E. Ohman J or Asset Management AB Trims Stake in Morgan Stanley $MS

Key Points

• E. Ohman J or Asset Management AB reduced its stake in Morgan Stanley by 6.1%, owning 50,168 shares valued at approximately $7.07 million after selling 3,278 shares in the second quarter.
• Multiple hedge funds, including Parallel Advisors LLC and Capital Asset Advisory Services LLC, have modified their holdings, with some increasing stakes in Morgan Stanley during the same period.
• Morgan Stanley recently increased its quarterly dividend to $1.00 per share and announced a $20 billion stock buyback program, indicating confidence in the company's future value.

E. Ohman J or Asset Management AB lowered its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Free Report) by 6.1% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 50,168 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 3,278 shares during the quarter. E. Ohman J or Asset Management AB's holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $7,067,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Parallel Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 2.0% during the second quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 54,685 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $7,703,000 after buying an additional 1,092 shares during the period. Trust Co. of Oklahoma bought a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley during the second quarter valued at approximately $201,000. Capital Asset Advisory Services LLC increased its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 8.7% during the second quarter. Capital Asset Advisory Services LLC now owns 24,460 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $3,451,000 after purchasing an additional 1,952 shares in the last quarter. Somerset Trust Co increased its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 1.0% during the second quarter. Somerset Trust Co now owns 16,299 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,296,000 after purchasing an additional 169 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Citizens Financial Corp increased its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 5.7% during the second quarter. First Citizens Financial Corp now owns 9,540 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,344,000 after purchasing an additional 516 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.19% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have weighed in on MS. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised shares of Morgan Stanley from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and raised their target price for the company from $127.00 to $160.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Erste Group Bank raised shares of Morgan Stanley from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, May 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $121.00 to $136.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 10th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $120.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. Finally, Citigroup reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $130.00 target price (up previously from $125.00) on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research note on Wednesday, June 18th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $138.25.

Insider Buying and Selling at Morgan Stanley

In other news, CFO Sharon Yeshaya sold 25,583 shares of Morgan Stanley stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $139.81, for a total transaction of $3,576,759.23. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 128,662 shares in the company, valued at $17,988,234.22. This trade represents a 16.59% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Charles A. Smith sold 20,000 shares of Morgan Stanley stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $140.30, for a total transaction of $2,806,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 119,239 shares in the company, valued at $16,729,231.70. This represents a 14.36% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 148,149 shares of company stock worth $20,841,628. Insiders own 0.19% of the company's stock.

Morgan Stanley Trading Down 0.0%

Shares of MS stock opened at $156.47 on Monday. Morgan Stanley has a 12-month low of $94.33 and a 12-month high of $157.76. The company has a current ratio of 0.78, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.30. The firm's 50 day moving average is $145.30 and its 200 day moving average is $130.50. The stock has a market capitalization of $249.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.72, a P/E/G ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.33.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 16th. The financial services provider reported $2.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.98 by $0.15. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 13.06% and a return on equity of 15.20%. The company had revenue of $16.79 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $16.15 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.82 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 11.8% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 earnings per share for the current year.

Morgan Stanley Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 31st were issued a $1.00 dividend. This is an increase from Morgan Stanley's previous quarterly dividend of $0.93. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 31st. Morgan Stanley's dividend payout ratio is 45.30%.

Morgan Stanley declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback program on Tuesday, July 1st that allows the company to buyback $20.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the financial services provider to reacquire up to 8.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often a sign that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding MS? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.