Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) Shares Sold by Forsta AP Fonden

Key Points

• Forsta AP Fonden reduced its stake in Morgan Stanley by 10.0% during the first quarter, leaving it with 281,963 shares valued at approximately $32.9 million.
• Several institutional investors increased their positions in Morgan Stanley, with Vanguard Group Inc. boosting its holdings by 6.9% and Capital Research Global Investors raising its stake by 44.8%.
• Morgan Stanley recently announced a $1.00 quarterly dividend, increasing its annual payout from $3.72 to $4.00, representing a yield of 2.8%.

Forsta AP Fonden reduced its position in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Free Report) by 10.0% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 281,963 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 31,200 shares during the quarter. Forsta AP Fonden's holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $32,897,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in MS. Savvy Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 4.0% in the first quarter. Savvy Advisors Inc. now owns 12,016 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,402,000 after buying an additional 460 shares during the period. National Bank of Canada FI increased its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 125.3% in the first quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 1,171,928 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $136,710,000 after buying an additional 651,750 shares during the period. AlphaCore Capital LLC grew its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 26.3% in the first quarter. AlphaCore Capital LLC now owns 6,834 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $797,000 after purchasing an additional 1,422 shares during the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 11.8% in the first quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 2,153,343 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $251,231,000 after purchasing an additional 228,039 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Y.D. More Investments Ltd grew its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 11.0% in the first quarter. Y.D. More Investments Ltd now owns 2,147 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $250,000 after purchasing an additional 213 shares during the last quarter. 84.19% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Morgan Stanley Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:MS traded up $2.31 on Friday, hitting $143.23. 3,942,908 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,415,230. Morgan Stanley has a 1-year low of $93.54 and a 1-year high of $145.48. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $138.24 and its 200 day moving average price is $128.46. 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 has a market capitalization of $228.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.79 and a beta of 1.32.

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

Morgan Stanley declared that its board has approved a share repurchase program on Tuesday, July 1st that permits the company to repurchase $20.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the financial services provider to repurchase up to 8.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are generally an indication that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Morgan Stanley Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 31st will be given a dividend of $1.00 per share. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 31st. This is a positive change from Morgan Stanley's previous quarterly dividend of $0.93. Morgan Stanley's dividend payout ratio is 45.30%.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Charles A. Smith sold 20,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $140.30, for a total value of $2,806,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 119,239 shares in the company, valued at $16,729,231.70. The trade was a 14.36% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Andrew M. Saperstein sold 43,566 shares of Morgan Stanley stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $140.97, for a total value of $6,141,499.02. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 294,250 shares in the company, valued at approximately $41,480,422.50. This trade represents a 12.90% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 148,149 shares of company stock worth $20,841,628. 0.19% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $121.00 to $136.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 10th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Morgan Stanley from $120.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded shares of Morgan Stanley from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $127.00 to $160.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. JMP Securities reiterated a "market perform" rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Finally, Erste Group Bank upgraded Morgan Stanley from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, May 24th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Morgan Stanley presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $138.25.

Morgan Stanley Company 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.