Gibraltar Capital Management Inc. Sells 5,689 Shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS)

Gibraltar Capital Management Inc. reduced its position in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Free Report) by 52.5% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 5,146 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 5,689 shares during the quarter. Gibraltar Capital Management Inc.'s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $600,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Ethic Inc. grew its stake in Morgan Stanley by 35.8% during the 4th quarter. Ethic Inc. now owns 162,269 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $20,400,000 after buying an additional 42,743 shares during the last quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank grew its position in Morgan Stanley by 2.9% during the 4th quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 499,554 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $62,804,000 after purchasing an additional 14,283 shares during the last quarter. Pamalican Asset Management Ltd purchased a new stake in Morgan Stanley during the 4th quarter worth approximately $4,513,000. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. acquired a new position in Morgan Stanley during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $5,686,000. Finally, Alley Investment Management Company LLC raised its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 75.0% in the first quarter. Alley Investment Management Company LLC now owns 62,469 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $7,288,000 after buying an additional 26,763 shares during the last quarter. 84.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Morgan Stanley Price Performance

NYSE:MS opened at $144.50 on Monday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $129.57 and a 200 day moving average price of $126.12. The stock has a market cap of $231.82 billion, a PE ratio of 16.96, a P/E/G 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 one year low of $90.94 and a one year high of $144.56.

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

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

Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Morgan Stanley

In related news, Director Robert H. Herz sold 800 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $119.32, for a total transaction of $95,456.00. Following the completion of the transaction, 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 sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Andrew M. Saperstein sold 40,000 shares of Morgan Stanley 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 completion of the transaction, the insider owned 335,765 shares of the company's stock, valued at $40,291,800. This trade represents a 10.64% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 50,868 shares of company stock worth $6,019,548 over the last quarter. 0.19% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on MS. Erste Group Bank upgraded Morgan Stanley from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, May 24th. Bank of America decreased their target price on Morgan Stanley from $150.00 to $144.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on Morgan Stanley from $130.00 to $120.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $125.00 to $122.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Finally, Citigroup restated a "neutral" rating and set a $130.00 target price (up from $125.00) on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research report on Wednesday, June 18th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $133.62.

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.

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