Larson Financial Group LLC Increases Stock Position in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS)

Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Free Report) by 78.4% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 7,637 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 3,355 shares during the quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC's holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $891,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Minot DeBlois Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Morgan Stanley in the fourth quarter worth $25,000. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Morgan Stanley during the first quarter worth about $27,000. Garde Capital Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley in the first quarter worth about $30,000. Ancora Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 104.7% in the 4th quarter. Ancora Advisors LLC now owns 264 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 135 shares during the period. Finally, Crowley Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Morgan Stanley in the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. 84.19% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently weighed in on MS. JMP Securities restated a "market perform" rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Erste Group Bank upgraded Morgan Stanley from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, May 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $125.00 to $122.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Citigroup reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $130.00 price target (up previously from $125.00) on shares of Morgan Stanley in a report on Wednesday, June 18th. Finally, Bank of America decreased their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $150.00 to $144.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Morgan Stanley presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $136.69.

Morgan Stanley Stock Down 0.1%

Shares of MS traded down $0.10 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $140.80. 5,572,318 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,987,986. The firm's fifty day moving average is $133.86 and its 200-day moving average is $127.11. Morgan Stanley has a 1 year low of $90.94 and a 1 year high of $145.16. The company has a current ratio of 0.78, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.11. The stock has a market capitalization of $225.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 1.30.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 16th. The financial services provider reported $2.13 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.98 by $0.15. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 15.33% and a net margin of 13.06%. The company 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 firm earned $1.82 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 11.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 earnings per share for the current year.

Morgan Stanley Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 31st will be paid a $1.00 dividend. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.84%. This is a positive change from Morgan Stanley's previous quarterly dividend of $0.93. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 31st. Morgan Stanley's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 43.43%.

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Andrew M. Saperstein sold 40,000 shares of Morgan Stanley stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $120.00, for a total value of $4,800,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 335,765 shares in the company, valued at approximately $40,291,800. This trade represents a 10.64% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Robert H. Herz sold 800 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $119.32, for a total transaction of $95,456.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 96,760 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $11,545,403.20. This trade represents a 0.82% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.19% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.