Westpac Banking Corp Has $5.40 Million Stock Holdings in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS)

Key Points

• Westpac Banking Corp increased its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 22.8% during the first quarter, bringing its total ownership to 46,310 shares valued at over $5.4 million.
• Analyst ratings for Morgan Stanley show mixed sentiments, with a "strong buy" from Erste Group Bank and a neutral rating from Citigroup, indicating varying market perceptions.
• Morgan Stanley declared a quarterly dividend increase to $1.00, up from $0.93, and has authorized a share repurchase program worth $20 billion, reflective of management’s confidence in the stock's valuation.

Westpac Banking Corp increased its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Free Report) by 22.8% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 46,310 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 8,601 shares during the quarter. Westpac Banking Corp's holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $5,403,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Tlwm increased its stake in Morgan Stanley by 1.8% during the 1st quarter. Tlwm now owns 13,863 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,617,000 after purchasing an additional 248 shares in the last quarter. Rossmore Private Capital increased its stake in Morgan Stanley by 7.9% during the 1st quarter. Rossmore Private Capital now owns 12,837 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,498,000 after purchasing an additional 939 shares in the last quarter. Trajan Wealth LLC increased its stake in Morgan Stanley by 0.7% during the 1st quarter. Trajan Wealth LLC now owns 45,387 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $5,295,000 after purchasing an additional 298 shares in the last quarter. AGF Management Ltd. increased its stake in Morgan Stanley by 55.9% during the 1st quarter. AGF Management Ltd. now owns 327,978 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $38,265,000 after purchasing an additional 117,615 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Public Sector Pension Investment Board increased its stake in Morgan Stanley by 33.9% during the 1st quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 430,809 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $50,262,000 after purchasing an additional 108,960 shares in the last quarter. 84.19% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Morgan Stanley

In other Morgan Stanley news, insider Daniel A. Simkowitz sold 29,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $141.13, for a total transaction of $4,092,770.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 399,105 shares of the company's stock, valued at $56,325,688.65. This trade represents a 6.77% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Charles A. Smith sold 20,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction 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 sale, the insider directly owned 119,239 shares of the company's stock, valued at $16,729,231.70. This represents a 14.36% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 148,149 shares of company stock worth $20,841,628. 0.19% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the company. Citigroup reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $130.00 target price (up from $125.00) on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research note on Wednesday, June 18th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $121.00 to $136.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 10th. Erste Group Bank raised shares of Morgan Stanley from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, May 24th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $120.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised shares of Morgan Stanley from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and raised their price target for the stock from $127.00 to $160.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Morgan Stanley presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $138.25.

Morgan Stanley Stock Up 0.4%

Shares of NYSE MS traded up $0.54 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $147.83. The company had a trading volume of 5,541,877 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,348,447. The stock has a market capitalization of $235.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.84 and a beta of 1.32. 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 has a 1-year low of $94.09 and a 1-year high of $149.08. The firm's 50 day moving average is $139.31 and its 200-day moving average is $128.71.

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

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

Morgan Stanley Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 31st will be issued a dividend of $1.00 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 31st. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.7%. This is a positive change from Morgan Stanley's previous quarterly dividend of $0.93. Morgan Stanley's payout ratio is 45.30%.

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.