Menora Mivtachim Holdings LTD. Reduces Position in Morgan Stanley $MS

Key Points

• Menora Mivtachim Holdings LTD. reduced its stake in Morgan Stanley by 30.3%, selling 464,750 shares, leaving it with approximately 1,068,227 shares valued at about $124.63 million as of its latest SEC filing.
• Company insiders, including CFO Sharon Yeshaya, sold a total of 148,149 shares worth over $20 million in the last 90 days, indicating a decrease in their ownership position.
• Morgan Stanley's stock recently underwent a dividend increase to $1.00 per share, up from $0.93, reflecting confidence in financial stability with a dividend yield of 2.8%.

Menora Mivtachim Holdings LTD. cut its position in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Free Report) by 30.3% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,068,227 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 464,750 shares during the quarter. Menora Mivtachim Holdings LTD. owned approximately 0.07% of Morgan Stanley worth $124,630,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Cresset Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 1.5% in the 1st quarter. Cresset Asset Management LLC now owns 41,673 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $4,862,000 after purchasing an additional 625 shares during the period. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV boosted its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 175.8% in the 1st quarter. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV now owns 5,734 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $669,000 after purchasing an additional 3,655 shares during the period. Ethic Inc. boosted its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 4.1% in the 1st quarter. Ethic Inc. now owns 168,968 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $19,556,000 after purchasing an additional 6,699 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 11.8% in the 1st quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 14,717 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,717,000 after purchasing an additional 1,557 shares during the period. Finally, Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC lifted its position in Morgan Stanley by 12.7% during the 1st quarter. Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC now owns 976,001 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $113,870,000 after acquiring an additional 109,686 shares during the period. 84.19% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Morgan Stanley Price Performance

NYSE MS traded up $0.0220 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $144.0920. The stock had a trading volume of 3,108,132 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,655,941. Morgan Stanley has a 52-week low of $94.09 and a 52-week high of $149.08. The company has a market cap of $230.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.32, a P/E/G ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.32. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $140.43 and a 200 day simple moving average of $128.83. The company has a quick ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.30.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 16th. The financial services provider reported $2.13 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.98 by $0.15. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 15.20% and a net margin of 13.06%.The firm had revenue of $16.79 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.15 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.82 EPS. Morgan Stanley's quarterly revenue was up 11.8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 31st were paid a $1.00 dividend. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, July 31st. This is an increase from Morgan Stanley's previous quarterly dividend of $0.93. Morgan Stanley's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 45.30%.

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have weighed in on MS shares. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $121.00 to $136.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 10th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised Morgan Stanley from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $127.00 to $160.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $120.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Citigroup reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $130.00 price objective (up from $125.00) on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research report on Wednesday, June 18th. Finally, Erste Group Bank raised Morgan Stanley from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, May 24th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $138.25.

Insider Transactions at Morgan Stanley

In related news, insider Andrew M. Saperstein sold 43,566 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $140.97, for a total value of $6,141,499.02. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 294,250 shares of the company's stock, valued at $41,480,422.50. This trade represents a 12.90% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Charles A. Smith sold 20,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $140.30, for a total value of $2,806,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 119,239 shares of the company's stock, valued at $16,729,231.70. The trade was a 14.36% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 148,149 shares of company stock worth $20,841,628 over the last ninety days. 0.19% of the stock is currently owned by corporate 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.