Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) Shares Sold by Inspire Trust Co. N.A.

Inspire Trust Co. N.A. lessened its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Free Report) by 15.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 30,000 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 5,300 shares during the period. Morgan Stanley makes up approximately 1.0% of Inspire Trust Co. N.A.'s portfolio, making the stock its 28th biggest holding. Inspire Trust Co. N.A.'s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $3,772,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of MS. Minot DeBlois Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Morgan Stanley in the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. IAG Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley in the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Curio Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley in the fourth quarter valued at $31,000. Ancora Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 104.7% in the fourth quarter. Ancora Advisors LLC now owns 264 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 135 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Crowley Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley in the fourth quarter valued at $34,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.19% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other Morgan Stanley news, Director Robert H. Herz sold 800 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 sale, the director now owns 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 document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Andrew M. Saperstein sold 40,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $120.00, for a total value of $4,800,000.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 335,765 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $40,291,800. This trade represents a 10.64% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 50,868 shares of company stock worth $6,019,548. 0.19% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Morgan Stanley Trading Up 2.4%

Shares of Morgan Stanley stock traded up $3.02 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $129.09. The stock had a trading volume of 2,380,378 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,695,603. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $117.04 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $125.44. The firm has a market capitalization of $207.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.25, a P/E/G ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a current ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.14. Morgan Stanley has a 1 year low of $90.94 and a 1 year high of $142.03.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 11th. The financial services provider reported $2.60 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.21 by $0.39. The company had revenue of $17.74 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.81 billion. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 14.39% and a net margin of 12.48%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 17.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.02 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 earnings per share for the current year.

Morgan Stanley Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 30th were paid a $0.925 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, April 30th. This represents a $3.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.87%. Morgan Stanley's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 43.43%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently issued reports on the company. JMP Securities restated a "market perform" rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective 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. Citigroup reduced their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $135.00 to $125.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, March 24th. Bank of America reduced their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $150.00 to $144.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $144.00 to $126.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 19th. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $132.46.

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.