World Investment Advisors Purchases 7,272 Shares of Morgan Stanley $MS

Key Points

• World Investment Advisors increased its Morgan Stanley stake by 34.9% in the fourth quarter, buying 7,272 additional shares and bringing its holding to 28,138 shares worth about $4.995 million.
• Morgan Stanley reported better-than-expected quarterly results, posting EPS of $3.43 versus estimates of $3.02 and revenue of $20.58 billion versus $19.23 billion expected. Revenue rose 16% year over year.
• The company announced a $1.00 quarterly dividend, or $4.00 annualized, yielding about 2.1%, while analysts currently rate the stock a Moderate Buy with an average target price of $206.26.

World Investment Advisors lifted its position in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Free Report) by 34.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 28,138 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 7,272 shares during the quarter. World Investment Advisors' holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $4,995,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in MS. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in Morgan Stanley by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 119,718,100 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $21,253,554,000 after buying an additional 1,361,940 shares during the last quarter. Junto Capital Management LP purchased a new position in Morgan Stanley during the third quarter valued at $170,037,000. Marshall Wace LLP raised its stake in Morgan Stanley by 40.2% during the third quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 2,933,604 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $466,326,000 after buying an additional 841,263 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its stake in Morgan Stanley by 6.1% during the third quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 14,260,650 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,267,847,000 after buying an additional 822,120 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Two Sigma Investments LP raised its stake in Morgan Stanley by 150.3% during the third quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 1,234,969 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $196,311,000 after buying an additional 741,651 shares during the last quarter. 84.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Morgan Stanley Stock Up 0.3%

Morgan Stanley stock opened at $194.40 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $306.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.61, a PEG ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 1.22. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $175.04 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $174.78. Morgan Stanley has a 12 month low of $123.88 and a 12 month high of $197.50. The company has a current ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.52.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 15th. The financial services provider reported $3.43 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.02 by $0.41. The business had revenue of $20.58 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $19.23 billion. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 17.70% and a net margin of 14.65%.The company's quarterly revenue was up 16.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.60 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Morgan Stanley will post 11.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 30th will be issued a $1.00 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 30th. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.1%. Morgan Stanley's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.23%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Morgan Stanley news, insider Andrew M. Saperstein sold 51,668 shares of Morgan Stanley stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $188.59, for a total value of $9,744,068.12. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 282,142 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $53,209,159.78. This trade represents a 15.48% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Eric F. Grossman sold 11,118 shares of Morgan Stanley stock in a transaction on Monday, April 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $190.75, for a total value of $2,120,758.50. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 169,403 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $32,313,622.25. The trade was a 6.16% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last quarter, insiders sold 77,476 shares of company stock valued at $14,644,762. Corporate insiders own 0.17% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the company. Bank of America lifted their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $220.00 to $225.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 16th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $186.00 to $205.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $173.00 to $179.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 10th. Citizens Jmp reiterated a "market perform" rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research note on Thursday, April 16th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Morgan Stanley has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $206.26.

More Morgan Stanley News

Here are the key news stories impacting Morgan Stanley this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley lifted its S&P 500 forecast to 8,000 for year-end and 8,300 over 12 months, highlighting a strong earnings environment and AI-led market strength. Morgan Stanley Hikes S&P 500 Target to 8,300 on AI Boom
• Positive Sentiment: The bank reiterated a bullish view on stocks and said market risks are already largely priced in, which supports a constructive outlook for its equity-related businesses. Here’s Why Morgan Stanley (MS) Remains Bullish on Stocks
• Neutral Sentiment: Morgan Stanley also appeared in several analyst notes on other companies, including price-target raises on names tied to AI, semis, and industrial energy themes, which keeps the firm visible as a leading market influencer.

Morgan Stanley Company Profile

Morgan Stanley NYSE: MS is a global financial services firm headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1935 by Henry S. Morgan and Harold Stanley, the company provides a broad range of investment banking, securities, wealth management and investment management services to corporations, governments, institutions and individual investors. Leadership has been guided by a senior executive team and board of directors; James P. Gorman has served as the company's chief executive and chairman in recent years.

The firm's primary business activities are organized around three principal businesses: Institutional Securities, Wealth Management and Investment Management.

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