Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) Receives Average Recommendation of "Hold" from Analysts

Shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Get Free Report) have received an average rating of "Hold" from the seventeen ratings firms that are covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and five have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price target among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $132.46.

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Evercore ISI reduced their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $150.00 to $138.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. Bank of America lowered their target price on Morgan Stanley from $150.00 to $144.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Citigroup reduced their price target on Morgan Stanley from $135.00 to $125.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, March 24th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on Morgan Stanley from $138.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $130.00 to $120.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 14th.

Insider Buying and Selling at Morgan Stanley

In related news, insider Andrew M. Saperstein sold 40,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $120.00, for a total value of $4,800,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 335,765 shares of the company's stock, valued at $40,291,800. This trade represents a 10.64 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Eric F. Grossman sold 10,068 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $111.65, for a total transaction of $1,124,092.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 199,274 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $22,248,942.10. This represents a 4.81 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 50,868 shares of company stock valued at $6,019,548 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.19% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Morgan Stanley

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 4,711,805 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $491,159,000 after purchasing an additional 36,120 shares during the last quarter. Morse Asset Management Inc grew its stake in Morgan Stanley by 7.1% during the third quarter. Morse Asset Management Inc now owns 4,424 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $461,000 after buying an additional 295 shares during the last quarter. Sculati Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 1.9% during the third quarter. Sculati Wealth Management LLC now owns 35,013 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $3,650,000 after buying an additional 655 shares in the last quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 45.0% in the 3rd quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC now owns 15,063 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,570,000 after acquiring an additional 4,674 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB increased its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 474.3% during the 3rd quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 21,134 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,203,000 after purchasing an additional 17,454 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 84.19% of the company's stock.

Morgan Stanley Stock Down 0.4 %

MS stock traded down $0.45 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $119.78. The stock had a trading volume of 591,459 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,669,044. The company has a current ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.14. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $115.25 and a 200 day moving average price of $124.80. The company has a market capitalization of $193.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.08, a PEG ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.30. Morgan Stanley has a 1-year low of $90.94 and a 1-year high of $142.03.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 11th. The financial services provider reported $2.60 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.21 by $0.39. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 12.48% and a return on equity of 14.39%. The firm had revenue of $17.74 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.81 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.02 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 17.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 earnings per share for the current year.

Morgan Stanley Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 30th will be given a dividend of $0.925 per share. This represents a $3.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.09%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 30th. Morgan Stanley's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 43.43%.

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.