Wakefield Asset Management LLLP Invests $2.26 Million in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS)

Wakefield Asset Management LLLP acquired a new position in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 19,382 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $2,261,000.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 2.4% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 25,844,753 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $3,240,089,000 after acquiring an additional 604,024 shares during the period. FMR LLC raised its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 11.9% during the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 25,561,560 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $3,213,599,000 after purchasing an additional 2,725,335 shares during the period. Capital Research Global Investors grew its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 44.8% during the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 21,794,873 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,740,051,000 after buying an additional 6,744,333 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley during the fourth quarter worth about $1,910,200,000. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its position in Morgan Stanley by 15.5% in the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 14,112,508 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,774,225,000 after purchasing an additional 1,890,245 shares during the last quarter. 84.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Morgan Stanley news, 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 transaction of $2,806,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 119,239 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,729,231.70. The trade was a 14.36% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Andrew M. Saperstein sold 43,566 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $140.97, for a total transaction of $6,141,499.02. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 294,250 shares of the company's stock, valued at $41,480,422.50. This trade represents a 12.90% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 188,949 shares of company stock worth $25,737,084. 0.19% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MS has been the topic of several recent research reports. Erste Group Bank raised Morgan Stanley from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, May 24th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised 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 report on Wednesday, July 9th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Morgan Stanley from $120.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. Evercore ISI cut their price target on Morgan Stanley from $150.00 to $138.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Morgan Stanley from $125.00 to $122.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 14th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $138.25.

Morgan Stanley Trading Down 0.1%

Shares of NYSE:MS opened at $140.27 on Wednesday. Morgan Stanley has a 12-month low of $90.94 and a 12-month high of $145.16. The company has a market capitalization of $225.04 billion, a PE ratio of 15.89, a PEG ratio of 1.77 and a beta of 1.30. The business has a 50 day moving average of $134.24 and a two-hundred day moving average of $127.24. 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 (NYSE:MS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 16th. The financial services provider reported $2.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.98 by $0.15. The firm had revenue of $16.79 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.15 billion. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 15.33% 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 quarter last year, the business posted $1.82 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 EPS for the current year.

Morgan Stanley declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, July 1st that allows the company to buyback $20.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the financial services provider to repurchase up to 8.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are generally an indication that the company's board of directors believes its stock is 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 issued a dividend of $1.00 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 31st. This is a positive change from Morgan Stanley's previous quarterly dividend of $0.93. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.85%. Morgan Stanley's dividend payout ratio is 45.30%.

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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