgan Stanley will post 11.9 EPS for the current year.

Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement

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

Key Stories Impacting Morgan Stanley

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

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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