NewEdge Advisors LLC Buys 34,280 Shares of Morgan Stanley $MS

Key Points

• NewEdge Advisors LLC increased its stake in Morgan Stanley by 31.2%, holding 144,197 shares valued at approximately $16.82 million as of the latest SEC filing.
• Morgan Stanley reported a quarterly earnings per share of $2.13, exceeding expectations and showing an 11.8% year-over-year revenue increase to $16.79 billion.
• The company announced a $20 billion stock repurchase program and raised its quarterly dividend to $1.00 per share, reflecting increased shareholder returns.

NewEdge Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Free Report) by 31.2% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 144,197 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 34,280 shares during the period. NewEdge Advisors LLC's holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $16,823,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of MS. Brighton Jones LLC raised its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 10.2% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 12,782 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,607,000 after buying an additional 1,185 shares in the last quarter. Ancora Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of 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 in the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers raised its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 11.1% in the 4th quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 191,487 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $24,074,000 after buying an additional 19,195 shares in the last quarter. Centiva Capital LP raised its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 114.4% in the 4th quarter. Centiva Capital LP now owns 2,388 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $300,000 after buying an additional 19,003 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CoreCap Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 29.0% in the 4th quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC now owns 2,494 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $314,000 after buying an additional 561 shares in the last quarter. 84.19% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Morgan Stanley

In other news, CFO Sharon Yeshaya sold 25,583 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $139.81, for a total value of $3,576,759.23. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 128,662 shares in the company, valued at $17,988,234.22. This trade represents a 16.59% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, 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 value of $4,092,770.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 399,105 shares in the company, valued at $56,325,688.65. This represents a 6.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 148,149 shares of company stock worth $20,841,628. Corporate insiders own 0.19% of the company's stock.

Morgan Stanley Trading Up 0.5%

MS traded up $0.71 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $148.80. The stock had a trading volume of 3,820,303 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,276,927. The stock has a market capitalization of $237.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.85, a P/E/G ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 1.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.30, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a current ratio of 0.78. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $144.37 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $129.80. Morgan Stanley has a 52 week low of $94.09 and a 52 week high of $151.86.

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

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

Morgan Stanley Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 31st were given a $1.00 dividend. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 31st. This is a positive change from Morgan Stanley's previous quarterly dividend of $0.93. Morgan Stanley's dividend payout ratio is 45.30%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

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

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.