Haverford Trust Co Has $11.51 Million Stake in Morgan Stanley $MS

Key Points

• Haverford Trust Co increased its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 236.7% during the first quarter, now owning 98,661 shares valued at approximately $11.51 million.
• Insider selling activity has been notable, with CFO Sharon Yeshaya and another insider collectively selling over 45,000 shares worth around $6.4 million.
• Morgan Stanley recently declared a quarterly dividend increase from $0.93 to $1.00 per share, representing an annualized yield of 2.7%.

Haverford Trust Co increased its holdings in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Free Report) by 236.7% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 98,661 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 69,357 shares during the quarter. Haverford Trust Co's holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $11,511,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Minot DeBlois Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley during the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Morgan Stanley during the 1st quarter worth approximately $27,000. Garde Capital Inc. acquired a new stake in Morgan Stanley during the 1st quarter valued at $30,000. Hopwood Financial Services Inc. raised its stake in Morgan Stanley by 50.0% during the 1st quarter. Hopwood Financial Services Inc. now owns 264 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 88 shares during the period. Finally, Ancora Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 104.7% during the 4th quarter. Ancora Advisors LLC now owns 264 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 135 shares during the last quarter. 84.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Morgan Stanley Stock Up 0.3%

Shares of NYSE:MS traded up $0.48 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $149.45. 3,328,218 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,589,165. The stock has a market cap of $238.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.92, a P/E/G ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 1.32. The company has a current ratio of 0.78, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.30. Morgan Stanley has a fifty-two week low of $94.09 and a fifty-two week high of $150.12. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $142.00 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $129.10.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly 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 firm had revenue of $16.79 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.15 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.82 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 11.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 31st were paid a $1.00 dividend. This is an increase from Morgan Stanley's previous quarterly dividend of $0.93. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 31st. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.7%. Morgan Stanley's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 45.30%.

Morgan Stanley declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, July 1st that authorizes the company to repurchase $20.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the financial services provider to purchase up to 8.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Citigroup reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $130.00 price target (up from $125.00) on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research report on Wednesday, June 18th. Erste Group Bank upgraded shares of Morgan Stanley from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, May 24th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised shares of Morgan Stanley from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $127.00 to $160.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target 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. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $120.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $138.25.

Insider Buying and Selling at Morgan Stanley

In other news, insider Daniel A. Simkowitz sold 29,000 shares of Morgan Stanley stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $141.13, for a total transaction of $4,092,770.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 399,105 shares in the company, valued at approximately $56,325,688.65. The trade was a 6.77% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Andrew M. Saperstein sold 43,566 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $140.97, for a total value of $6,141,499.02. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 294,250 shares in the company, valued at $41,480,422.50. The trade was a 12.90% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 148,149 shares of company stock valued at $20,841,628 in the last three months. Corporate 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.