Czech National Bank Has $33.16 Million Stock Position in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS)

Czech National Bank raised its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Free Report) by 5.7% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 284,209 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 15,244 shares during the period. Czech National Bank's holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $33,159,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Lindbrook Capital LLC grew its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 6,156 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $774,000 after buying an additional 73 shares in the last quarter. 1ST Source Bank boosted its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. 1ST Source Bank now owns 15,925 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,002,000 after acquiring an additional 73 shares during the last quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. now owns 4,727 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $594,000 after purchasing an additional 76 shares in the last quarter. Omnia Family Wealth LLC increased its position in Morgan Stanley by 2.5% in the fourth quarter. Omnia Family Wealth LLC now owns 3,140 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $395,000 after purchasing an additional 77 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Quent Capital LLC raised its stake in Morgan Stanley by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 12,298 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,546,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.19% of the company's stock.

Morgan Stanley Stock Performance

MS stock traded up $2.48 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $130.64. The company had a trading volume of 2,368,650 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,248,892. Morgan Stanley has a fifty-two week low of $90.94 and a fifty-two week high of $142.03. The company has a quick ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.14. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $118.06 and a 200 day moving average price of $125.32. The firm has a market capitalization of $209.59 billion, a PE ratio of 16.45, a P/E/G ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.29.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Friday, April 11th. The financial services provider reported $2.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.21 by $0.39. The business had revenue of $17.74 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $16.81 billion. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 14.39% and a net margin of 12.48%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 17.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.02 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 earnings per share for the current year.

Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 30th were given a dividend of $0.925 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, April 30th. This represents a $3.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.83%. Morgan Stanley's payout ratio is currently 43.43%.

Insider Activity at Morgan Stanley

In other Morgan Stanley news, Director Robert H. Herz sold 800 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $119.32, for a total transaction of $95,456.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 96,760 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,545,403.20. The trade was a 0.82% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Andrew M. Saperstein sold 40,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $120.00, for a total transaction of $4,800,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 335,765 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $40,291,800. This represents a 10.64% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 50,868 shares of company stock worth $6,019,548. 0.19% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently weighed in on the company. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on Morgan Stanley from $130.00 to $120.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 14th. Erste Group Bank upgraded Morgan Stanley from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Saturday, May 24th. Citigroup dropped their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $135.00 to $125.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 24th. Bank of America cut their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $150.00 to $144.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on Morgan Stanley from $125.00 to $122.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $132.46.

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.