Trexquant Investment LP Purchases New Stake in Morgan Stanley $MS

Key Points

• Trexquant Investment LP has acquired a new position in Morgan Stanley, investing approximately $23.08 million for 197,791 shares, as reported in its recent Form 13F filing.
• Several hedge funds have recently increased their stakes in Morgan Stanley, with institutional investors now holding around 84.19% of the company's stock.
• Morgan Stanley has announced an increase in its quarterly dividend to $1.00 per share and initiated a stock buyback program authorizing repurchases of up to $20 billion in shares.

Trexquant Investment LP bought a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 197,791 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $23,076,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Morgan Stanley by 6.9% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 117,769,345 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $13,740,149,000 after purchasing an additional 7,636,547 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its stake in Morgan Stanley by 21.2% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 17,056,916 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,990,030,000 after purchasing an additional 2,989,122 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp increased its stake in Morgan Stanley by 3.0% in the 1st quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 13,807,153 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,610,881,000 after purchasing an additional 403,956 shares in the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its stake in Morgan Stanley by 1.7% in the 1st quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 13,063,819 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,523,337,000 after purchasing an additional 219,729 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its stake in Morgan Stanley by 8.9% in the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 9,210,293 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,157,918,000 after purchasing an additional 756,116 shares in the last quarter. 84.19% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Morgan Stanley Stock Up 0.2%

Shares of Morgan Stanley stock traded up $0.32 during trading on Monday, hitting $150.50. 3,627,988 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,341,883. The stock has a market cap of $240.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.04, a PEG ratio of 1.88 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. Morgan Stanley has a twelve month low of $94.09 and a twelve month high of $150.75. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $143.05 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $129.31.

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 the consensus estimate of $1.98 by $0.15. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 15.20% and a net margin of 13.06%.The business had revenue of $16.79 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.15 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.82 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 11.8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 31st were issued a dividend of $1.00 per share. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.7%. This is a boost from Morgan Stanley's previous quarterly dividend of $0.93. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 31st. Morgan Stanley's dividend payout ratio is presently 45.30%.

Morgan Stanley announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, July 1st that allows the company to buyback $20.00 billion in outstanding 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 typically a sign that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MS has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised Morgan Stanley from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $127.00 to $160.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Citigroup reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $130.00 target price (up previously from $125.00) on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research note on Wednesday, June 18th. Erste Group Bank raised Morgan Stanley from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, May 24th. 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 note on Tuesday, June 10th. Finally, 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 note on Tuesday, July 8th. 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 MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $138.25.

Insider Activity at Morgan Stanley

In other news, insider Andrew M. Saperstein sold 43,566 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $140.97, for a total transaction of $6,141,499.02. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 294,250 shares in the company, valued at approximately $41,480,422.50. The trade was a 12.90% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Charles A. Smith sold 20,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $140.30, for a total value of $2,806,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 119,239 shares in the company, valued at $16,729,231.70. This trade represents a 14.36% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 148,149 shares of company stock valued at $20,841,628. 0.19% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.