Morgan Stanley $MS Shares Bought by Boston Trust Walden Corp

Key Points

• Boston Trust Walden Corp significantly increased its stake in Morgan Stanley by 6,017.7%, acquiring 148,233 shares valued at approximately $20.88 million.
• Morgan Stanley reported $2.13 EPS for the last quarter, exceeding analysts' estimates, with a revenue of $16.79 billion, an 11.8% increase year-over-year.
• The company's board approved a $20 billion stock repurchase plan, allowing for the buyback of up to 8.9% of its shares, indicating confidence in the valuation of its stock.

Boston Trust Walden Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Free Report) by 6,017.7% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 148,233 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 145,810 shares during the quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp's holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $20,880,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC lifted its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 111.0% during the first quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 211 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 111 shares in the last quarter. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley during the first quarter worth about $27,000. Garde Capital Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley during the first quarter worth about $30,000. Hopwood Financial Services Inc. lifted its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 50.0% during the first quarter. Hopwood Financial Services Inc. now owns 264 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 88 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Abound Wealth Management lifted its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 58.5% during the second quarter. Abound Wealth Management now owns 252 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 93 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.19% of the company's stock.

Morgan Stanley Stock Performance

Shares of MS opened at $155.29 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.78, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.30. The firm has a market cap of $247.90 billion, a PE ratio of 17.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.32. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $152.19 and its 200-day simple moving average is $136.21. Morgan Stanley has a 12-month low of $94.33 and a 12-month high of $163.98.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results 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 net margin of 13.06% and a return on equity of 15.20%. The business had revenue of $16.79 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.15 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.82 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 11.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts predict that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 EPS for the current year.

Morgan Stanley announced that its board has approved a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, July 1st that allows the company to repurchase $20.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the financial services provider to reacquire up to 8.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Eric F. Grossman sold 12,000 shares of Morgan Stanley stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $141.12, for a total transaction of $1,693,440.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 186,420 shares of the company's stock, valued at $26,307,590.40. The trade was a 6.05% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Charles A. Smith sold 20,000 shares of Morgan Stanley stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $140.30, for a total value of $2,806,000.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 119,239 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $16,729,231.70. This represents a 14.36% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 148,149 shares of company stock valued at $20,841,628 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.19% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on MS. 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 report on Wednesday, July 9th. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $156.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, October 7th. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $130.00 to $155.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, September 26th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $145.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, September 16th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $154.85.

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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