Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) Reaches New 12-Month High - Here's Why

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Get Free Report) hit a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $145.16 and last traded at $143.76, with a volume of 5990224 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $144.14.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently commented on MS. Citigroup restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $130.00 price objective (up previously from $125.00) on shares of Morgan Stanley in a report on Wednesday, June 18th. Evercore ISI decreased 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 report on Tuesday, April 1st. Erste Group Bank upgraded shares of Morgan Stanley from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Saturday, May 24th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised shares of Morgan Stanley from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $127.00 to $160.00 in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $121.00 to $136.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 10th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $136.69.

Morgan Stanley Stock Up 0.5%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.11, a current ratio of 0.78 and a quick ratio of 0.78. The firm has a market capitalization of $227.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 1.30. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $130.63 and a 200 day moving average price of $126.37.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Friday, April 11th. The financial services provider reported $2.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.21 by $0.39. The firm had revenue of $17.74 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.81 billion. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 14.98% and a net margin of 12.98%. The company's revenue was up 17.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.02 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 earnings per share for the current year.

Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 30th were paid a $0.925 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, April 30th. This represents a $3.70 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.61%. Morgan Stanley's payout ratio is 43.43%.

Morgan Stanley declared that its board has approved a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, July 1st that authorizes the company to buyback $20.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the financial services provider to purchase up to 8.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally an indication that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity at Morgan Stanley

In other Morgan Stanley news, insider Andrew M. Saperstein sold 40,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $120.00, for a total value of $4,800,000.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 335,765 shares in the company, valued at $40,291,800. This trade represents a 10.64% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Robert H. Herz sold 800 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $119.32, for a total transaction of $95,456.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 96,760 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,545,403.20. The trade was a 0.82% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 50,868 shares of company stock worth $6,019,548 in the last ninety days. 0.19% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Morgan Stanley

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Westmount Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $234,000. Czech National Bank lifted its position in Morgan Stanley by 6.2% in the second quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 301,957 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $42,534,000 after purchasing an additional 17,748 shares during the period. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt boosted its stake in Morgan Stanley by 93.5% during the second quarter. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt now owns 98,393 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $13,860,000 after buying an additional 47,550 shares in the last quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB increased its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 0.3% in the 2nd quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 80,801 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $11,382,000 after buying an additional 280 shares during the period. Finally, First National Corp MA ADV bought a new stake in Morgan Stanley in the 2nd quarter valued at $232,000. 84.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.