Morgan Stanley $MS Stock Holdings Reduced by Bradyco Inc.

Key Points

• Bradyco Inc. cut its Morgan Stanley stake by 44.1% in the fourth quarter, selling 20,000 shares and leaving it with 25,328 shares worth about $4.5 million.
• Morgan Stanley’s latest quarterly results beat expectations, with EPS of $3.43 versus $3.02 expected and revenue of $20.58 billion, up 16% year over year.
• Analysts remain generally positive: the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” with an average price target of $206.26, while the company also declared a $1.00 quarterly dividend payable May 15.

Bradyco Inc. reduced its position in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Free Report) by 44.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 25,328 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 20,000 shares during the quarter. Morgan Stanley makes up about 5.6% of Bradyco Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 5th largest position. Bradyco Inc.'s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $4,496,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in MS. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 119,718,100 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $21,253,554,000 after acquiring an additional 1,361,940 shares during the period. Capital International Investors lifted its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 0.6% during the 3rd quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 27,321,214 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $4,343,523,000 after purchasing an additional 167,487 shares in the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 1.9% during the 3rd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 24,494,146 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $3,893,590,000 after buying an additional 448,960 shares in the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 6.1% in the third quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 14,260,650 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,267,847,000 after buying an additional 822,120 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Schroder Investment Management Group grew its stake in Morgan Stanley by 3.8% during the third quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 9,712,071 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,543,831,000 after acquiring an additional 354,871 shares in the last quarter. 84.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MS has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Rothschild & Co Redburn boosted their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $171.00 to $183.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, April 17th. Citizens Jmp reaffirmed a "market perform" rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research note on Thursday, April 16th. Argus boosted their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $210.00 to $225.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 16th. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $219.00 to $230.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 16th. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane boosted their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $195.00 to $205.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, April 24th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $206.26.

Morgan Stanley News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley raised its S&P 500 forecast to 8,000 for year-end and 8,300 over 12 months, signaling a constructive view on equities and supporting sentiment around the firm. Morgan Stanley says S&P 500 can reach 8,300 in 12 months
• Positive Sentiment: The bank’s MSBT spot Bitcoin ETF reportedly posted strong first-month inflows and no outflows, suggesting healthy demand for Morgan Stanley-linked investment products. Morgan Stanley’s MSBT Bitcoin ETF Sees Zero Outflows in First Month
• Positive Sentiment: Recent brokerage commentary on other holdings and market strategy has kept Morgan Stanley in the spotlight as a go-to source for top-down equity views. Here’s Why Morgan Stanley (MS) Remains Bullish on Stocks
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst activity was mixed earlier in the week, with Citi lifting its price target to $194 while keeping a Neutral rating, which is supportive but not a strong catalyst by itself. Citi Raises Morgan Stanley (MS) Price Target Following Coverage Transfer
• Neutral Sentiment: Separately, media coverage around Morgan Stanley’s macro calls on inflation, the yuan, and global growth keeps the bank visible, but those items are more about commentary than a direct earnings driver for MS shares. Morgan Stanley Deepens Digital Bond Push With LTX AI Partnership

Morgan Stanley Price Performance

MS opened at $193.99 on Thursday. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $174.47 and its 200 day simple moving average is $174.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.52, a current ratio of 0.77 and a quick ratio of 0.77. Morgan Stanley has a 1 year low of $123.88 and a 1 year high of $194.95. The firm has a market cap of $305.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.57, a PEG ratio of 1.44 and a beta of 1.22.

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

Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 30th will be given a dividend of $1.00 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 30th. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.1%. Morgan Stanley's dividend payout ratio is presently 36.23%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Daniel A. Simkowitz sold 14,690 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $189.24, for a total transaction of $2,779,935.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 365,802 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $69,224,370.48. This represents a 3.86% 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 11,118 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $190.75, for a total transaction of $2,120,758.50. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 169,403 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $32,313,622.25. This trade 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 valued at $14,644,762 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.17% of the company's stock.

Morgan Stanley Profile

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.