Morgan Stanley $MS Shares Bought by Triglav Investments D.O.O.

Key Points

• Triglav Investments D.O.O. increased its Morgan Stanley stake by 68.9% in the fourth quarter, ending with 45,577 shares valued at about $8.1 million.
• Morgan Stanley reported better-than-expected quarterly results, with EPS of $3.43 versus $3.02 expected and revenue of $20.58 billion, up 16% year over year.
• The company also paid a $1.00 quarterly dividend and has a consensus analyst rating of Moderate Buy with an average price target of $205.95.

Triglav Investments D.O.O. boosted its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Free Report) by 68.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 45,577 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 18,600 shares during the quarter. Triglav Investments D.O.O.'s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $8,091,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MS. Brighton Jones LLC increased its stake in Morgan Stanley by 10.2% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 12,782 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,607,000 after acquiring an additional 1,185 shares during the last quarter. Main Street Financial Solutions LLC boosted its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 69.0% during the second quarter. Main Street Financial Solutions LLC now owns 8,964 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,263,000 after buying an additional 3,661 shares during the period. Diversify Advisory Services LLC boosted its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 90.9% during the second quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC now owns 16,148 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,378,000 after buying an additional 7,688 shares during the period. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main boosted its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 6.3% during the second quarter. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main now owns 263,575 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $37,127,000 after buying an additional 15,623 shares during the period. Finally, Jupiter Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 7.8% during the second quarter. Jupiter Wealth Management LLC now owns 52,825 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $7,805,000 after buying an additional 3,807 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.19% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Morgan Stanley

In other Morgan Stanley news, insider Daniel A. Simkowitz sold 14,690 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, April 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $189.24, for a total value of $2,779,935.60. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 365,802 shares in the company, valued at $69,224,370.48. This trade represents a 3.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Eric F. Grossman sold 11,118 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, April 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $190.75, for a total value of $2,120,758.50. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 169,403 shares in the company, valued at approximately $32,313,622.25. This represents a 6.16% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 77,476 shares of company stock worth $14,644,762 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.17% of the company's stock.

Morgan Stanley Trading Up 1.9%

NYSE:MS opened at $207.74 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $327.67 billion, a PE ratio of 18.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 1.22. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $183.78 and a 200 day moving average price of $177.39. Morgan Stanley has a 12-month low of $126.35 and a 12-month high of $208.08. The company has a current ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.52.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 15th. The financial services provider reported $3.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.02 by $0.41. The firm had revenue of $20.58 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $19.23 billion. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 17.70% and a net margin of 14.65%.Morgan Stanley's revenue was up 16.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.60 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Morgan Stanley will post 11.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 30th were paid a $1.00 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 30th. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.9%. Morgan Stanley's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 36.23%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently commented on MS. Erste Group Bank upgraded Morgan Stanley from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Citigroup raised their price target on Morgan Stanley from $170.00 to $194.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Evercore raised their price target on Morgan Stanley from $190.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Morgan Stanley from $173.00 to $179.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 10th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on Morgan Stanley from $186.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 16th. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Morgan Stanley has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $205.95.

Morgan Stanley News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Morgan Stanley this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley was highlighted in coverage of U.S. banks near record highs, with the firm benefiting from accelerating earnings and sales growth across the sector. Morgan Stanley Joins Elite List As Stock Hits Highs; Goldman Sachs Rides Massive Deals Wave
• Positive Sentiment: Recent analyst and valuation commentary has reinforced the bull case, with investors focusing on Morgan Stanley’s strong earnings revisions and upgraded outlook after a solid quarterly beat. A Look At Morgan Stanley (MS) Valuation As Analyst Upgrades And Earnings Revisions Lift Confidence
• Neutral Sentiment: Zacks Research downgraded Morgan Stanley from “strong-buy” to “hold,” which may cap some upside, but the market appears to be looking past that call for now. Zacks.com

About Morgan Stanley

Morgan Stanley NYSE: MS is a global financial services firm headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1935 by Henry S. Morgan and Harold Stanley, the company provides a broad range of investment banking, securities, wealth management and investment management services to corporations, governments, institutions and individual investors. Leadership has been guided by a senior executive team and board of directors; James P. Gorman has served as the company's chief executive and chairman in recent years.

The firm's primary business activities are organized around three principal businesses: Institutional Securities, Wealth Management and Investment Management.

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