Truist Financial Corp Reduces Holdings in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS)

Truist Financial Corp lessened its position in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Free Report) by 4.5% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 602,897 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 28,332 shares during the period. Truist Financial Corp's holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $70,340,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of MS. Minot DeBlois Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Morgan Stanley during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Morgan Stanley during the 1st quarter worth approximately $27,000. IAG Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in Morgan Stanley during the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Garde Capital Inc. bought a new stake in Morgan Stanley during the 1st quarter worth approximately $30,000. Finally, Curio Wealth LLC bought a new stake in Morgan Stanley during the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Institutional investors own 84.19% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Morgan Stanley

In other Morgan Stanley news, Director Robert H. Herz sold 800 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $119.32, for a total transaction of $95,456.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 96,760 shares of the company's stock, valued at $11,545,403.20. This represents a 0.82% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Eric F. Grossman sold 10,068 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $111.65, for a total transaction of $1,124,092.20. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 199,274 shares of the company's stock, valued at $22,248,942.10. The trade was a 4.81% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 50,868 shares of company stock valued at $6,019,548 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.19% of the company's stock.

Morgan Stanley Trading Down 1.8%

Shares of MS stock traded down $2.59 on Tuesday, hitting $141.15. 6,620,391 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,701,346. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.11, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a current ratio of 0.78. Morgan Stanley has a one year low of $90.94 and a one year high of $145.16. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $130.13 and its 200 day simple moving average is $126.27. The stock has a market capitalization of $226.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.57, a P/E/G ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 1.30.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 11th. The financial services provider reported $2.60 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.21 by $0.39. The business had revenue of $17.74 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $16.81 billion. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 12.98% and a return on equity of 14.98%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 17.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.02 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 EPS for the current year.

Morgan Stanley announced that its board has approved a stock buyback program on Tuesday, July 1st that authorizes the company to repurchase $20.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the financial services provider to purchase up to 8.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are generally an indication that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 30th were given a dividend of $0.925 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, April 30th. This represents a $3.70 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.62%. Morgan Stanley's payout ratio is currently 43.43%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $121.00 to $136.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 10th. JMP Securities reissued a "market perform" rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a report on Monday, April 14th. Bank of America decreased their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $150.00 to $144.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Evercore ISI decreased their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $150.00 to $138.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $125.00 to $122.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 14th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $135.54.

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.