Cypress Wealth Services LLC Makes New Investment in Morgan Stanley $MS

Key Points

• Cypress Wealth Services LLC has made a new investment in Morgan Stanley, acquiring 1,853 shares valued at approximately $261,000.
• Morgan Stanley reported earnings of $2.13 per share for the last quarter, surpassing analysts' expectations, and had revenue of $16.79 billion, up 11.8% year-over-year.
• The firm initiated a $20 billion share repurchase plan, indicating that the Board believes the stock is currently undervalued.

Cypress Wealth Services LLC acquired a new position in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Free Report) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 1,853 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $261,000.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in MS. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 6.9% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 117,769,345 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $13,740,149,000 after purchasing an additional 7,636,547 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen LLC bought a new position in Morgan Stanley in the 1st quarter worth $767,506,000. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 21.2% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 17,056,916 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,990,030,000 after purchasing an additional 2,989,122 shares in the last quarter. Kingstone Capital Partners Texas LLC bought a new position in Morgan Stanley in the 2nd quarter worth $343,236,000. Finally, Axiom Investors LLC DE raised its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 99.9% in the 1st quarter. Axiom Investors LLC DE now owns 3,111,979 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $363,075,000 after purchasing an additional 1,555,015 shares in the last quarter. 84.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Morgan Stanley Stock Up 0.1%

NYSE:MS opened at $155.29 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $247.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.59, a P/E/G ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.32. 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 has a fifty-two week low of $94.33 and a fifty-two week high of $163.98. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $152.19 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $136.21.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 16th. The financial services provider reported $2.13 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.98 by $0.15. The business had revenue of $16.79 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates 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 period last year, the business earned $1.82 EPS. Analysts predict that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase 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 shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are generally an indication that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $156.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 7th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded shares of Morgan Stanley from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and increased their price target for the stock from $127.00 to $160.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $145.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 16th. Finally, Evercore ISI increased their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $150.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 30th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $154.85.

Insider Buying and Selling at Morgan Stanley

In other news, insider Daniel A. Simkowitz sold 29,000 shares of the firm'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 sale, the insider owned 399,105 shares of the company's stock, valued at $56,325,688.65. This trade represents a 6.77% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Michael A. Pizzi sold 18,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $140.62, for a total transaction of $2,531,160.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 136,407 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,181,552.34. The trade was a 11.66% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 148,149 shares of company stock worth $20,841,628 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.19% of the company's stock.

Morgan Stanley Profile

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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