Private Advisory Group LLC Invests $211,000 in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS)

Key Points

• Private Advisory Group LLC invested approximately $211,000 in Morgan Stanley, acquiring 1,811 shares during the first quarter.
• Morgan Stanley reported earnings of $2.13 per share for the last quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations of $1.98, along with a revenue of $16.79 billion.
• The company announced a $20 billion share buyback plan and increased its quarterly dividend from $0.93 to $1.00, reflecting confidence in its stock valuation.

Private Advisory Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 1,811 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $211,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Minot DeBlois Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Morgan Stanley during the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley during the 1st quarter worth $27,000. Garde Capital Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley in the first quarter worth about $30,000. Ancora Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 104.7% during the fourth quarter. Ancora Advisors LLC now owns 264 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 135 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wood Tarver Financial Group LLC bought a new position in Morgan Stanley in the 4th quarter worth $34,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.19% of the company's stock.

Morgan Stanley Trading Down 1.7%

NYSE:MS opened at $142.46 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $228.55 billion, a PE ratio of 16.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.82 and a beta of 1.30. The firm's 50 day moving average is $136.61 and its 200 day moving average is $128.23. The company has a current ratio of 0.78, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.11. Morgan Stanley has a 12 month low of $90.94 and a 12 month high of $145.48.

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

Morgan Stanley declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback plan on Tuesday, July 1st that authorizes the company to buyback $20.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the financial services provider to buy up to 8.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are usually an indication that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Morgan Stanley Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 31st will be paid a $1.00 dividend. This is a boost from Morgan Stanley's previous quarterly dividend of $0.93. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 31st. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.8%. Morgan Stanley's dividend payout ratio is presently 45.30%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Morgan Stanley news, insider Eric F. Grossman sold 12,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $141.12, for a total value of $1,693,440.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 186,420 shares in the company, valued at approximately $26,307,590.40. The trade was a 6.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Michael A. Pizzi sold 18,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $140.62, for a total transaction of $2,531,160.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 136,407 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,181,552.34. The trade was a 11.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 148,149 shares of company stock worth $20,841,628 in the last 90 days. 0.19% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently commented on MS shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded shares of Morgan Stanley from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and upped their target price for the company from $127.00 to $160.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Erste Group Bank upgraded Morgan Stanley from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, May 24th. Citigroup reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $130.00 price objective (up from $125.00) on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research report on Wednesday, June 18th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target 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. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $121.00 to $136.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 10th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Morgan Stanley presently has a consensus 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.

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