US Bancorp DE Has $106.40 Million Stock Holdings in Morgan Stanley $MS

Key Points

• US Bancorp DE increased its stake in Morgan Stanley by 0.3% during the second quarter, owning 755,354 shares valued at $106.40 million.
• Several institutional investors, including Brighton Jones LLC and Farther Finance Advisors LLC, boosted their stakes in Morgan Stanley, highlighting strong investor interest in the company.
• Morgan Stanley recently announced a quarterly dividend increase from $0.93 to $1.00, representing an annualized payout of $4.00 and a dividend yield of 2.6%.

US Bancorp DE grew its stake in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Free Report) by 0.3% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 755,354 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 1,953 shares during the period. US Bancorp DE's holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $106,400,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in MS. Brighton Jones LLC increased its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 10.2% in the fourth 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. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC increased its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 14.4% in the first quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC now owns 2,260 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $264,000 after buying an additional 284 shares during the period. Daymark Wealth Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 17.9% in the first quarter. Daymark Wealth Partners LLC now owns 5,352 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $624,000 after buying an additional 811 shares during the period. Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 33.5% in the first quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 11,912 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,379,000 after buying an additional 2,989 shares during the period. Finally, Pallas Capital Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 9.0% in the first quarter. Pallas Capital Advisors LLC now owns 3,297 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $385,000 after buying an additional 272 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.19% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Andrew M. Saperstein sold 43,566 shares of the firm'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 value of $6,141,499.02. Following the transaction, the insider owned 294,250 shares in the company, valued at $41,480,422.50. This trade represents a 12.90% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Daniel A. Simkowitz sold 29,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $141.13, for a total value of $4,092,770.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 399,105 shares in the company, valued at $56,325,688.65. This represents a 6.77% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 148,149 shares of company stock valued at $20,841,628. 0.19% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Morgan Stanley Stock Down 0.2%

Shares of NYSE:MS opened at $155.63 on Thursday. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $151.08 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $135.18. The firm has a market cap of $248.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.63, a PEG ratio of 1.82 and a beta of 1.32. 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 52-week low of $94.33 and a 52-week high of $163.98.

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, topping the consensus estimate of $1.98 by $0.15. The business 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 company's quarterly revenue was up 11.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.82 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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

Morgan Stanley Increases Dividend

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

MS has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their target price on Morgan Stanley from $145.00 to $171.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 1st. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on Morgan Stanley from $145.00 to $164.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, October 3rd. UBS Group raised their target price on Morgan Stanley from $156.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday. BMO Capital Markets initiated coverage on Morgan Stanley in a research note on Friday, October 3rd. They set an "outperform" rating and a $180.00 target price for the company. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Morgan Stanley from $145.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 16th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Morgan Stanley currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $154.85.

About Morgan Stanley

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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