Donaldson Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Free Report) by 10.8% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 462,038 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 45,091 shares during the quarter. Morgan Stanley comprises about 2.0% of Donaldson Capital Management LLC's holdings, making the stock its 22nd biggest holding. Donaldson Capital Management LLC's holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $53,906,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its stake in Morgan Stanley by 10.2% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 12,782 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,607,000 after purchasing an additional 1,185 shares during the period. Soltis Investment Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 39.6% during the fourth quarter. Soltis Investment Advisors LLC now owns 3,236 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $407,000 after buying an additional 918 shares during the last quarter. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in Morgan Stanley in the 4th quarter valued at about $35,000. Hartline Investment Corp lifted its position in Morgan Stanley by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Hartline Investment Corp now owns 67,466 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $8,482,000 after acquiring an additional 292 shares during the period. Finally, Weatherly Asset Management L. P. purchased a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $226,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.19% of the company's stock.
Morgan Stanley Price Performance
Shares of Morgan Stanley stock traded down $2.48 on Friday, hitting $129.44. The company's stock had a trading volume of 4,367,543 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,674,510. 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 firm has a fifty day moving average price of $120.66 and a 200-day moving average price of $125.24. Morgan Stanley has a 52-week low of $90.94 and a 52-week high of $142.03. The company has a market capitalization of $207.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.29.
Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 11th. The financial services provider reported $2.60 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.21 by $0.39. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 12.48% and a return on equity of 14.39%. The business had revenue of $17.74 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $16.81 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.02 EPS. The company's revenue was up 17.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement
The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 30th were paid a dividend of $0.925 per share. This represents a $3.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.86%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, April 30th. Morgan Stanley's payout ratio is currently 43.43%.
Insider Buying and Selling
In other news, insider Andrew M. Saperstein sold 40,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $120.00, for a total transaction of $4,800,000.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 335,765 shares in the company, valued at $40,291,800. This trade represents a 10.64% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, 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 value of $95,456.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 96,760 shares of the company's stock, valued at $11,545,403.20. The trade was a 0.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 50,868 shares of company stock worth $6,019,548. 0.19% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.
Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth
Several research firms have recently commented on MS. Citigroup cut their price target on Morgan Stanley from $135.00 to $125.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 24th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $130.00 to $120.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Evercore ISI dropped their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $150.00 to $138.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. Bank of America reduced their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $150.00 to $144.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Finally, Erste Group Bank raised Morgan Stanley from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Saturday, May 24th. Eleven research 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. According to MarketBeat.com, Morgan Stanley currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $133.23.
View Our Latest Report on MS
About Morgan Stanley
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Free Report)
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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