Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC Increases Stock Holdings in Morgan Stanley $MS

Key Points

• Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 76.4%, now owning 4,049 shares valued at approximately $473,000.
• Several institutional investors have also raised their stakes, including Vanguard Group Inc. with a 6.9% increase, now holding shares worth over $13.7 billion.
• Morgan Stanley announced an increase in its quarterly dividend to $1.00 per share, reflecting a yearly yield of 2.7%, along with a $20 billion share repurchase program.

Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Free Report) by 76.4% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 4,049 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 1,754 shares during the quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC's holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $473,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Meridian Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 34.3% during the 1st quarter. Meridian Wealth Management LLC now owns 23,869 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,785,000 after buying an additional 6,092 shares during the last quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley during the 1st quarter worth $57,000. AGF Management Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 55.9% during the 1st quarter. AGF Management Ltd. now owns 327,978 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $38,265,000 after buying an additional 117,615 shares during the last quarter. Tlwm lifted its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 1.8% during the 1st quarter. Tlwm now owns 13,863 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,617,000 after buying an additional 248 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Alley Investment Management Company LLC lifted its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 75.0% during the 1st 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 Trading Up 0.2%

Shares of MS traded up $0.32 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $150.50. 3,627,988 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,494,344. Morgan Stanley has a 52 week low of $94.09 and a 52 week high of $150.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.30, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a current ratio of 0.78. The stock has a market capitalization of $240.25 billion, a PE ratio of 17.04, a PEG ratio of 1.88 and a beta of 1.32. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $143.05 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $129.37.

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

Morgan Stanley announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback plan 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 shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

Morgan Stanley Increases Dividend

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Morgan Stanley

In other Morgan Stanley news, insider Andrew M. Saperstein sold 43,566 shares of the firm'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 completion of the sale, the insider owned 294,250 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $41,480,422.50. This trade represents a 12.90% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Eric F. Grossman sold 12,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $141.12, for a total value of $1,693,440.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 186,420 shares of the company's stock, valued at $26,307,590.40. This trade represents a 6.05% decrease in their position. 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 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.19% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on Morgan Stanley from $121.00 to $136.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 10th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Morgan Stanley from $120.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Erste Group Bank raised Morgan Stanley from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Saturday, May 24th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised Morgan Stanley from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and upped their target price for the stock from $127.00 to $160.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Finally, Citigroup reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $130.00 target price (up previously from $125.00) on shares of Morgan Stanley in a report on Wednesday, June 18th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $138.25.

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.