Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) Shares Sold by Handelsbanken Fonder AB

Handelsbanken Fonder AB lowered its holdings in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Free Report) by 2.9% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 470,671 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 13,808 shares during the quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB's holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $54,913,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Minot DeBlois Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. IAG Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in Morgan Stanley during the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Curio Wealth LLC acquired a new position in Morgan Stanley during the fourth quarter worth approximately $31,000. Ancora Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Morgan Stanley by 104.7% in the fourth quarter. Ancora Advisors LLC now owns 264 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 135 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Crowley Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.19% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Morgan Stanley

In other news, insider Andrew M. Saperstein sold 40,000 shares of Morgan Stanley stock in a transaction on Friday, May 2nd. The stock was 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 now owns 335,765 shares of the company's stock, valued at $40,291,800. The trade was a 10.64% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Robert H. Herz sold 800 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $119.32, for a total value of $95,456.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 96,760 shares in the company, valued at $11,545,403.20. This trade represents a 0.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 50,868 shares of company stock worth $6,019,548. Corporate insiders own 0.19% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $130.00 to $120.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 14th. JMP Securities restated a "market perform" rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Citigroup decreased their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $135.00 to $125.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on Morgan Stanley from $125.00 to $122.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 14th. Finally, Evercore ISI reduced their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $150.00 to $138.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. Eleven investment 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 company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $133.23.

Morgan Stanley Price Performance

Shares of Morgan Stanley stock traded down $0.08 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $131.88. 3,816,040 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,678,091. Morgan Stanley has a fifty-two week low of $90.94 and a fifty-two week high of $142.03. The company has a quick ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.14. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $118.91 and a 200 day moving average price of $125.16. The stock has a market capitalization of $211.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.61, a P/E/G ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.29.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 11th. The financial services provider reported $2.60 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.21 by $0.39. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 14.39% and a net margin of 12.48%. The company had revenue of $17.74 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $16.81 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.02 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 17.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts expect that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 30th were paid a $0.925 dividend. This represents a $3.70 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.81%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, April 30th. Morgan Stanley's payout ratio is 43.43%.

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.