Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) Shares Sold by Generali Investments CEE investicni spolecnost a.s.

Generali Investments CEE investicni spolecnost a.s. trimmed its holdings in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Free Report) by 6.6% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 28,400 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 2,000 shares during the quarter. Generali Investments CEE investicni spolecnost a.s.'s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $3,313,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Minot DeBlois Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. IAG Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley in the first quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Curio Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, Garde Capital Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley in the first quarter valued at approximately $30,000. 84.19% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Morgan Stanley Price Performance

NYSE:MS traded up $1.64 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $144.50. The company's stock had a trading volume of 3,974,691 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,693,141. The business's 50-day moving average is $129.57 and its two-hundred day moving average is $126.09. The company has a market capitalization of $231.82 billion, a PE ratio of 16.96, a PEG ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.11, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a current ratio of 0.78. Morgan Stanley has a 52-week low of $90.94 and a 52-week high of $144.56.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 11th. The financial services provider reported $2.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.21 by $0.39. The firm had revenue of $17.74 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $16.81 billion. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 14.98% and a net margin of 12.98%. Morgan Stanley's revenue was up 17.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.02 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 30th were issued a $0.925 dividend. This represents a $3.70 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.56%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, April 30th. Morgan Stanley's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 43.43%.

Morgan Stanley announced that its board has authorized a stock buyback plan 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 reacquire up to 8.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. JMP Securities restated a "market perform" rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Bank of America cut their price target on Morgan Stanley from $150.00 to $144.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Morgan Stanley from $130.00 to $120.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Citigroup restated a "neutral" rating and set a $130.00 price target (up previously from $125.00) on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research note on Wednesday, June 18th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Morgan Stanley from $125.00 to $122.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Morgan Stanley presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $133.62.

Insider Buying and Selling at Morgan Stanley

In other Morgan Stanley news, insider Andrew M. Saperstein sold 40,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $120.00, for a total value of $4,800,000.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 335,765 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $40,291,800. This 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 accessible through the SEC website. 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 sale, the director directly owned 96,760 shares in the company, valued at $11,545,403.20. This trade represents a 0.82% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 50,868 shares of company stock valued at $6,019,548. 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.