Lazard Freres Gestion S.A.S. Reduces Stock Position in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS)

Key Points

• Lazard Freres Gestion S.A.S. reduced its stake in Morgan Stanley by 9.5% during the first quarter, now holding 425,443 shares worth approximately $49.6 million.
• Insider trades included significant share sales by executives, with Michael A. Pizzi and Charles A. Smith selling a combined total of 38,000 shares, representing notable decreases in their ownership.
• Morgan Stanley recently approved a $20 billion stock repurchase plan and announced a quarterly dividend increase to $1.00 per share, reflecting confidence in its financial health.

Lazard Freres Gestion S.A.S. trimmed its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Free Report) by 9.5% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 425,443 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 44,585 shares during the period. Morgan Stanley comprises approximately 1.2% of Lazard Freres Gestion S.A.S.'s portfolio, making the stock its 28th largest position. Lazard Freres Gestion S.A.S.'s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $49,636,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in MS. Capital Research Global Investors boosted its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 44.8% during the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 21,794,873 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,740,051,000 after purchasing an additional 6,744,333 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 12,318.0% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,750,845 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $320,941,000 after purchasing an additional 2,728,693 shares during the period. FMR LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 11.9% during the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 25,561,560 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $3,213,599,000 after purchasing an additional 2,725,335 shares during the period. Schroder Investment Management Group boosted its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 50.8% during the fourth quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 7,282,156 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $915,731,000 after purchasing an additional 2,453,470 shares during the period. Finally, Northern Trust Corp raised its stake in Morgan Stanley by 20.0% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 13,403,197 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,685,050,000 after buying an additional 2,233,589 shares in the last quarter. 84.19% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Morgan Stanley

In other Morgan Stanley news, insider Michael A. Pizzi sold 18,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on 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 sale, the insider directly owned 136,407 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,181,552.34. This trade represents a 11.66% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Andrew M. Saperstein sold 43,566 shares of the stock in a transaction on 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 sale, the insider owned 294,250 shares in the company, valued at approximately $41,480,422.50. This represents a 12.90% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 188,949 shares of company stock worth $25,737,084. Insiders own 0.19% of the company's stock.

Morgan Stanley Stock Down 0.4%

Shares of NYSE MS traded down $0.55 on Monday, reaching $142.46. 3,729,333 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,602,143. Morgan Stanley has a 12 month low of $90.94 and a 12 month high of $145.16. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $135.60 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $127.88. The company has a market cap of $228.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.80 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a quick ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.11.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 16th. The financial services provider reported $2.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.98 by $0.15. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 15.33% and a net margin of 13.06%. The business had revenue of $16.79 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $16.15 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.82 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 11.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback program 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 buy up to 8.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Morgan Stanley Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 31st will be paid a dividend of $1.00 per share. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.81%. This is an increase from Morgan Stanley's previous quarterly dividend of $0.93. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 31st. Morgan Stanley's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 41.90%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Citigroup reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $130.00 price target (up from $125.00) on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research note on Wednesday, June 18th. Evercore ISI decreased their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $150.00 to $138.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased 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 note on Monday, April 14th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised shares of Morgan Stanley from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and increased their price target for the stock from $127.00 to $160.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $120.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Morgan Stanley presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $138.25.

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.