Park Avenue Securities LLC lifted its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Free Report) by 13.7% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 63,774 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 7,696 shares during the period. Park Avenue Securities LLC's holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $8,983,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.
Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. McLean Asset Management Corp increased its stake in Morgan Stanley by 2.5% during the second quarter. McLean Asset Management Corp now owns 3,007 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $430,000 after purchasing an additional 73 shares during the period. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. increased its stake in Morgan Stanley by 1.5% during the second quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. now owns 5,022 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $707,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares during the period. Congress Park Capital LLC increased its stake in Morgan Stanley by 2.4% during the second quarter. Congress Park Capital LLC now owns 3,250 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $458,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares during the period. Omnia Family Wealth LLC increased its stake in Morgan Stanley by 2.5% during the fourth quarter. Omnia Family Wealth LLC now owns 3,140 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $395,000 after purchasing an additional 77 shares during the period. Finally, Lantz Financial LLC increased its stake in Morgan Stanley by 4.7% during the second quarter. Lantz Financial LLC now owns 1,800 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $254,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.19% of the company's stock.
Morgan Stanley Price Performance
Morgan Stanley stock traded up $0.83 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $160.74. 4,421,040 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,030,504. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $147.18 and its 200-day simple moving average is $131.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.30, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a current ratio of 0.78. Morgan Stanley has a 1 year low of $94.33 and a 1 year high of $161.09. The company has a market capitalization of $256.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.20, a P/E/G ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 1.33.
Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 16th. The financial services provider reported $2.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 firm's quarterly revenue was up 11.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.82 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 EPS for the current year.
Morgan Stanley declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program 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 stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often a sign that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.
Morgan Stanley Increases Dividend
The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 31st were issued a dividend of $1.00 per share. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date 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%.
Insider Activity at Morgan Stanley
In related news, insider Charles A. Smith sold 20,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $140.30, for a total transaction of $2,806,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 119,239 shares in the company, valued at $16,729,231.70. The trade was a 14.36% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Michael A. Pizzi sold 18,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $140.62, for a total value of $2,531,160.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 136,407 shares of the company's stock, valued at $19,181,552.34. This represents a 11.66% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 148,149 shares of company stock worth $20,841,628 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.19% of the company's stock.
Analyst Ratings Changes
MS has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Citigroup restated 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. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $145.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 16th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped 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. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised Morgan Stanley from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and upped their price target for the company from $127.00 to $160.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $139.92.
Read Our Latest Research Report on Morgan Stanley
About Morgan Stanley
(
Free Report)
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.
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