RB Capital Management LLC Acquires New Holdings in Morgan Stanley $MS

Key Points

• RB Capital Management LLC has acquired a new stake in Morgan Stanley, purchasing 1,792 shares valued at approximately $252,000 during the 2nd quarter.
• Morgan Stanley has reported Q2 earnings of $2.13 per share, exceeding analysts' estimates, with revenue reaching $16.79 billion, up 11.8% year-over-year.
• The company has authorized a $20 billion share buyback plan, signaling management's belief that the stock is undervalued, and has recently increased its quarterly dividend to $1.00 per share.

RB Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Free Report) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 1,792 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $252,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of MS. Brighton Jones LLC raised its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 10.2% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 12,782 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,607,000 after buying an additional 1,185 shares during the period. Silvercrest Asset Management Group LLC grew its position in Morgan Stanley by 9.5% in the 4th quarter. Silvercrest Asset Management Group LLC now owns 11,878 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,493,000 after acquiring an additional 1,027 shares in the last quarter. Teza Capital Management LLC grew its position in Morgan Stanley by 78.0% in the 4th quarter. Teza Capital Management LLC now owns 10,327 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,298,000 after acquiring an additional 4,524 shares in the last quarter. Texas Bank & Trust Co acquired a new position in Morgan Stanley in the 4th quarter valued at about $601,000. Finally, Two Sigma Investments LP grew its position in Morgan Stanley by 426.3% in the 4th quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 118,947 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $14,954,000 after acquiring an additional 96,347 shares in the last quarter. 84.19% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Morgan Stanley Stock Performance

Shares of Morgan Stanley stock opened at $156.47 on Monday. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $145.30 and a 200-day simple moving average of $130.50. 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 company has a market cap of $249.78 billion, a PE ratio of 17.72, a P/E/G ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.33. Morgan Stanley has a one year low of $94.33 and a one year high of $157.76.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 16th. The financial services provider reported $2.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.98 by $0.15. The firm 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 quarterly revenue was up 11.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.82 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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

Morgan Stanley Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 31st were issued a $1.00 dividend. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.6%. This is a positive change from Morgan Stanley's previous quarterly dividend of $0.93. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, July 31st. Morgan Stanley's dividend payout ratio is currently 45.30%.

Insider Transactions at Morgan Stanley

In related news, CFO Sharon Yeshaya sold 25,583 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 128,662 shares of the company's stock, valued at $17,988,234.22. This represents a 16.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale 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 company'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 completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 136,407 shares of the company's stock, valued at $19,181,552.34. This trade represents a 11.66% 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 valued at $20,841,628 over the last three months. 0.19% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

Morgan Stanley 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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