J2 Capital Management Inc Sells 2,093 Shares of Morgan Stanley $MS

Key Points

• J2 Capital Management Inc has reduced its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 50.8%, selling 2,093 shares and now owning 2,028 shares worth approximately $286,000.
• Several institutional investors have made significant adjustments to their positions in Morgan Stanley, with 84.19% of the stock currently owned by institutional investors.
• Morgan Stanley's recent quarterly earnings surpassed estimates, reporting an EPS of $2.13 compared to a consensus of $1.98, alongside a planned increase in quarterly dividends from $0.93 to $1.00 per share.

J2 Capital Management Inc cut its holdings in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Free Report) by 50.8% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,028 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 2,093 shares during the period. J2 Capital Management Inc's holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $286,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. EWA LLC bought a new position in Morgan Stanley in the second quarter worth approximately $212,000. McGuire Investment Group LLC raised its position in Morgan Stanley by 1.4% in the second quarter. McGuire Investment Group LLC now owns 81,216 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $11,440,000 after acquiring an additional 1,096 shares during the period. Vicus Capital bought a new position in Morgan Stanley in the second quarter worth approximately $405,000. Naples Global Advisors LLC raised its position in Morgan Stanley by 48.9% in the second quarter. Naples Global Advisors LLC now owns 3,198 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $450,000 after acquiring an additional 1,050 shares during the period. Finally, Parsons Capital Management Inc. RI raised its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 5.2% during the 2nd quarter. Parsons Capital Management Inc. RI now owns 12,671 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,785,000 after purchasing an additional 629 shares during the period. 84.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MS has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded shares of Morgan Stanley from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and raised their price objective for the company from $127.00 to $160.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $150.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $121.00 to $136.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 10th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $145.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 16th. Finally, Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $130.00 to $155.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, September 26th. One 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. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $144.25.

Morgan Stanley Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:MS opened at $157.00 on Thursday. Morgan Stanley has a 52 week low of $94.33 and a 52 week high of $163.98. The stock has a market capitalization of $250.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.78, a PEG ratio of 1.98 and a beta of 1.32. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $149.76 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $133.90. The company has a quick ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.30.

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

Morgan Stanley Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 31st were paid a $1.00 dividend. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, July 31st. This is an increase from Morgan Stanley's previous quarterly dividend of $0.93. Morgan Stanley's dividend payout ratio is 45.30%.

Morgan Stanley announced that its board has initiated a stock buyback program on Tuesday, July 1st that permits the company to repurchase $20.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the financial services provider to buy up to 8.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are generally a sign that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Andrew M. Saperstein sold 43,566 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated 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 position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Michael A. Pizzi sold 18,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $140.62, for a total transaction of $2,531,160.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 136,407 shares of the company's stock, valued at $19,181,552.34. This trade represents a 11.66% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 148,149 shares of company stock worth $20,841,628. Insiders own 0.19% of the company's stock.

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.

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