LGT Capital Partners LTD. Sells 96,698 Shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS)

Key Points

• LGT Capital Partners LTD. reduced its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 19.1%, owning 409,142 shares after selling 96,698 shares, making it the 16th largest holding in their portfolio.
• Multiple hedge funds have also adjusted their investments in Morgan Stanley, with some purchasing new stakes, while others significantly increased their existing positions.
• Insiders have sold a total of 148,149 shares of Morgan Stanley stock recently, with one insider selling 20,000 shares worth over $2.8 million, indicating a reduction in their ownership stakes.

LGT Capital Partners LTD. cut its position in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Free Report) by 19.1% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 409,142 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 96,698 shares during the period. Morgan Stanley makes up about 2.1% of LGT Capital Partners LTD.'s portfolio, making the stock its 16th biggest holding. LGT Capital Partners LTD.'s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $47,735,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG lifted its position in Morgan Stanley by 144.2% during the 1st quarter. J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG now owns 30,182 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $3,521,000 after acquiring an additional 17,824 shares during the period. R Squared Ltd boosted its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 219.1% during the 1st quarter. R Squared Ltd now owns 1,787 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $208,000 after purchasing an additional 1,227 shares during the last quarter. Banco Santander S.A. lifted its stake in Morgan Stanley by 25.6% during the first quarter. Banco Santander S.A. now owns 361,950 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $42,229,000 after purchasing an additional 73,778 shares in the last quarter. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 56.8% in the first quarter. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. now owns 70,933 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $8,276,000 after acquiring an additional 25,705 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mirabaud & Cie SA raised its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 25.4% in the first quarter. Mirabaud & Cie SA now owns 49,217 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $5,742,000 after acquiring an additional 9,970 shares in the last quarter. 84.19% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Morgan Stanley Trading Down 0.8%

MS stock traded down $1.12 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $140.24. The stock had a trading volume of 1,229,543 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,797,938. Morgan Stanley has a 12-month low of $91.52 and a 12-month high of $145.48. The company's 50-day moving average price is $137.18 and its 200 day moving average price is $128.28. The firm has a market cap of $224.99 billion, a PE ratio of 15.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.75 and a beta of 1.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.11, a current ratio of 0.78 and a quick ratio of 0.78.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 16th. The financial services provider reported $2.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.98 by $0.15. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 13.06% and a return on equity of 15.33%. The company had revenue of $16.79 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $16.15 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.82 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 11.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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

Morgan Stanley Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 31st will be issued a dividend of $1.00 per share. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 31st. This is a positive change from Morgan Stanley's previous quarterly dividend of $0.93. Morgan Stanley's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 45.30%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Morgan Stanley

In other news, insider Daniel A. Simkowitz sold 29,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $141.13, for a total value of $4,092,770.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 399,105 shares in the company, valued at approximately $56,325,688.65. This represents a 6.77% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Charles A. Smith sold 20,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $140.30, for a total transaction of $2,806,000.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 119,239 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $16,729,231.70. This represents a 14.36% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 148,149 shares of company stock worth $20,841,628. Corporate insiders own 0.19% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently commented on MS shares. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on Morgan Stanley from $121.00 to $136.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 10th. Citigroup reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $130.00 price objective (up previously from $125.00) on shares of Morgan Stanley in a report on Wednesday, June 18th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised Morgan Stanley from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $127.00 to $160.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Erste Group Bank raised Morgan Stanley from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Saturday, May 24th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $125.00 to $122.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 14th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $138.25.

Morgan Stanley 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.