Morgan Stanley $MS Position Lessened by Canandaigua National Bank & Trust Co.

Key Points

• Canandaigua National Bank & Trust Co. has decreased its position in Morgan Stanley by 11.5%, now holding 23,768 shares valued at approximately $3,348,000 as of their latest filing.
• Morgan Stanley announced a new $20 billion share repurchase plan, indicating confidence from management regarding the stock's valuation.
• The company reported $2.13 EPS for the last quarter, exceeding analyst expectations, with revenue rising 11.8% year-over-year to $16.79 billion.

Canandaigua National Bank & Trust Co. trimmed its position in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Free Report) by 11.5% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 23,768 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 3,078 shares during the period. Canandaigua National Bank & Trust Co.'s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $3,348,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Meridian Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 34.3% during the first quarter. Meridian Wealth Management LLC now owns 23,869 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,785,000 after acquiring an additional 6,092 shares in the last quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley during the first quarter worth $57,000. AGF Management Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 55.9% during the first quarter. AGF Management Ltd. now owns 327,978 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $38,265,000 after acquiring an additional 117,615 shares in the last quarter. Tlwm raised its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 1.8% during the first quarter. Tlwm now owns 13,863 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,617,000 after acquiring an additional 248 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Alley Investment Management Company LLC raised its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 75.0% during the first quarter. Alley Investment Management Company LLC now owns 62,469 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $7,288,000 after buying an additional 26,763 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 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 sale, the insider directly owned 399,105 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $56,325,688.65. The trade was a 6.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Eric F. Grossman sold 12,000 shares of Morgan Stanley 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 sale, the insider directly owned 186,420 shares in the company, valued at $26,307,590.40. The trade was a 6.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 148,149 shares of company stock valued at $20,841,628 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.19% of the company's stock.

Morgan Stanley Trading Down 0.0%

Morgan Stanley stock opened at $156.47 on Monday. 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 business's 50-day simple moving average is $145.30 and its 200-day simple moving average is $130.50. The firm has a market capitalization of $249.78 billion, a PE ratio of 17.72, a PEG ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.33. Morgan Stanley has a 52 week low of $94.33 and a 52 week high of $157.76.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 16th. The financial services provider reported $2.13 earnings per share 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 business had revenue of $16.79 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.15 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.82 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 11.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 earnings per share for the current year.

Morgan Stanley declared that its board has initiated a share repurchase 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 reacquire up to 8.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

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 given a dividend of $1.00 per share. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.6%. This is a boost from Morgan Stanley's previous quarterly dividend of $0.93. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, July 31st. Morgan Stanley's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 45.30%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MS has been the topic of several recent research reports. Citigroup restated a "neutral" rating and set a $130.00 target price (up from $125.00) on shares of Morgan Stanley in a report on Wednesday, June 18th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on Morgan Stanley from $121.00 to $136.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 10th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Morgan Stanley from $120.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded Morgan Stanley from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and raised their target price for the company from $127.00 to $160.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Finally, Erste Group Bank upgraded Morgan Stanley from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, May 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target 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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.