Tredje AP fonden Reduces Stock Position in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS)

Key Points

• Tredje AP fonden has reduced its stake in Morgan Stanley by 60.8%, selling 504,617 shares and holding 324,713 shares worth approximately $37.88 million according to its latest SEC filing.
• Insider transactions included Andrew M. Saperstein selling 43,566 shares and CFO Sharon Yeshaya selling 25,583 shares, leading to decreases of 12.90% and 16.59% in their ownership respectively.
• Morgan Stanley announced a $20 billion stock buyback plan and is increasing its quarterly dividend from $0.93 to $1.00, reflecting confidence in its financial outlook.

Tredje AP fonden trimmed its holdings in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Free Report) by 60.8% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 324,713 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 504,617 shares during the period. Tredje AP fonden's holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $37,884,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in MS. Omnia Family Wealth LLC increased its stake in Morgan Stanley by 2.5% during the 4th quarter. Omnia Family Wealth LLC now owns 3,140 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $395,000 after acquiring an additional 77 shares during the period. Continuum Advisory LLC increased its stake in Morgan Stanley by 2.5% during the 4th quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 3,638 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $457,000 after acquiring an additional 87 shares during the period. Insight Inv LLC increased its stake in Morgan Stanley by 0.5% during the 1st quarter. Insight Inv LLC now owns 18,378 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,144,000 after acquiring an additional 88 shares during the period. Vivaldi Capital Management LP increased its stake in Morgan Stanley by 1.8% during the 4th quarter. Vivaldi Capital Management LP now owns 5,096 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $696,000 after acquiring an additional 90 shares during the period. Finally, Jacobsen Capital Management increased its stake in Morgan Stanley by 4.2% during the 1st quarter. Jacobsen Capital Management now owns 2,212 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $258,000 after acquiring an additional 90 shares during the period. 84.19% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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 transaction, the chief financial officer owned 128,662 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,988,234.22. This represents a 16.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Andrew M. Saperstein sold 43,566 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $140.97, for a total value of $6,141,499.02. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 294,250 shares in the company, valued at approximately $41,480,422.50. The trade was a 12.90% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 188,949 shares of company stock worth $25,737,084. 0.19% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Morgan Stanley Stock Down 1.7%

MS traded down $2.48 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $142.46. 5,522,960 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,323,620. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.11, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a current ratio of 0.78. The company's fifty day moving average price is $136.61 and its 200 day moving average price is $128.23. The company has a market cap of $228.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.82 and a beta of 1.30. Morgan Stanley has a one year low of $90.94 and a one year high of $145.48.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 16th. The financial services provider reported $2.13 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.98 by $0.15. The firm 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 revenue for the quarter was up 11.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.82 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 EPS for the current year.

Morgan Stanley declared that its board has approved a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, July 1st that permits the company to repurchase $20.00 billion in outstanding 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 typically an indication that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

Morgan Stanley Increases Dividend

The firm 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 represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 31st. This is a boost from Morgan Stanley's previous quarterly dividend of $0.93. Morgan Stanley's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 41.90%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on MS shares. JMP Securities reiterated a "market perform" rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Erste Group Bank upgraded Morgan Stanley from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, May 24th. Citigroup reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $130.00 price target (up previously from $125.00) on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research note on Wednesday, June 18th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded Morgan Stanley from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and lifted their price target for the company from $127.00 to $160.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on Morgan Stanley from $121.00 to $136.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note 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 company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target 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.